Johnson County Supervisor Royceann Porter has received an “admonishment for improper use of public resources” from the Iowa Ethics and Campaign Disclosure Board for using her county email to ask for support in a write-in campaign for a seat on the Board of Supervisors.
Porter was up for re-election in the June primary but was ousted by challenger Mandi Remington, while incumbents Lisa Green-Douglass and Rod Sullivan advanced.
On Sept. 23, Porter sent an email from her county email account to fellow supervisors Green-Douglass and Sullivan, Johnson County Sheriff Brad Kunkel, other county staff and Iowa City Mayor Bruce Teague.
The email, obtained by The Gazette, said it was a “Public Announcement of Write-in Campaign by Royceann Porter.”
The admonishment from the Ethics and Campaign Disclosure Board states that public officials are “prohibited from using their governmental email address to campaign.”
An admonishment from the Ethics and Campaign Disclosure Board is not disciplinary action, but rather a formal warning. The Board may admonish anyone who it believes has committed a “minor violation.”
Porter has not publicly announced a write-in campaign. She also has not responded to multiple requests for comment.
In the email, Porter wrote that in the June primary only “a fraction” of votes were cast by the community.
In the June primary, just under 9,000 votes were cast, of the more than 110,000 registered voters in Johnson County. When Porter was last reelected to the Board in November 2020, more than 84,000 ballots were cast from more than 97,000 registered voters.
“This low turnout does not reflect the voice of our entire community, and I believe we still have important work to do. When I was reelected four years ago, the voter turnout was much higher, and I want to ensure that every voice is heard in this election,” Porter wrote in the email last month.
If Porter is running for office as a write-in candidate, she would be the second write-in campaign for a seat on the Board of Supervisors.
Guillermo Morales, former executive director of the Board of Supervisors, announced his write-in campaign for a seat on the Board of Supervisors last month.
Morales, who served as executive director for 18 months, was ousted from his job by a 3-2 vote after board chair Sullivan read a statement that alleged Morales had been disrespectful and unprofessional. Sullivan, Porter and Green-Douglas voted for termination, while Supervisors Jon Green and V Fixmer-Oraiz dissented.
Morales has said that he believes his support for a controversial — and unsuccessful — censure vote against the Democratic county attorney, and his support for Remington in her campaign for supervisor may have played a role in his dismissal.
Porter has publicly stated that Morales’ termination was not retaliatory in nature. In her write-in campaign email announcement, Porter addressed Morales’ firing and subsequent write-in campaign.
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“… I made the difficult decision to vote for the termination of our Board of Supervisors Executive Director, Guillermo Morales. This was not a decision made lightly, but one grounded in transparency and accountability to the people of Johnson County. Now, with Mr. Morales running a write-in campaign himself, it is critical that we remain focused on leadership that reflects the community’s best interests,” Porter wrote.
Porter’s email goes on to say that her campaign would focus on four key areas: workers’ rights, creating a welcoming community, raising the standard of living and transparency and accountability.
www.thegazette.com
Porter was up for re-election in the June primary but was ousted by challenger Mandi Remington, while incumbents Lisa Green-Douglass and Rod Sullivan advanced.
On Sept. 23, Porter sent an email from her county email account to fellow supervisors Green-Douglass and Sullivan, Johnson County Sheriff Brad Kunkel, other county staff and Iowa City Mayor Bruce Teague.
The email, obtained by The Gazette, said it was a “Public Announcement of Write-in Campaign by Royceann Porter.”
The admonishment from the Ethics and Campaign Disclosure Board states that public officials are “prohibited from using their governmental email address to campaign.”
An admonishment from the Ethics and Campaign Disclosure Board is not disciplinary action, but rather a formal warning. The Board may admonish anyone who it believes has committed a “minor violation.”
Porter has not publicly announced a write-in campaign. She also has not responded to multiple requests for comment.
In the email, Porter wrote that in the June primary only “a fraction” of votes were cast by the community.
In the June primary, just under 9,000 votes were cast, of the more than 110,000 registered voters in Johnson County. When Porter was last reelected to the Board in November 2020, more than 84,000 ballots were cast from more than 97,000 registered voters.
“This low turnout does not reflect the voice of our entire community, and I believe we still have important work to do. When I was reelected four years ago, the voter turnout was much higher, and I want to ensure that every voice is heard in this election,” Porter wrote in the email last month.
Porter’s campaign would be second write-in effort
If Porter is running for office as a write-in candidate, she would be the second write-in campaign for a seat on the Board of Supervisors.
Guillermo Morales, former executive director of the Board of Supervisors, announced his write-in campaign for a seat on the Board of Supervisors last month.
Morales, who served as executive director for 18 months, was ousted from his job by a 3-2 vote after board chair Sullivan read a statement that alleged Morales had been disrespectful and unprofessional. Sullivan, Porter and Green-Douglas voted for termination, while Supervisors Jon Green and V Fixmer-Oraiz dissented.
Morales has said that he believes his support for a controversial — and unsuccessful — censure vote against the Democratic county attorney, and his support for Remington in her campaign for supervisor may have played a role in his dismissal.
Porter has publicly stated that Morales’ termination was not retaliatory in nature. In her write-in campaign email announcement, Porter addressed Morales’ firing and subsequent write-in campaign.
ADVERTISING
“… I made the difficult decision to vote for the termination of our Board of Supervisors Executive Director, Guillermo Morales. This was not a decision made lightly, but one grounded in transparency and accountability to the people of Johnson County. Now, with Mr. Morales running a write-in campaign himself, it is critical that we remain focused on leadership that reflects the community’s best interests,” Porter wrote.
Porter’s email goes on to say that her campaign would focus on four key areas: workers’ rights, creating a welcoming community, raising the standard of living and transparency and accountability.
Johnson County supervisor admonished for using county email to request write-in support
The Iowa Ethics and Campaign Disclosure Board issued an admonishment for Johnson County Supervisor Royceann Porter’s “improper use of public resources.” Last month, Porter used her county email account to send an email requesting support in a write-in campaign.
www.thegazette.com
