Ellsworth ? A Democratic precinct committee will gather this weekend to fill the House vacancy created by the appointment of Josh Svaty as Kansas agriculture secretary.

Svaty represented the 108th District in the Kansas House since 2003. Gov. Mark Parkinson chose the 29-year-old fifth-generation farmer July 20 to succeed Agriculture Secretary Adrian Polansky, who returned to his old job heading the Kansas Farm Service Agency.

The House district includes Ellsworth County and parts of Dickinson and Saline counties, including southern Salina.

Members of the Democratic district precinct committee will meet Sunday at the Ellsworth County Courthouse to fill the vacancy. By last week only Svaty’s father, 66-year-old Don Svaty of Ellsworth, had expressed interest in the post.