SerpApi.Org
Democratic candidates for Jackson County Executive say they are concerned about allegations of corruption in the Legislature, but noted they have few concrete details about what happened.
Democrats Stacy Lake, Ryan Meyer and Dan T. Tarwater III said on Tuesday that they have not been able to learn much since Manny Abarca made accusations of bribery late last week.
Meyer said he’s unsure what to make of the situation because he’s mostly only heard “innuendo,” but he hopes the allegations aren’t true for the sake of public trust.
“I hope to God that there’s no meat on these bones,” Meyer said. “But I don’t know why Manny would go down this road if there wasn’t at least something afoot.”
Last week, Abarca alleged someone offered him $10,000 in campaign contributions in exchange for a favorable vote on county business. He was voted out as legislative chair on Monday by colleagues who said his leadership style and a growing agenda made the change necessary.
The ongoing controversy comes as Abarca is also a candidate to become the next County Executive. He’s facing five other Democrats in the primary election next month.
Abarca said he was suspending his campaign activities to focus on the investigation into the allegations, but that he was not stopping his run.
Lake, Meyer and Tarwater, who are all running in the Democratic primary for the position, spoke to The Star about the allegations and Abarca’s removal as chair.
Other candidates for the position - Democrats Holmes Osborn and Bill Baird and Republican Alan Rohlfing - either declined to comment or did not respond.
Lake said the Legislature has been in a state of dysfunction for years, and Abarca’s allegations and removal as chair are another example. She said that highlights how important the upcoming election is for Jackson County voters to pick someone they can trust.
She also said the Legislature should have never appointed Abarca as chair and they should have removed him months ago after he was charged with a slew of misdemeanors in Kansas and Missouri stemming from an alleged domestic altercation with his ex-wife.
“This dysfunction is not by accident,” Lake said. “This dysfunction was created by the decisions of our representatives.”
Tarwater, who previously served as a county legislator for nearly 30 years, also said Abarca should have stepped back or been removed as chair by the Legislature months ago because of his legal troubles. He said the situation is another example of drama among the Legislature that stems from a lack of leadership.
He said that’s led to a Legislature made up of “mavericks” who aren’t working together for the county.
“You have nine people doing individual things,” Tarwater said. “That does not help our community.”
Corruption allegations
The three candidates also said that allegations of corruption are serious and need to be addressed.
Lake said if she’s elected as the next County Executive, she would try to root it out. But she also noted that it’s not clear yet if misconduct has taken place. She said Abarca’s recent allegations have not yet included evidence shared with the public.
Lake said the saga highlights the importance of the upcoming election.
“It’s just another indicator as to why this year’s election is so important that we vote for the right people into office to represent the needs of the Jackson County people,” Lake said.
Meyer also said allegations of corruption are serious and whoever is elected the next leader needs to fully investigate. Otherwise, the public won’t be able to trust the county government.
“It’s going to be absolutely mandatory for them to turn over every rock and look under every leaf to make sure that the public can see what’s going on and demonstrate that there’s no corruption,” Meyer said. “And if there is, stamp it out.”
Tarwater said corruption should never occur, but noted that he does not have any knowledge about what took place. He said if he’s elected, “there would be none” because of his focus on transparency.
“I do everything with transparency and above the board,” Tarwater said. “You let everybody see what you’re doing.”
