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Springfield, MO
Greene County Associate Commissioner John Russell announced plans to run next year to keep his position.
Russell in January was appointed by Gov. Mike Parson to fill the seat left vacant by former Greene County Commissioner Lincoln Hough, who was elected as a state senator. Russell is the co-founder of Pillar Insurance LLC.
Axiom Strategies has been hired as Russell’s campaign consultant, according to a news release.
“I was honored to be appointed by the governor to serve in this capacity for a short term, and I look forward to earning the continued support of Greene County voters as I put my name on the ballot for the 2020 election,” Russell said in the release.
One other candidate, Libertarian Cecil Ince, has filed documentation with the Missouri Ethics Commission for Russell’s District 2 commission seat. Russell, a Republican, filed a statement of committee organization with the MEC on Oct. 29.
Also up for vote in the Aug. 4, 2020, primaries is the commission’s District 1 seat currently held by Harold Bengsch. MEC records show Bengsch, state Rep. Sonya Anderson and Rusty MacLachlan, all Republicans, filed District 1 documentation for the 2020 primaries.
In the release, Russell said his top commission priorities are trust, transparency and fiscal responsibility.
“We must approach the budget process with discipline and set priorities,” he said in the release “As with all things, strong principles and ethical guidelines should be the starting point for any business conducted by the commission.”
The three-member commission is led by Presiding Commissioner Bob Dixon. It serves as the executive body of Greene County, in charge of salaries, enacting ordinances, adopting the annual budget and other processes, according to GreeneCountyMo.gov.
The city of Springfield is asking voters to approve a three-quarter-cent sales tax in the Nov. 5 general election.