Frank White voted out as Jackson County executive. So what happens next?
Jackson County residents voted overwhelmingly to recall County Executive Frank White Jr. on Tuesday in a historic recall vote, the first of its kind in Jackson County, according to unofficial results from the city and county election boards.
Election results won’t be final for a few days — absentee ballots are still rolling in from military and overseas residents, due Friday at noon. The Jackson County and Kansas City election boards expect to certify the results of the recall sometime early next week.
But when the dust settles, the seat of county executive will be vacant, leaving a significant — if temporary — gap in the checks and balances that uphold the Jackson County government.
So what happens next? And who could replace White in the executive office?
Protocol after recall
Jackson County executive is an elected position with a four-year term. The next election for a full-term county executive will be in November 2026, with the winner’s term starting on Jan. 1, 2027.
In the meantime, a temporary, appointed candidate will take on the role of county executive. DaRon McGee, chair of the Jackson County Legislature, will have the first shot at nominating a candidate. The nine members of the legislature will then have 30 days to either affirm his nomination or agree on an alternative candidate.
If the legislature fails to approve a candidate by majority vote in time, the judge of the county’s 16th Judicial Circuit will select a nominee to serve until 2027. The circuit judge role is occupied on a rotating basis and is currently Judge Kevin D. Harrell.
Loose ends
Before polls closed on Tuesday night, both White and his critics set processes in motion that could still impact or upset the results of the election.
The outgoing county executive filed a writ with the Missouri Court of Appeals, Western District late Friday afternoon to try to stall the vote — challenging the early August decision setting the recall election for Sept. 30. The emergency petition questioned the state’s authority to have set its own date for the special recall election.
A Missouri judge denied the petition Monday afternoon, allowing the election to continue. White filed an identical petition with the Missouri Supreme Court Tuesday afternoon, but the body had not issued a response to the petition by the close of polls Tuesday night.
Additionally, multiple Jackson County legislators have proposed ordinances in the past couple of weeks that, if passed, could target White’s financial future on his way out the door.
Legislator Manuel Abarca IV, who had clashed with White heatedly and repeatedly for months before the recall vote, introduced legislation on Aug. 4 that would revoke the pension and health care benefits of any Jackson County official recalled before the end of their term.
Abarca also introduced a proposed ordinance on July 18 that would hold county officials or governing bodies financially responsible for the full cost of any recall election that they “improperly reject[ed] or obstruct[ed].”
Both proposals have been introduced to the full legislature but have not been passed or enacted.
Who’s next?
Because White is a Democrat, the interim county executive must also be a Democrat. During the next re-election in 2026, candidates from both parties will be free to run. However, the winner of the Democratic primary has historically won the county executive seats since the role was first established in 1970.
McGee himself has declined to speak publicly about whether he will seek — or would accept — a nomination. White named both McGee and legislator Manuel Abarca IV as potential candidates, though Abarca has since released a statement saying that he will not seek the temporary position.
Phil LeVota, a former chair of the Jackson County Democratic Party who has been heavily involved as an attorney in the lawsuits surrounding the recall election date, told The Star last week that he “may consider” putting himself in the running after he was encouraged by multiple parties to do so.
The Beacon reported last week that former legislator Dan Tarwater has also expressed interest in the interim position. Meanwhile, Stacy Lake, a Kansas City attorney who ran for county executive in 2022 but lost to White in the Democratic primary, has already announced her candidacy for the next full four-year county executive term up for grabs in 2026.
This story was originally published September 30, 2025 at 9:54 PM.
