Familiar faces Manny Abarca, Dan Tarwater join race for Jackson County executive
Two current and former Jackson County legislators will join the race for Jackson County executive following a temporary extension to the filing period for the role.
Dan Tarwater III, who was a county legislator for 28 years, and current Jackson County Legislature Chair Manny Abarca IV have now filed to run for the county’s top seat.
The filing period reopened for five days after Interim County Executive Phil LeVota withdrew from the race. LeVota was appointed in October 2025 to finish the term of former County Executive Frank White Jr., who was recalled in a landslide vote in September.
At the time, LeVota signed a public “affidavit of non-candidacy” pledging not to seek a full four-year term as county executive. LeVota briefly filed to run anyway, facing some criticism online for the reversal, before exiting the race for good amid a stated distaste for the “unpleasantness” of county politics.
Under state law, LeVota’s exit as the incumbent candidate triggered the temporary application period during which new contenders could join the county executive race, provided they file as Democrats and are thus eligible for the Democratic primary election for the role. Candidate filing for the seat originally closed March 31, along with filing for multiple other county positions.
The candidate filing period also reopened on the same timeline for the Republican primary for First District at-large legislator after McKenzie Woods, the only Republican candidate for the office, withdrew. In the interim five days, another Republican contender – Grain Valley School Board member Lance Pollard – filed, replacing Woods on the August primary ballot.
A second five-day filing extension period opened May 6 for two additional legislative seats.
Executive rights and responsibilities
The Jackson County executive role comes with significant administrative and legal authority, as well as an annual salary of $150,000. Candidates must be registered Jackson County voters who have lived in the county for at least three years.
Under the county charter, the executive’s responsibilities include overseeing the county’s municipal departments, correcting errors in tax assessments, executing certain contracts, upholding the county charter and representing the county in general.
The county executive also appoints people to fill vacancies throughout county government, attends Legislature meetings as a non-voting member, investigates internal issues and transfers staffers between departments.
With Abarca’s and Tarwater’s entries, seven candidates remain in the running for Jackson County executive. Former Lee’s Summit Mayor Bill Baird, who just concluded two terms in office but was not eligible for a third, filed to run along with attorney and 2022 county executive candidate Stacy Lake, financial analyst Holmes Osborne, marketing consultant Erik Steffen and Alan Rohlfing, who has an extensive military background and is the only Republican in the race.
Jackson County Legislator DaRon McGee initially filed for the seat but withdrew his name several days before LeVota did so, citing a desire to spend more time with family. Erik Steffen, a Democrat who works in cybersecurity as an account manager, was disqualified from the race during the temporary filing period.
In a Tuesday afternoon news release, Lake wrote that the return of multiple legislators to the county executive race could disadvantage voters, representing “a return to the same cycle.”
“The same insiders are stepping back in again, asking voters to trust them again, hoping voters will accept the continuation of our dysfunctional system again,” Lake wrote. “Jackson County families have already lived through the consequences of that failure… we deserve a complete reset.”
Who is Dan Tarwater?
Tarwater last served on the Jackson County legislature in 2022. The county executive race, though, isn’t his first attempt to get back into county politics since then.
Tarwater was previously one of a dozen candidates for interim county executive, an appointed role determined by majority vote of the Jackson County Legislature. In October, LeVota beat Tarwater 5-4 for the post by earning the votes of Legislators Sean Smith, DaRon McGee, Donna Peyton, Venessa Huskey, along with Abarca himself.
Earlier in his career, Tarwater represented the 4th District on the legislature for 28 years before unsuccessfully running for Kansas City Council in 2023, losing to 6th District Councilmember Johnathan Duncan. During his last race, Tarwater was endorsed by organizations including Freedom Inc., the Fraternal Order of Police and the Greater Kansas City Building and Construction Trades.
This time, Tarwater is running on a platform of property tax reform and general accountability.
In announcing his candidacy for county executive, Tarwater alluded to plans to refund taxpayers for debts or errors accrued over the past four years of county property tax assessments.
Tarwater also slammed the current administration for “the incompetent delivery of basic services,” writing that the county’s treatment of taxpayers has become “unacceptable and an embarrassment.” He’s previously criticized his predecessors’ leadership styles along with the county’s approach to tax policy, stadium funding and general trust-building with residents.
“Our residents deserve a county government that is transparent, accountable, and focused on solutions, not distractions, petty bickering, and excuses,” Tarwater said. “Every single tax dollar spent, and every service provided, demands accountability.”
Who is Manny Abarca?
Abarca initially filed to re-run for his seat as First District legislator, but withdrew his candidacy Tuesday in order to run for Jackson County Executive.
Abarca, elected in January as the chair of the Jackson County Legislature, has served on the legislature since 2022 and previously served on the boards of both the Kansas City and Hickman Mills school districts.
In a Tuesday news release, Abarca wrote that if elected, he plans to work on restoring public trust in county officials, along with promoting transparency in county-level communications.
“I am not running for the power of the office, but to return the power to the people of Jackson County,” Abarca wrote.
In recent months, Abarca has drawn public attention for controversy in both his public and private life.
Abarca is facing pending domestic battery charges in Kansas, along with related charges in Missouri, after an alleged domestic altercation with his ex-wife and missing persons reports briefly filed for both Abarca and the couple’s toddler son. Most recently, two additional misdemeanor charges were filed against Abarca in January, with Abarca’s ex-wife alleging harassment by telecommunications device.
Abarca has also faced backlash over his alleged workplace conduct around female peers, culminating in an independent investigation alleging “inappropriate behavior,” a cease-and-desist letter sent by three county employees and what appears to be a reference to Abarca in a former employee’s wrongful termination lawsuit against Jackson County.
Like several other past and present candidates for County Executive, Abarca has publicly criticized Jackson County’s approach to the past several property tax cycles, as well as former Jackson County Executive Frank White’s relationship with Kansas City sports teams.
Legislator filing reopens
Democrat Kelly Thompson is now running unopposed for Abarca’s seat, as Branden Haralson, the only other candidate, has also withdrawn. New opponents, though, could be forthcoming.
Since Abarca was the incumbent candidate in the legislature’s First District seat, his withdrawal reopened the candidate filing period for Democrats as of May 6.
This week’s second temporary filing period also reopens the race to Republican candidates for the legislature’s Third District At-Large seat. The role is currently held by Megan Smith, who did not file for re-election.
UMKC Vice-Chancellor Susan B. Wilson, a Democrat, is currently running unopposed for Smith’s seat. Leon Weatherby, a Republican who previously ran unsuccessfully for the Lee’s Summit School Board, initially filed for the seat but was disqualified.
Candidacy for both roles will now close on May 13 at 5 p.m.
