Jake LaTurner facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Jake LaTurner
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| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Kansas's 2nd district |
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| In office January 3, 2021 – January 3, 2025 |
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| Preceded by | Steve Watkins |
| Succeeded by | Derek Schmidt |
| 40th Treasurer of Kansas | |
| In office April 25, 2017 – January 2, 2021 |
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| Governor | Sam Brownback Jeff Colyer Laura Kelly |
| Preceded by | Ron Estes |
| Succeeded by | Lynn Rogers |
| Member of the Kansas Senate from the 13th district |
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| In office January 9, 2013 – April 25, 2017 |
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| Preceded by | Bob Marshall |
| Succeeded by | Richard Hilderbrand |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Jacob Andrew Joseph LaTurner
February 17, 1988 Galena, Kansas, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse |
Suzanne Van Gotten
(m. 2009) |
| Children | 4 |
| Education | Pittsburg State University (BA) Naval War College |
Jake LaTurner (born February 17, 1988) is an American politician. He served as a U.S. representative for Kansas's 2nd congressional district from 2021 to 2025. This means he was one of the people who represented Kansas in the U.S. Congress.
Before that, LaTurner was the 40th Kansas state treasurer from 2017 to 2021. The state treasurer manages the state's money. He also served as a state senator for the 13th district from 2013 to 2017. A state senator helps make laws for their state. LaTurner is a member of the Republican Party.
When he became Kansas state treasurer, Jake LaTurner was the youngest person in the country to hold a statewide office. He was elected to this job in 2018, becoming the youngest elected statewide official in the United States. In 2024, LaTurner announced he would not run for reelection.
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Early Life and Education
Jake LaTurner was born and grew up in Galena, Kansas. He went to Galena High School. After high school, he studied political science at Pittsburg State University. While in college, LaTurner worked for former Kansas Treasurer and Congresswoman Lynn Jenkins. He worked in her office in Pittsburg.
Serving in the Kansas Senate
In 2012, LaTurner ran for the District 13 state senate seat. He won against Bob Marshall, who was the current senator. At 24 years old, LaTurner became the youngest person serving in the Kansas Senate.
As a senator, LaTurner worked on several important ideas. He suggested laws that would limit how long state lawmakers could serve. This is called a term limit. He also worked to make it easier for people to ask for public records. These are official documents that the public can usually see. He also tried to stop nepotism, which is when people in power give jobs or favors to family members.
In 2015, LaTurner was a main supporter of a law that allowed adults in Kansas to carry firearms without a special permit. In 2016, he wrote a bill to limit how much property taxes could increase.
Kansas State Treasurer
In April 2017, Governor Sam Brownback chose Jake LaTurner to be the Kansas state treasurer. He took over from Ron Estes. At 29, LaTurner was the youngest person to hold a statewide office in the country. In 2018, he won the election for treasurer against state senator Marci Francisco. This made him the youngest elected statewide official in the U.S.
One of the main jobs of the state treasurer is to manage unclaimed property. This is money or items that people have forgotten about or lost. In Kansas, there was over $350 million worth of unclaimed property. LaTurner visited all 105 counties in Kansas during his first year. He helped return over $10 million to people during this tour. In his first year, he returned a record amount of unclaimed property, over $25.5 million. He said that every dollar returned helps local communities.
LaTurner also managed programs like the Kansas Learning Quest 529 Education Savings and ABLE Savings Programs. These programs help Kansans save money for their future education or for people with disabilities. He made changes so that people with disabilities could move money from education savings accounts to their ABLE accounts. Also, Learning Quest 529 accounts could be used for K-12 school tuition.
In December 2020, Governor Laura Kelly announced that Lynn Rogers would become the next treasurer. Rogers took office in January 2021.
LaTurner v. United States
As Kansas Treasurer, LaTurner continued a legal case against the U.S. government. The case asked the federal government to return money from old bonds to Kansas. A judge first agreed with Kansas, saying about $150 million should be returned. However, a higher court later decided in favor of the federal government. The money will still be returned to Kansans, but the federal government will handle it, not the state.
2020 U.S. Senate Campaign
On January 8, 2019, LaTurner announced he would run for the United States Senate. He wanted to take the place of Senator Pat Roberts, who was retiring. LaTurner was 30 years old at the time, which is the youngest age allowed by the U.S. Constitution to be a senator.
LaTurner campaigned as a conservative. He supported building a wall along the Mexico–United States border. He also believed in being careful with government money and supported term limits for politicians in Washington, D.C. He said that people's rights come from God, not from the government.
LaTurner stated that he would stop his campaign if United States Secretary of State Mike Pompeo decided to run for the Senate seat. On September 9, 2019, LaTurner stopped his Senate campaign. He decided to run for the U.S. House of Representatives instead.
U.S. House of Representatives
Elections
2020 Election
LaTurner decided to challenge the current U.S. Representative, Steve Watkins, in the 2020 election. Some people worried that Watkins might lose the seat to a Democrat. LaTurner announced he would end his Senate campaign to run for the House on September 4, 2019.
LaTurner was able to use money from his Senate campaign for his House campaign. This gave him an advantage over Watkins. On August 4, 2020, LaTurner won the Republican primary election against Watkins. He then ran against Democratic Topeka Mayor Michelle De La Isla in the general election on November 3. LaTurner won the general election.
Time in Office
On January 6, 2021, during the counting of votes for the 2020 presidential elections, LaTurner voted to question some of Arizona's votes. This happened after a time of unrest at the U.S. Capitol. Before the voting finished, he had to leave because he tested positive for COVID-19. Because of this, he could not vote on Pennsylvania's electoral votes. LaTurner later voted against trying to remove President Trump from office.
On April 18, 2024, LaTurner announced he would not run for reelection to the House of Representatives. He said that serving in Congress had taken a "toll" on him. He also said he would not run for state offices in 2026.
Committee Assignments
In the House of Representatives, members work on different committees. These committees study specific topics and help create laws. Jake LaTurner was part of these committees:
- Committee on Homeland Security: This committee deals with protecting the country.
- Subcommittee on Cybersecurity, Infrastructure Protection and Innovation
- Subcommittee on Intelligence and Counterterrorism
- Committee on Oversight and Accountability: This committee checks how the government is working.
- Subcommittee on Government Operations
- Committee on Science, Space, and Technology: This committee focuses on science, space, and technology.
- Subcommittee on Research and Technology
Caucus Memberships
A caucus is a group of lawmakers who share similar interests or goals.
- Republican Study Committee
After Congress
In 2025, Jake LaTurner became a partner at PLUS Communications. This company helps with strategic communication and public affairs in the Washington, D.C. area.
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Jake LaTurner
