photo by: Journal-World

The west side of the Douglas County Courthouse, 1100 Massachusetts St.

Before the end of this weekend, a new commissioner will have been selected to represent Douglas County’s 3rd District.

The convention to choose a replacement for outgoing Douglas County Commissioner Shannon Portillo is set for Sunday. By the end of that process, her district’s Democratic Party precinct committee members — officials elected in the recent Aug. 2 primary — will have identified who will see out the remainder of Portillo’s term, which expires in January 2025.

The process that will take place Sunday was triggered because of the time left in Portillo’s term as she departs. The Journal-World previously reported that if Portillo had resigned in the first half of her term, it would have prompted a special election.

Instead, the commissioner seeing out the remainder of Portillo’s term won’t be elected at all, at least not by conventional means.

According to county spokesperson Karrey Britt, the annual salary for a county commissioner is $41,226.

Portillo confirmed to the Journal-World earlier this week that her last day on the job would be Sept. 10, after which the newly selected commissioner will take over. Portillo sent a letter confirming her resignation to Gov. Laura Kelly dated Aug. 11, and she will soon depart Douglas County for a job as director of Arizona State University’s School of Public Affairs, slated to begin in October. According to state statute, the convention to select her replacement has to take place within 21 days of her submitted resignation date.

So far, the Journal-World has learned of at least three people interested in the seat and has spoken with one of them directly. Karen Willey, a resident of the rural unincorporated area of the 3rd District, confirmed her interest earlier this week. Willey works as a nonprofit consultant and also has served on the Lawrence-Douglas County Metropolitan Planning Commission, helping to draft utility-scale solar regulations and Plan 2040, the comprehensive plan guiding growth in the city and county. Willey previously ran for this commission seat in the 2020 election, where she lost to Portillo in the Democratic primary.

Karen Willey

Willey said she felt prepared to serve on the commission in ways that others might not be. She pointed to her work on the Planning Commission, noting how closely the commission works with various public and community stakeholders.

Douglas County Democratic Party Chair Patricia Willer on Thursday confirmed the identities of the other two candidates who have expressed interest in the seat. Those individuals are Cole Browne, a Democratic precinct committeeman, and Ma’Ko’Quah Jones, the chair of the Lawrence Sustainability Advisory Board. Jones ran for a seat on the Lawrence City Commission last year but wasn’t elected. Neither Browne nor Jones responded to the Journal-World’s requests for comment.

The Journal-World also previously reported that Amii Castle, a professor in the University of Kansas’ business and law schools, was interested in the position. However, Willer told the Journal-World that Castle has since decided to withdraw.

The convention itself will take place at 2 p.m. Sunday at Theatre Lawrence, 4660 Bauer Farm Drive. Willer said the public is welcome to attend, but only credentialed precinct committee people in the 3rd District are eligible to vote, and only Democrats residing in the 3rd Commission District are eligible to fill the vacated seat.

Candidates can identify their interest in the seat prior to the convention, or even from the floor at the meeting itself Sunday afternoon. They can also revoke their interest during that time.

The Douglas County Commission’s 3rd District covers parts of southern and western Lawrence and western Douglas County. People who live in the 3rd District who are interested in identifying their candidacy can email Willer at chair@douglascountydems.org.