Pat Proctor

Pat Proctor
Proctor at COB Speicher in Tikrit, Iraq, 2010
Member of the Kansas House of Representatives
from the 41st district
Incumbent
Assumed office
January 11, 2021
Preceded byJeff Pittman
Personal details
Born (1971-06-14) June 14, 1971 (age 55)
PartyRepublican
SpouseAree
EducationPurdue University (BS)
United States Army Command and General Staff College (MMAS, MMAS)
Kansas State University (PhD)
United States Army War College (MS)
Military service
Allegiance United States
Branch/service United States Army
RankColonel
Battles/warsWar in Afghanistan
Iraq War

Patrick E. Proctor, (born June 14, 1971) is an American politician serving as a member of the Kansas House of Representatives, representing the 41st district since 2021. First elected in 2020, Proctor's district includes Fort Leavenworth and Leavenworth, Kansas.

Proctor is a retired United States Army colonel and the Republican Party nominee for Kansas Secretary of State in 2026.

Career

Proctor is a retired United States Army colonel. He settled in Leavenworth, Kansas, upon retirement from the Army. Proctor is a graduate of the School of Advanced Military Studies. Proctor most recently deployed to Jordan as a battalion commander. In 2009, he deployed as the operations officer for Task Force Patriot (2nd Battalion, 32nd Field Artillery) to Saddam Hussein's hometown of Tikrit, Iraq. In 2007, Proctor worked as part of the Joint Strategic Assessment Team, a team of diplomats, military theorists, and intellectuals assembled by Gen. David Petraeus and Ambassador Ryan Crocker and led by Col. H.R. McMaster to develop the strategy for post-surge Iraq.

Proctor is an assistant professor of homeland security at Wichita State University. Proctor is also a wargame developer and founder of ProSIM Company. The company develops computer wargames that are published by distributor Shrapnel Games. ProSIM is known for its simulations of modern warfare, including titles such as BCT Commander, Armored Task Force, and Air Assault Task Force. ProSIM has also worked with military contractors such as Boeing and Lockheed Martin to produce ground combat simulations.

Proctor and his wife, Aree, co-own Leavenworth restaurants Baan Thai Restaurant Inc. and Noodles of Asia. In 2016, the U.S. Department of Labor approached Proctor for failure to record employees' hours, violations of federal minimum wage law, and failure to pay required overtime over the course of the previous two years. Proctor blamed the violations on federal bureaucrats. Baan Thai Restaurant was ultimately cited for 41 violations and fined $93,008.

Political career

In the 2020 Kansas House of Representatives election, Proctor ran for the 41st district of the Kansas House of Representatives. The seat was open following Democratic incumbent Jeff Pittman's decision to run for the Kansas Senate. During the campaign, Proctor stated he opposed Medicaid expansion, instead supporting using the funds to support small businesses. He defeated Democratic Leavenworth mayor Mike Griswold, flipping the seat to the Republican Party.

In 2022, Proctor was re-elected with 51.7% of the vote over Democratic nominee Harry Schwarz.

In March 2023, Proctor and Leavenworth school board member Vanessa Reid visited the David Brewer Elementary School library, where Proctor took a photo of a student's drawing of a pride flag and wrote "It was clear that the school library was doing more indoctrinating than educating" in his official newsletter. Proctor also reiterated his support for Reid, who faced calls to resign after joking that the best attribute in a new superintendent would be "blue eyes."

In 2024, Proctor was re-elected over Democratic nominee Aimee Bateman. The race was noted by the The Topeka Capital-Journal as a priority for Democrats to break the Republican Party's supermajority in the body.

In April 2025, Proctor announced his campaign for secretary of state of Kansas in the 2026 election.

Writings

Since 2008, Proctor has been an active freelance writer. He has been published in the US Army War College journal, Parameters, and online at StrategyPage.com and Armchair General. He just completed work on his fourth book, Lessons Unlearned: The U.S. Army's Role in Creating the Forever-Wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. This book will be published by the University of Missouri Press in February 2020.

Proctor also maintains a blog, Media Warfare, which covers various topics and includes discussion of wargames, book reviews, and commentary on current events.

Notes

  1. ↑ "Leavenworth House member first Republican to declare as 2026 candidate for secretary of state • Kansas Reflector". Archived from the original on 2025-04-04. Retrieved 2026-09-25.
  2. ↑ "Legislators Past & Present". library.ks.gov. Retrieved 2026-09-25.
  3. ↑ "Unknown". Archived from the original on 2017-12-22. Retrieved 2013-04-14.
  4. 1 2 "Pat Proctor, Author".
  5. ↑ Unknown[permanent dead link]
  6. ↑ Bob Woodward, The War Within: A Secret White House History, 2006-2008, 335-337
  7. ↑ "People".
  8. ↑ "Gamespot Company Page for ProSim - Games by ProSim - ProSim Company Information". Archived from the original on 2012-11-09. Retrieved 2011-06-12.
  9. ↑ "COMBATSIM.COM: Leading Aerospace Company Boeing To Use Air Assault Task Force!". www.combatsim.com. Retrieved 2025-04-06.
  10. ↑ Carpenter, Tim (October 8, 2026). "Kansas GOP candidate for secretary of state fined $93,000 for breaking federal labor law". Kansas Reflector. Retrieved October 12, 2026.
  11. ↑ "Candidates vying for Leavenworth House seat differ on tax issues, Medicaid expansion". The KLC Journal. October 21, 2020. Retrieved October 12, 2026.
  12. ↑ "2022 Kansas State House - District 41 Election Results". The Daily Journal. November 8, 2022. Retrieved October 12, 2026.
  13. ↑ Ritter, Sarah (March 10, 2023). "KC school leader told to resign amid conflict over rainbow drawings, 'blue eyes' remark". The Kansas City Star. Retrieved October 12, 2026.
  14. ↑ "2024 Kansas General Elections Results - State House District 41". USA Today. January 23, 2025. Retrieved October 12, 2026.
  15. ↑ Alatidd, Jason (August 29, 2024). "These 10 races are how Democrats plan to break GOP supermajorities in Kansas". The Topeka Capital-Journal. Retrieved October 12, 2026.
  16. ↑ Carpenter, Tim (April 4, 2025). "Leavenworth House member first Republican to declare as 2026 candidate for secretary of state". Kansas Reflector. Retrieved October 12, 2026.
  17. ↑ "USAWC Redirect".[dead link]
  18. ↑ "The Other Napoleonic Wars | Armchair General Magazine - We Put YOU in Command!".
  19. ↑ "Pat Proctor, Author".
  20. ↑ "Books & Products".