Two candidates are running for the position of Platte County Treasurer – Republican Krysten Jury and independent candidate and incumbent Chris Kendall.
KRYSTEN JURY
Jury, 37, grew up in Smithville. Married with three young children, she graduated from Smithville High School but did not finish college due to a rare cancer diagnosis. Once cancer-free, she began work as a bookkeeper. She worked for 12 years at two companies and at one served as the controller handing the receipting, the deposits, the bank reconciliations, the month-end close, the corporate tax filings, the payroll and the employee benefits.
“At a company that size, the controller is the back office. If a number was wrong, there was nobody else to catch it.”
Jury said the work the treasurer does is the work she has done for a dozen years.
“The treasurer receipts every dollar of revenue that comes into Platte County, makes the deposits, invests county funds within the limits Missouri law sets, reconciles the bank accounts, and tracks roughly 35 separate funds. The office also administers the county employee retirement fund and the pre-tax benefit programs and performs monthly audits. That is not a ceremonial job. It is bookkeeping at scale, with public money, under statute.
“I have done every one of those tasks on deadline, in the private sector, where the work had to be right the first time. I am not learning this office from a manual.”
Jury said she ran for office because she was tired of waiting on someone else to do it and believes being careful with other people’s money is the most basic conservative principle there is.
“I have the hands-on experience. Twelve years of receipting, reconciling, closing and filing, nine of them as a controller responsible for the whole set of books.
“I want this job, not the next one. The treasurer’s office is detailed, repetitive work that has to be right every single month. That is the work I have done my whole career, and it is the work I want to keep doing. And I will tell you the truth about the numbers, including when the news is bad. If something does not balance, you will hear it from me before you hear it from an auditor.”
Jury said the most immediate problem facing the treasurer’s office is internal controls, stating an audit in 2025 found the department did not perform bank reconciliations for 22 months in 2024 and 2025. When the reconciliations were done, she said, a unreconciled variance of $41,000 was identified. She says underneath that is a staffing and continuity problem.
“The audit traces the failure to personnel turnover. An office where the work stops when one person leaves does not have procedures. It has habits.”
Managing growth is another challenge.
If elected, Jury said she would reconcile every account, every month, within two weeks of the close, and say publicly when it is done.
“A reconciliation that is current is not an accounting nicety. It is the only thing standing between the county and an error nobody catches.”
Jury said she would work with the auditor’s office to clear up the weaknesses found last year and cross-train staff to ensure the problem doesn’t reoccur.
Additionally, she said she would invest county funds “the way public money should be invested: safety first, then liquidity, then yield, in that order and never reordered, within the instruments Missouri law allows, with maturities laddered to when the county actually needs the cash. County money is not there to be reached with.”
Taxpayers should be able to see what this office is holding, she said, where it is deposited and whether the accounts are current, without filing a request to find out.
CHRIS KENDALL
Kendall, 60, is from Farley. Married, he has two adult children. He holds a bachelor’s degree in accounting and a master’s degree in ministry, as well as programs in banking and investments. He has almost 40 years of financial experience, including private accounting, non-profit accounting, banking, consulting, training, data analysis, contract negotiation and investment management.
He was appointed to the office of treasurer after the resignation of his predecessor in 2025.
Kendall said his qualifications come from a combination of education, experience and local knowledge. He has served as trustee for the Village of Farley, commissioner for the Farley Special Road District and treasurer of numerous civic organizations.
“Most importantly, I am already serving as Platte County Treasurer and understand the responsibilities of the office firsthand. I have spent the past 18 months rebuilding the office from the ground up and have it ready to move into the future.”
Kendall said he is running because he believes Platte County deserves a treasurer who has no political agenda, has a track record of operating the office accurately, transparently and responsibly, and “my only concern is the management of my neighbors’ tax dollars.”
As a life-long resident, he said he has a personal stake in seeing the county succeed, and that he brings his experience and integrity to the job.
“My many years of experience make me the only candidate with the necessary qualifications for this office.
I also believe the treasurer needs to be independent and willing to make decisions based on facts and what is best for the taxpayers – not based on party politics or outside influence.”
Kendall said one of the biggest responsibilities facing county leadership as it relates to his office is protecting taxpayer money while making sure county funds are managed responsibly.
The county continues to face challenges involving its junk bond credit rating, protecting taxpayer money in a constantly fluctuating financial environment, working with other county offices as well as schools, road districts and other organizations and planning responsibly for the county’s future financial needs.
“Past decisions have had negative consequences to the County, and as we continue to grow, better financial decisions need to be made today that will allow the county to be prepared for the future.”
Kendall said the way he can help is to continue his work to protect the taxpayers’ money, manage county investments responsibly, maintain accurate financial records and make sure funds are available when needed.
“I would continue working collaboratively with the other county offices, our schools, road districts and other organizations. The treasurer’s office doesn’t operate in isolation. Good county government requires communication and cooperation.
“My commitment to voters is straightforward: I want to continue serving as your treasurer, doing the job responsibly and putting the interests of Platte County taxpayers first.”