Meet the candidates running to be commissioners representing Wyandotte County
A new cast of decision-makers will lead Wyandotte County’s local government next year and two weeks remain until voters decide who will be included in the mix.
Half of the 10 commissioner seats on the Unified Government Board of Commissioners are opening in the Nov. 4 election. Among the commissioner races, four are contested.
Wyandotte voters will also select a new mayor, the board’s eleventh seat, on Election Day. Candidates Rose Mulvany Henry and Christal Watson are vying to replace outgoing Mayor Tyrone Garner as CEO/mayor of the Unified Government of Wyandotte County and Kansas City, Kansas.
Contested seats are in District 1, which is in the county’s northeast corner; District 5, its northwest corner; District 8, which is north-central Wyandotte; and the District 2 At-Large seat that specifically represents districts 2,3,6 and 7.
On the board, eight commissioners represent specific districts in the county and two represent the county at-large. Whoever is elected to the board will join District 1 At-Large Commissioner Melissa Bynum and district commissioners Bill Burns Jr., District 2; Christian Ramirez, District 3; and Evelyn Hill, District 4.
Chuck Stites, who represents the county’s seventh district encompassing Bonner Springs, Edwardsville and a portion of west KCK, is running unopposed in his bid for reelection.
County commissioners are tasked with setting county and city policies and ordinances and making budget and zoning decisions, among other responsibilities.
Registered voters who wish to participate in the election may find their polling place on the Kansas Secretary of State’s website.
In-person early voting begins Saturday and runs through noon on Nov. 3. Visit the county elections website for details on where and how to vote early.
District 2 at-large
Sixth District Commissioner Philip Lopez will face Andrew Kump for the at-large seat now held by Commissioner Tom Burroughs. Burroughs, who joined the board in 2017, ran for mayor but lost in the August primary.
Andrew Kump
Kump, an attorney with Shamrock Trading Corporation, garnered the most votes among at-large candidates in the August primary with 1,354. He faces Lopez, the current Sixth District commissioner, who had 1,136 votes in the primary.
Kump is a first-time political candidate who on the campaign trail has advocated for governmental accountability. He specifically wants to see increased transparency, more conscientious spending of public funds and for the local government to invest in fixing aging infrastructure.
He has said that more responsible spending, as well as attracting development to the area, could offer relief to residents grappling with lofty property tax bills.
“I support economic investments with both short and long-term prosperity in mind,” Kump told The Star early in his candidacy. “We need to develop residential and commercial buildings that enlarge the tax base in a responsible way, and not at the expense of our community.”
Philip Lopez
Lopez joined the Unified Government’s board in 2023. He has previously voted to freeze Unified Government property tax revenues in an attempt to lessen residents’ tax burdens, a move that in the 2025 budget year strained public services like transportation, resources for aging residents and overtime for first responders.
When the commission eventually voted to collect added tax revenues for the 2026 budget year, Lopez was among three commissioners who dissented and voted to freeze revenues for a second year.
In recent months, Lopez has been accused of bribery and child endangerment by a KCK woman who is now suing him. Commissioners this summer called Lopez out for allegedly miming male masturbation during a public meeting, something he denies ever doing. He also, during a public meeting, made comments that commissioners and residents deemed insensitive during a disagreement with the director of a local volleyball club.
Court records reflect that since being elected, state prosecutors dismissed a felony charge against him that dated back to 2019, and that the Unified Government had to garnish about $4,200 of Lopez’s salary due to state tax debt from 2019.
District 1
In District 1, Jermaine Howard and Lisa Walker-Yeager are running for the seat currently held by Commissioner Gayle Townsend. Townsend, who has served on the board since 2013, did not seek reelection this year.
Jermaine “Jae” Howard
Howard, like Kump, is a first time candidate who won the most votes in the primary with 462. He is running against Walker-Yeager, who received 301 votes in the primary.
Howard owns a local delivery service, D&B Limited, and founded a youth mentoring program and nonprofit. He has campaigned on supporting small businesses and attracting economic growth, connecting seniors to relief programs and expanding access to housing that people can afford.
Howard has also advocated for finding ways to develop mentorship and youth programming to “reduce crime, develop leadership, and foster a safer, more engaged future for our community,” according to his website.
Lisa Walker-Yeager
Walker-Yeager is running for both the District 1 seat on the Unified Government board and an at-large position on the Board of Public Utilities. She told The Star that if she won both positions, she intended to serve in both roles if permitted to do so. Although, given the BPU is owned by the Unified Government, state statute vaguely implies that may not be allowed to happen.
Walker-Yeager, a local neighborhood association vice president, previously sought the District 1 office in 2021 but did not win. She is also facing criminal charges of aggravated battery and unlawful discharge of a weapon after shooting her contractor, Noble Bey, in the back more than a year ago.
Walker-Yeager, who will be arraigned after the election — on Nov. 13 — and whose case may go to trial, claims she shot Bey to protect herself and her daughter because Bey beat and attempted to kill her daughter. Even so, District Court Judge Michael Russell recently denied a motion to grant Walker-Yeager immunity on the basis of self defense.
District 5
In District 5, Carlos Pacheco III and LaVert A. Murray want the seat now held by outgoing Commissioner Mike Kane. Kane has served on the board since 2005 and did not run for reelection.
Carlos Pacheco III
Pacheco, another political newcomer, overwhelmingly won the primary election with 1,930 votes. He’s joined by his competition, Murray, who received 762 votes in August.
Pacheco is a local physician and partner with Heartland Primary Care, which is located in his district.
“As the owner of my medical practice, I understand the value of a dollar,” Pacheco wrote on his campaign website. “I know how to spend wisely, save when it counts, and never miss a chance to innovate for something better. That’s the kind of smart, responsible leadership I’ll bring to the Commission.”
If elected, Pacheco plans to hold regular listening sessions with residents, conduct a comprehensive review of government spending and strengthen the Unified Government’s relationships with local health organizations, according to his website.
LaVert Murray
Murray has worked for the Unified Government in varying capacities, including decades on its economic development team before becoming an advisor during Garner’s administration. He retired from the Unified Government after learning he could not jointly seek public office and continue working for the government.
He thinks his experience in economic development projects such as the Legends outlet mall, the Kansas Speedway and Village West, gives him a distinct ability to lead.
Murray wants to see a more fiscally accountable Unified Government, promote expansive maintenance on area infrastructure, find local tax relief and do what he can to better manage and preserve public safety, according to his website.
District 8
Eighth District Commissioner Andrew Davis, first elected in 2021, is running for a second board term. He will face newcomer Jacob Handy in that race.
Andrew Davis
Davis, an incumbent, led the pack in the District 8 primary with 616 votes. He faces Jacob Handy who had 393 votes.
Davis, a senior program manager at Community Capital Fund, recently voted in favor of the Unified Government collecting additional property tax revenues in the 2026 budget year in order to direct funds back to area public services.
If re-elected, Davis wants to promote local development on the Unified Government’s land bank property, specifically in District 8. He wants to find innovative ways to finance infrastructure development without furthering residents’ tax burdens, support neighborhoods and small businesses, and advocate for conscious spending and lower taxes, according to his website.
Jacob Handy
Handy is a documentarian, educator and a first-time candidate. On social media, he said he wants to “Eliminate Commissioner Slush Funds” and “Restore Mayoral Powers” if elected. In other words, he wants to reinvest public funds that commissioners have to spend on their districts into the city general fund and ensure the elected mayor has discretion over what’s on meeting agendas. Handy said those actions would make meetings less combative among board members and introduce an additional level of financial accountability.
Handy’s platform also includes advocating for policies that reduce the cost of living, boosting small business, investing in stronger infrastructure, involving neighborhood associations in decision-making processes and trying to bring down utility costs.
