Three candidates file to fill the long-vacant 1st District at-large seat on Unified Government’s commission

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Unified Government of Wyandotte County’s Commission had two years to fill a vacancy in its 1st District at-large seat but couldn’t. So the voters will do that job this spring.

The 1st District at-large seat has remained vacant since Mark Holland, the last UG commissioner to hold that office, was elected mayor in 2013. Since then, the UG commission cast several deadlocked votes to pick either Nathan Barnes or Don Budd to fill that open position.

UG carried on with its business, saying that its charter didn’t require the commission to pick a successor.

Barnes, a longtime commissioner whose political career in KCK predates the unification of KCK and Wyandotte County governments, will run for the at-large seat. Barnes’ selection to replace Holland in 2013 was complicated by reports that he owed back taxes at the time.

Barnes was most recently in the news when he announced his support last September for Gov. Sam Brownback, one of a tiny klatch of Kansas Democrats who supported the Republican’s re-election.

Joining Barnes in the race so far is Mark Gilstrap and Christal Watson, making enough candidates to force a March 3 primary election, which will reduce the field to two for an April 7 general election.

Gilstrap formerly served as a Kansas senator from Wyandotte County from 1996 to 2008. He ran as a Democrat that whole time but was unseated by fellow Democrat Kelly Kultala. Gilstrap lost his support among Kansas Democrats, who took exception to his habit of breaking party ranks and voting along with Republicans and endorsing some of the GOP’s candidates. Gilstrap later became a Republican. His brother, Mike Gilstrap, ran against Holland for the 1st District at-large seat but lost. [This corrects an earlier version of the story, that identified Mark Gilstrap as the candidate for 1st District at-large, losing to Holland.]

Watson is CEO of the Kansas Black Chamber of Commerce and also serves on the Kansas City, Kansas, Public Schools Board.

In other UG spring elections, Harold Johnson, a pastor with Faith Deliverance Family Worship Center, has filed to run for the 4th District seat. That office is currently held by Tarence Maddox, but Maddox has yet to official file for re-election.

Maddox won the seat in 2011 by 18 votes but has since led a tumultuous term that included an arrest at Legoland in Crown Center after making a scene with employees there, and causing another ruckus at a gas station, just to name a few embarrassments. Maddox was hit with a censure by the UG Ethics Commission.

Maddox is rumored to seek another term but has not yet responded to an e-mail from The Pitch seeking clarification on his intentions.

Filing for UG Commission closes at noon on January 27.

Incumbents Brian McKiernan (2nd District), Ann Murguia (3rd District) and Angela Markley (6th District) have all filed to run again and have not yet drawn an opponent.