After two months on the Johnson County Board of Supervisors, Supervisor Lisa Green-Douglass recently announced she would seek re-election in the June primary.
Green-Douglass, who won a special election in January with 61 percent of the vote, filled the vacancy left by Terrence Neuzil and was sworn in on Jan. 27.
A Democrat from North Liberty, Green-Douglass, has been a resident of Johnson County for 36 years and has been active in local politics since 1988, serving for 14 years on the Johnson County Democratic Committee.
Green-Douglass said she had planned to run in the June primary but took advantage of the chance to run earlier when Neuzil announced he would move to Michigan.
“I figured I would start when the resignation was made public,” she said. “My colleagues on the Board of Supervisors said the learning curve is about a year to a year and a half to learn the position. So I would be at a year when the next term would start.”
She said her experience by the time the new term rolls around next year should be thought of when people are voting in June.
“Just keep in mind that having a continuity would help,” she said. “Bringing someone completely new in would be starting all over again. It’s just like job training, and when thinking about efficiency and running the county with these ongoing issues, it’s better to have someone who will be experienced.”
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Green-Douglass said the issues that are important to her are the issues still in progress for Johnson County.
“Before I was on the board, they passed the minimum-wage increase, and I was advocating in support of that,” she said. “That’s still important to me. We need to make sure we pay people wages they can live on.”
She said mental-health services are an issue important to her and she hopes the supervisors can improve them in the county by looking at examples from elsewhere.
Green-Douglass’ son, Kirkwood student Forrest Douglass, said his mother’s intellect is an asset for the board.
“Just being around her makes you smarter,” he said. “She makes sure she informs herself and sees every issue at every angle. She’s not afraid to ask questions and follow problems to the root.”
He said his mother has been involved in politics since he was born, and she commits herself to causes she cares about.
“She doesn’t go into things lightly,” he said. “When she commits herself to a cause, she goes all in. She cares deeply about her community, and her loyalty is unmatched by anyone else’s.”
County Supervisor Rod Sullivan said he’s enjoyed working with Green-Douglass so far and is impressed by her ability to learn the position quickly.
“She is very bright,” he said. “She asks a lot of good questions, and she’s just a nice positive person.”