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JUDY WOODRUFF: And the other big political story of the last 24 hours is from Kansas. The U.S. Senate race there grew much more interesting late yesterday after Democratic candidate Chad Taylor abruptly announced that he was dropping out of the race.

That leaves independent Greg Orman to face off against veteran Republican incumbent Pat Roberts, who just last month survived a Tea Party primary challenge. And all of it could have far-reaching consequences for which party controls the Senate.

For more, I spoke just a short while ago to Jonathan Martin. Hes the national political correspondent for The New York Times.

Jonathan Martin, thank you for joining us at the NewsHour again.

So, why did this Democratic candidate, Chad Taylor, suddenly pull out two months before the election?

JONATHAN MARTIN, National Political Correspondent, The New York Times: Well, because, quietly, there has been pressure on him to get out because there is a well-funded independent candidate who Democrats think may actually have a shot to beat Senator Roberts this fall.

Pat Roberts is someone whos never really had a race, Judy. Hes been in Washington since 1980, when he first came to the House, came to the Senate in 1996. Hes never received below 60 percent. Why is it different now? Well, because he is somebody whos been attacked from the right for the entire year. He had a tough primary against a Tea Party opponent.

And hes made a few gaffes on the campaign trail that are connected to the fact that he doesnt have a home of his own in Kansas anymore. His primary home is in Alexandria, Virginia, in the Washington suburbs. And so he is somebody who was vulnerable to a primary challenge. He won his primary, Judy, in August, but only got 48 percent of the vote. There was some polling in the weeks after that that showed this third-party candidate, who, again, has been on TV because he has money, was competitive with Roberts.

And Democrats believed that if their own nominee was to get off the ballot and they could make the independent the de facto Democratic nominee, that they would have a shot to pull off one of the biggest upsets in Senate history, and beat Pat Roberts in Kansas, a state which has not sent a Democrat to the U.S. Senate, Judy, since 1932.

JUDY WOODRUFF: It would be it would be historic by political standards.

Read more:
How a last minute Democrat move could steal Kansas from the GOP

Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach yesterday helped his fellow Republicans by preventing a Democrat from pulling his name off the U.S. Senate ballot.

It was the latest development in the re-election bid of incumbent Republican Senator Pat Roberts, who already has faced controversy over his questionable Kansas residency, and a serious Tea Party primary challenge. Its playing out in a state that tilts so far their way that Republicans shouldnt have to worry about it.

Former Democratic Senate candidate Chad Taylor learned that its not that easy to get your name off the ballot, at least in Kobachs Kansas. The secretarys ruling found that Taylor, a district attorney who had struggled to raise money for his race, didnt comply with state law when he withdrew from the race on Sept. 3 without explanation.

His sudden departure had drawn suspicion from Republicans that he was trying to boost independent candidate and businessman Greg Ormans chances of defeating Roberts by making it a one-on-one race.

Mr. Taylor did not declare that he is incapable of fulfilling the duties of U.S. Senator, if elected, the states top election official said in a statement. Therefore, Mr. Taylors name will appear on the ballot for the office of United States senator for the Nov. 4 general election.

The Roberts campaign was more explicit, calling Taylors withdrawal a corrupt bargain between Democratic leaders and Orman, according to the Associated Press.

Taylor, in a statement, said he planned to challenge the ruling and noted that Kobach serves on Pat Roberts honorary committee, a reference to the incumbents campaign.

He contacted the secretary of states office to inquire about the steps needed to terminate his candidacy and withdraw his name from the ballot and said he was provided explicit instructions as to the information required in the letter to remove my name.

When he submitted the letter, Taylor said he asked if it had all the information necessary to remove his name from the ballot and was told that it did. My candidacy in this race was terminated, he said.

The Kansas race has emerged as a wild card in the fight for control of the Senate, a battle where Republicans need a net gain of six seats to win the chamber.

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Kansas Republicans Block Democrat From Exiting Senate Bid

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Washington Whats the matter with Kansas?

Suddenly, theres no Democrat running for Senate in the Sunflower State and thats good news for the Democratic Party, which is fighting to keep its Senate majority. In improbable fashion, deep-red Kansas could be the Democrats savior.

Democratic nominee Chad Taylor abruptly withdrew from the race Wednesday, amid poor fundraising and low poll numbers. Independent candidate Greg Orman can now go one-on-one against three-term Sen. Pat Roberts (R), who just survived a bruising primary. The early thinking is that Mr. Orman, a wealthy businessman, has a real shot.

Apparently, national Republicans think so as well. The National Republican Senatorial Committee is dispatching veteran campaign strategist Chris LaCivita to Kansas to help Roberts, according to The New York Times.

A mid-August poll by the Democratic-leaning Public Policy Polling showed Orman beating Senator Roberts by 10 points 43 percent to 33 percent in a hypothetical matchup. Now that pairing (plus a low-scoring libertarian) is no longer so hypothetical. Perhaps more alarming for Roberts is that the same poll showed him with just a 27 percent approval rating.

If Roberts loses in November, and the Democrats can convince Orman to caucus with them, that could spell the difference between losing and keeping their Senate majority.

Roberts has the fight of his life on his hands. And if you were going to cast a vote right now, youd be talking about Kansas sending, I believe, our first independent to Congress. This is huge, Chapman Rackaway, a professor of political science at Fort Hays State University, told The Wichita Eagle.

Mr. Rackaway predicted that Mr. Taylors supporters would flock to Orman.

Roberts isnt the only Republican incumbent in trouble in Kansas. Gov. Sam Brownback (R) faces a spirited challenge from Democrat Paul Davis; polls are close. Mr. Davis, Democratic leader in the Kansas House, says that tax cuts are wrecking the state budget and harming public education. In July, Davis announced the support of 100 Kansas Republicans, including more than 50 former legislators.

In their statement of support, the Republicans accused Governor Brownback, a former US senator, of bringing back from Washington a sharp-edged, win-at-all-costs political approach.

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Kansas shakeup could ruin GOP Senate takeover