CQ Voting Studies are an annual analysis of a member's support or opposition to a given position. Interest Group Ratings are based on rankings from groups chosen to represent liberal, conservative, business and labor viewpoints.Voting Participation scores are based on the number of times a member voted "yea" or "nay" on roll call votes (not including quorum calls in the House). CQ Vote Studies Year Presidential Support Party Unity   S* O* S O 1998 29% 71% 90% 10% 1997 27 73 95 5 S=Support; O=Oppose
Voting Participation Year % 1998 100 1997 99	Interest Groups Year ADA AFL-CIO CCUS ACU 1998 10% n/a 100% 92 % 1997 10 25 90 96
Note on Interest Groups: ADA=Americans for Democratic Action; AFL-CIO=American Federation of Labor-Congress of Industrial Organizations; CCUS=Chamber of Commerce of the United States; ACU=American Conservative Union

KANSAS 1 : Rural West - Salina; Hutchinson; Dodge City

Stretching across 66 counties, the fiscally conservative 1st covers most of rural Kansas. Starting in east central Kansas, where cattle graze in the nearly treeless prairie of Flint Hills, the 1st takes in farmland and ends at the western Kansas border. In land area, it covers two-thirds of Kansas and is bigger than most U.S. states (including 23 of the 26 states east of the Mississippi River).

The 1st's economy is wedded to agriculture, an industry that suffered from weather disasters in the 1980s and falling commodity prices in the '90s. More and more rural residents have packed their bags for the cities to escape the tough farming life.

In the west, towns such as Garden City and Dodge City rely on meat-packing and tourism. Thriving beef-processing plants continue to draw Mexican and Asian immigrants. In the eastern part of the 1st, the district's second largest city, Hutchinson, is dominated by farm- and food-related business.

Home to former Sen. Bob Dole, the district is comfortably Republican, although it did exhibit an independent streak in the 1992 presidential election, giving Ross Perot 29 percent of the vote. The GOP also dominates local offices, except in Hutchinson and Hays, where Fort Hays State U. helps to elect a few Democrats.

Major Industry
Agriculture, manufacturing, oil and gas

Population
619,371 (1990)

Cities
Salina, 44,176; Hutchinson, 39,015; Garden City, 25,366 (1996)

People
51% rural; 17% age 65+ (ranks first of four in state; top third nationally); 62% married couples, 28% married couples with children; 15% college educated (ranks fourth of four in state; bottom third nationally); 46% white collar (ranks fourth of four in state; bottom third nationally), 28% blue collar (ranks second of four in state; middle third nationally) (1990)

Race
94% white, 1% black, 1% Asian; 5% Hispanic origin (1990)

Median Household Income
$23,433 (ranks fourth of four in state; bottom third nationally) (1990)

Unusual Features
President Dwight D. Eisenhower's burial place and presidential library in Abilene; Film actor and director Dennis Hopper from Dodge City.

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