2011 will be positioning year

With the holidays nearly over and 2011 soon to begin, the national and local political scene will see new stories and trends develop with the New Year. While there are plenty of, if not too many, pundits to provide analysis of national and federal level news, the type of progress made over the three week lame-duck session in Congress shouldn’t be expected in 2011. The compromises made had liberal and conservative ideologues alike cringing while providing a pinch of hope to the moderate mainstream that something could be achieved with a little give and take. However, in 2011, especially early, expect a renewed sense of political play at work in Washington D.C., as a new Republican majority in the House seeks to solidify its position in the split-party government with most efforts focused on defeating an incumbent President in the 2012 election cycle.

In Platte County, several storylines have already begun to develop as a new batch of county elected officials took office this week. After overwhelming victories in November, Republicans hold every county office except for two. The remaining Democratic office holders are Treasurer Bonnie Brown and Public Administrator Terry Edwards. Local Democrats will look to them for leadership after severe losses in November’s midterms. They’ll also be looked to as watchdogs of accountability for Republican county office holders potentially reluctant to blow the whistle on each other.

The election of Jason Brown as Presiding Commissioner will add a new dynamic to the three-member Commission. Coming from an often combative, partisan Jefferson City atmosphere, the type of governing role Brown chooses to take will affect the perception of the way business is done at the County level. Whether it is that of an active consensus builder, intimidating strong-armer, remote overseer, or a combination of the three, a leadership style will emerge over the first several months. Brown will be seen as the most fiscally conservative out of the three Commissioners, making it interesting to see how his addition affects where financial priorities are placed and the bottom line of the County.

New County Clerk Joan Harms is already making waves in her new position. She recently released the office’s two experienced employees, which initially leaves the office responsible for handling a wide variety of administrative duties with little, if no institutional knowledge. One of the released employees was Marcena Fulton, who ran as a Democrat for County Assessor in 2008 against incumbent Lisa Pope. In a not completely unheard of, but mostly political move, the transition from staunch campaigner to office holder will be something to keep tabs on throughout the year.

Local school boards will face another year of tough decisions in 2011 as they continue to make reductions in their budgets. Elections in the spring may bring a new face or two to the boards, but much of the financial fates for the districts lie in the hands of lawmakers in Jefferson City who will decide how much funding will be available.

Many Platte Countians will be considering who should be the next mayor of Kansas City in February and March of 2011. While current Mayor Mark Funkhouser, has had low approval numbers over the past couple years caused by a number of unpopular decisions, he can't be completely ruled out of the running for a second-term due to a crowded and possibly diluting field of six challengers looking to unseat him. Among them is long-time Platte County resident and former councilmember Mike Burke. Towards the top of the list in terms of credible challengers, if successful, Burke would be the first Mayor of Kansas City from Platte County.

Towards the middle to latter part of 2011, expect Democratic challengers to begin throwing out feelers as whether to run for any of the three state house seats in Platte County or either of the two Commission seats in November 2012. Names mentioned for both include former State Rep. Jason Grill and former County Clerk Sandy Krohne, who both with high name recognition and potentially strong financial support would be capable of mounting competitive campaigns.

2011, like many political off-years will be a year of positioning for politicos. While most of the work done in the upcoming year will set the tone for the 2012 elections, we can only be optimistic and hope that 2011 is a time when elected officials recommit themselves to focus on measures that promote sound, good government principles they constantly campaign on. Because before you know it, the focus on governing will unfortunately be set aside for yet another election cycle.