Parkville mayor Nan Johnston has retained her seat after an unusually brutal election season for the southern Platte County community.
Johnston received 832 votes to challenger Kenneth Wilson’s 662 votes. On the board of aldermen, incumbent Phil Wassmer and Weston Coble tied for the ward one seat with each receiving 187 votes. Two write-in votes were also received. In ward two, incumbent Brian Whitley soundly defeated challenger Brett Krause, 277 to 84. Ward three had three candidates, with incumbent Doug Wylie edging out his challengers. In that race, Wylie earned 215 votes, beating Scott Herbig with 211 votes. Scott Curran received 22 votes. Ward four alderman Greg Plumb was unopposed, still earning 162 votes.
Johnston has served a combined 11 years as an alderman and mayor, but over the last several months has found herself on the defense from accusations from political action committee Citizens for a Better Parkville, which financially supported candidates Wilson, Krause and Coble.
During her campaign, Johnston said she wished to continue work on current city projects and see them through to completion.
“There is no substitute for experience when it comes to the mayor’s office,” Johnston said. “A knowledge of municipal government is key. It’s important to understand what an elected leader is actually able to do. The mayor does not have the final say or even a vote, so the most important thing is to be able to unify the board of aldermen and staff toward completion of mutually established goals.”