Incumbent Johnson County Board of Supervisor Royceann Porter was unseated by newcomer and local organizer Mandi Remington and incumbents Lisa Green-Douglass and Rod Sullivan in Tuesday’s primary election, according to unofficial results. 

Remington, Green-Douglass, and Sullivan go onto the Nov. 5 general election where they are likely to be elected uncontested with no Republicans registered for the Republican primary for the three open supervisors seats. Johnson County Republicans can nominate a candidate via county convention, according to the Johnson County Auditor’s Office. 

The three beat out Porter and North Liberty Democrat and state trooper Bob Conrad in Tuesday’s election. In the unofficial results: 

• Sullivan garnered the most votes at 4,263 or 24.4 percent of the vote;
• Green-Douglass came in second with 3,925 or 22.5 percent of the vote; 
• Remington came in third with 3,820 or 21.90 percent of the vote; 
• Porter came in Fourth with 2,963 or 16.98 percent of the vote; 
• Conrad came in fifth with 2,387 or 13.68 percent of the vote.  

Green-Douglass, 65, of North Liberty, said when reelected in November she plans to continue to work on mental health services and conservation in the county. 

“I am very excited to have garnered votes from the public to be able to continue in my service to the people of Johnson County and continue on the [Johnson County] Board of Supervisors,” Green-Douglass said. 

Green-Douglass was originally elected to the Johnson County Board of Supervisors in 2016 in a special election and then re-elected the same year to a full term and again in 2020.

Sullivan, 58, of Iowa City, previously said he remains committed to solving housing and mental health issues affecting the county during a Johnson County League of Women Voters forum in May. Sullivan has served on the board for 20 years after being elected in 2004. Before he was a supervisor, he worked as a social worker.

Sullivan could not be reached for comment on Tuesday. 

Remington, 41, of Iowa City, currently works as a medical record and guardianship clerk for the University of Iowa Hospital and Clinics’ Center for Disabilities and Development and is active in the community. She founded the Corridor Community Action Network, a website that connects users to local resources, and she volunteers on several city and University of Iowa committees. 

Remington is committed to addressing affordable housing, food insecurity, and public safety. Remington also expressed concerns with the possibility of a new jail being built during a May Johnson County League of Women Voters forum.

Remington could not be reached for comment on Tuesday. 

Porter, Conrad look to continue as community leaders 

Porter, 58, of Iowa City, was first elected to the Johnson County Board of Supervisors in 2018 in a special election and reelected in 2020. Porter was the first Black woman to be elected to the Johnson County Board of Supervisors. 

Porter said she is going to continue in her community leadership roles when her term expires on Dec. 31. Porter currently serves as vice chair of the National Association of Counties and co-founded the Black Voices Project, a nonprofit advocacy organization for the Iowa City area. Porter said she is also going to focus on her restaurant, Royceann’s Soul Food. 

“It wasn’t expected,” Porter said of her loss. “I just think things happen for a reason. I would have loved to continue to be on the [Johnson County] Board of Supervisors, but since I’m not, I will just focus more on my husband and my two daughters — I will focus on my family.”

Porter said she is proud of her accomplishments during her time on the board. She led the creation of an apprenticeship program at the Johnson County Secondary Roads Department, a county-wide gun violence intervention program that focuses on reducing gun-violence through community intervention and support, and the recognition of Lulu Merle Johnson — the first black woman to earn a doctorate from the University of Iowa and second in the country. 

Conrad, 54, of Iowa City, said his next steps are yet to be determined, but he hopes that those elected make the county government more transparent and involve more input from residents, a key point in his campaign.