Douglas County Clerk Jaime Shew understands how some might see him as a potential replacement for Ron Thornburgh, who announced Monday he would be resigning as Kansas secretary of state.

But that doesn’t necessarily mean he wants the job.

“I’ve had a number of phone calls today, where people have asked me about my interest,” Shew said Monday. “Am I on the radar? I’m on the radar. Whether that’s an official radar? I don’t know.”

Gov. Mark Parkinson, a fellow Democrat, will appoint Thornburgh’s replacement, whose office will be up for election in November.

If approached about the job, Shew said, he would first need to discuss the potential with his family — Shew is married, with children ages 5, 3 and 11 months — and his colleagues.

“I’m very happy as county clerk,” said Shew, a Democrat in his fifth year as the county’s top elections officer.