State Sen. Will Kraus, R-Kansas City, announced his 2016 campaign for Missouri Secretary of State in a statement Thursday morning.

“I believe we need better leadership in the Secretary of State’s office, both for Missouri’s voters and for our small businesses,” he said. “I believe I can offer that leadership.”

Democratic incumbent Jason Kander has said he will seek reelection that year. Kraus, an Iraq war veteran, played up his military credentials – just like Kander did during his first statewide campaign (Kander is a veteran of the Afghanistan war).

“Military members who are protecting our country need to be sure their vote counts,” he said. “I pledge to keep working both locally and with the federal government to make sure it is easy for deployed members to vote, and that every effort is made to get those votes on time.”

In his announcement, Kraus quietly mentioned his support of voter identification laws, but did not make it a main theme.

Kraus rolled out supporting statements from Senate President Pro Tem Tom Dempsey, Senate Majority Leader Ron Richard, House Elections Committee Chairman Tony Duggar, Sens. Doug Libla, Brad Lager, Brian Munzlinger, and Reps. Mike Cierpiot, Charlie Davis, and Andrew Koenig.