Four candidates compete to lead Johnson County commission. What to know before the primary
As longtime Johnson County Commission Chairman Ed Eilert prepares to step down, four candidates with widely different viewpoints are vying to replace him in a heated primary race.
Two of them were elected to the commission just two years ago: Charlotte O’Hara, an outspoken conservative, and Shirley Allenbrand, who is endorsed by Eilert and defeated conservative Mike Brown in 2020.
The other candidates: Roeland Park Mayor Mike Kelly, perhaps best known for his work combating climate change, and certified public accountant Ken Selzer, who, like O’Hara, questions the legitimacy of the 2020 presidential election.
The election is technically nonpartisan, though not all candidates are treating it that way.
The top two vote-getters in the Tuesday primary will move on to the general election in November.
In addition, three commission seats are up for election this year, but only one, Michael Ashcraft’s 5th District seat, is contested in the primary.
The board, composed of seven elected officials, adopts the $1.45 billion budget and oversees county departments. It creates public policy, enacts legislation, establishes and enforces regulations and codes and appoints certain county officials.
The commissioners are elected in staggered four-year terms, with six commissioners representing a different district and one commissioner, the chairman, representing the entire county.
In their public statements, candidates in the primary have distinguished themselves by staking out positions on the budget, taxes, county services like libraries and parks, and COVID-19.
Some of the candidates disagree on Johnson County Sheriff Calvin Hayden’s months-long investigation into alleged claims of voter fraud, with some saying it’s a waste of taxpayer dollars and others supporting the probe.
Hayden has said he is investigating election fraud allegations in Johnson County. But no evidence has been brought forward.
Two candidates also refused to definitively acknowledge that Joe Biden is the President of the United States when asked at a Shawnee Mission Post forum.
On Election Day, polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. To find information on voter registration and polling place locations, voters can go to the Kansas Secretary of State website.
Early voting in Johnson County is underway, and locations can be found at the Johnson County Election Office website.
The Star spoke with each of the candidates ahead of Tuesday’s primary.
Charlotte O’Hara
Since O’Hara was elected to her 3rd District commission seat in 2020, she has made the most headlines for her opposition to school mask mandates. Last year she sued the Blue Valley school district after she was refused entry into a district meeting because she was not wearing a mask.
A former state representative and district chair for the Republican Party, O’Hara wants to consider cutting the health department budget and giving more money to the sheriff’s office.
O’Hara said the Johnson County Department of Health and Environment’s budget increased during the COVID-19 pandemic, and the board should consider bringing it back down to 2019 levels because, she said, the pandemic is over.
In fact, COVID-19 cases are on the rise in the Kansas City area, partly due to the BA.5 subvariant. Johnson County remains in the high COVID-19 level based on the number of new cases, hospital admissions and hospital beds used, according to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
She said the board needs to tear the county’s budget apart and analyze each program, building them from the ground up.
O’Hara said the sheriff’s office is short-staffed, and having to pay overtime consistently is costly and hard on employees.
“I see this firsthand, that having to have mandatory overtime on a consistent basis, it does wear on our officers and that’s a huge concern,” O’Hara said.
Giving flexibility to the sheriff to fill more open positions and address competition with surrounding departments would be one of her first priorities, she said.
She said a mental health crisis center needs to be prioritized because it is not cost efficient to put people in a mental health crisis in jail.
She is also focused on making all of the board of county commissioner meetings accessible to maintain a high level of transparency. The weekly board meetings are livestreamed and recorded, but O’Hara wants to do the same for all study sessions and retreats.
When asked at a forum hosted by the Shawnee Mission Post if she believes Joe Biden is the president of the United States, O’Hara would not directly answer.
“Obviously, Joe Biden is in the White House. This is what has happened at this point. Do we have problems within our election process? Most likely, yes,” she said at the forum.
Though the race is technically nonpartisan, O’Hara’s campaign signs feature an elephant, the symbol for the Republican Party.
She said when she is campaigning door-to-door, the first thing her constituents ask is her party affiliation.
“People want that transparency. They want to know who they’re electing, and I’m certainly not hiding who I am,” O’Hara said.
According to O’Hara’s website, she used to work in education, contracting and development, and now owns a manufacturing business.
Ken Selzer
A certified public accountant and former Kansas Insurance Commissioner, Selzer said he has had experience in both the public and private sector, and knows how to handle a large public budget.
If elected, he said he wants to get an understanding of every department, how it operates and the services it provides to know what needs to stay and what can be cut. If an employee retires, he said they should always consider if the responsibilities can be consolidated instead of hiring another person to take over.
Selzer said he understands the burden on taxpayers, and every dollar spent should be for the betterment of Johnson County.
He also wants to increase transparency and make meetings and the budget process more accessible for the public.
When asked at the forum if Biden is the president of the United States, Seltzer said the question was not fair. He said he is confident that if there were any issues with the election, Hayden will find them in his investigation.
Mike Kelly
Kelly said he wants to protect the high quality services provided by Johnson County, but take advantage of opportunities to grow and build for the future.
A large portion of Johnson County’s budget goes toward public safety, and he said he knows how to manage public safety funding through his experience as mayor. Kelly said he fully funded Roeland Park’s police department and worked closely with them to develop a mental health co-responder unit.
As mayor, he said he also understands how to head a local government and run meetings to move projects forward.
As co-founder and chairman of Climate Action KC, Kelly said he has experience in building relationships across city and state lines and would bring that expertise to the board of county commissioners.
The nonprofit urges Kansas City regional leaders to reduce emissions and improve the quality of life by promoting public health and boosting the economy, according to its website.
Kelly is also focused on building strong infrastructure that will last instead of just putting a Band-Aid on what already exists, he said.
As a construction, real estate and development litigator at Husch Blackwell, Kelly said he is involved in the business community. Because of that, he said he would leverage state and federal partnerships and invite business opportunities to the county.
He said he is not supportive of Hayden’s use of taxpayer dollars to conduct an election fraud investigation for months.
“Frankly, that’s a misuse of taxpayer resources, especially in a time when families are feeling the pinch,” Kelly said.
Shirley Allenbrand
Allenbrand currently serves as the 6th District commissioner. She said she owns a design business and spent years owning and operating award-winning health care communities.
Because of that, she said, she also understands how to work with large budgets like Johnson County’s, and she trusts the regular audits and county staff’s work to help create a solid budget.
She said her experience owning and operating the facilities outside of the county and state gave her the tools to be chairman. She said she retired from her consulting work to lean into her role as commissioner.
Allenbrand said she wants to maintain a high quality of living in Johnson County through libraries, parks and other programs.
More residents visited parks when the COVID-19 pandemic hit, she said, and parks can be part of mental health care in the county. Libraries are gateways for students and residents without internet access to use computers, and the county must keep these services running, she said.
If elected, she said she wants to work with the cities in Johnson County to get more accomplished, and be more respectful of the staff and residents who come to the board meetings.
Allenbrand also has the endorsement of current Chairman Eilert, according to her website.
5th District county commissioner
The 5th District sits in central Johnson County, bordered by 87th Street Parkway on the north and 175th Street on the south.
Ashcraft is seeking reelection for a fourth time, and has been on the commission for as long as retiring chairman Eilert. His two opponents are Scott Callaway, a planning engineer, and Stephanie Suzanne Berland, a certified public accountant.
Ashcraft said he wants to continue working on the commission to make the county’s budget more efficient.
“Every dollar we collect, we spend. And I don’t think that’s sustainable. And I don’t think that’s fair for taxpayers, especially those that are on fixed incomes,” Ashcraft said.
He said the county intends to do a lot of good, but should pursue efficiency more.
He said he values the taxpayers and what they contribute to the community, and wants to spend their money resourcefully.
Ashcraft is also focused on being civil and respectful on the commission. It should be in the commission’s operational DNA to be accepting of diverse ideas and perspectives, he said.
Scott Callaway
Callaway, a planning engineer at AT&T, said he wants to see where excess funds could be cut from the county budget, but supports new initiatives like senior enrichment programs.
He said his job has prepared him to be a commissioner because he deals with budgets and large sums of money often.
Just recently, Callaway said, he spent over $1 million on four projects, and he is tasked with making financially responsible decisions with the company’s funds to be cost efficient and stay within the budget.
If elected, he said he would dive into the budget and determine what is not working, but wants to grow programs that fit the needs of Johnson County residents. He said one program he supports is something for seniors to get out of the house and socialize.
He said his son has autism and epilepsy, and he would support more initiatives for children with special needs. He said he tried to start a sports program years ago, but when the COVID-19 pandemic hit, the plans never came to fruition.
Callaway said he is concerned about crime rates, and believes in fully supporting public safety and law enforcement.
He also said even if the COVID-19 pandemic ramps up again, schools should remain open because over the past two years schools have learned how to safely operate.
If elected, he said he would be a mouthpiece for the public and listen to what Johnson County residents want.
“I think the politicians today are not listening to the residents enough,” Callaway said.
Stephanie Suzanne Berland
Berland, a certified public accountant and self-described conservative, said her biggest priority if elected would be to address the county’s growing budget, most likely starting with administrative services, people and salaries.
Among her concerns, Berland said she is alarmed by the dark store theory, which is a way that big box stores get lower property values and, in turn, pay less property taxes.
The theory says that the value of a business should not be factored into the property value, but rather it should be assessed as if it were an empty building, or dark store.
The Kansas Supreme Court reversed a Board of Tax Appeals decision in July, saying that the property tax values at 11 Johnson County Walmart and Sam’s Clubs were underestimated by millions of dollars.
Berland said there is still a threat that the county could bring in significantly less money from property taxes if those big box stores are allowed to have lower property values.
“I am just flabbergasted that there has been no preparation for that,” Berland said.
If elected, she said, she would communicate with her constituents better and keep them informed about everything that happens in county government.
Berland also said she supports Sheriff Hayden in his investigation, which she said is well within his rights. While she is not privy to any evidence, Berland said she trusts Hayden’s judgment and does not believe he is an extremist, as others have suggested.
