Independence voters will decide who will lead their city’s government on April 7, when they choose the next mayor and two at-large city council members.
The newly elected officials will lead the city’s search for a new police chief after the city’s former chief, Adam Dustman, resigned in August last year amid multiple lawsuits and an overtime scandal.
The candidates have also been under pressure in recent months over the planned hyperscale data center in eastern Independence.
The Independence city council gave billions in tax breaks in early March to Nebius, the company behind the data center, despite a massive outcry from residents. Residents opposed to the data center aimed to file a petition to put the tax incentives up for a public vote, but the city denied the effort. Now, those residents are suing the city in hopes that a judge will allow the referendum effort to move forward.
The controversial data center and the city’s tax incentives for the development could take center stage in the election for mayor and city council. Opponents of the data center, many of whom gather on a Facebook page with more than 100,000 members called “Stop the AI Data Center in Independence,” have vowed to vote against candidates who approved the tax breaks while on the city council or who support the data center.
Independence mayor
Current at-large council member Bridget McCandless and Kevin King, who was the only primary candidate to have never served on the Independence city council, are running for mayor.
Bridget McCandless
McCandless voted in favor of tax incentives for Nebius and has said the payments in lieu of taxes the city will receive will provide economic benefits to the city, public schools and the library.
McCandless is a lifelong Independence resident and began serving on the city council after a special election in 2022. She is a doctor and is the retired president and CEO of the Health Forward Foundation. McCandless has also served on the American College of Physicians Health and Public Policy Committee, the Missouri Women’s Health Policy Council, the Missouri Medicaid Oversight Committee and the board of the Truman Library Institute. She has also previously served on the Public Utility Advisory Board for Independence.
McCandless lists her priorities as economic growth, housing and homelessness, public safety and maintaining city services. Her endorsements include the Kansas City Medical Society, the Kansas City Regional Association of Realtors, the Mid-America Carpenters Regional Council.
Kevin King
King has signed the petition to put the tax incentives to a public vote. He’s previously said that he supports the data center project but that Independence residents have a right to vote on the deal.
King is a lifelong resident of Independence. He was previously a roofer and the business manager of the United Union of Roofers, Waterproofers & Allied Workers Local 20. King has also coached for multiple youth sports teams in the area. His priorities include neighborhood revitalization, public safety, homelessness, community health, responsible city finance and transparency, and improving parks and green spaces.
King is endorsed by Roofers Local 20, Communications Workers of America Local 6360, United Auto Workers Locals 31 and 249, the Greater Kansas City Building & Construction Trades Council, and many other trade unions in the area.
Independence city council race
Candidates for the two seats on Independence City Council are incumbent Jared Fears and challengers Cody Atkinson, Jackie Dorman and Lucy Young.
The top two candidates in vote tallies will each win an at-large seat.
Cody Atkinson
Atkinson is a former medic in the U.S. Army Reserves, serves on the Independence Board of Adjustment and is the president of the Jackson County Animal Welfare Committee. His priorities include housing affordability, small-business investment, restoring the city’s bus service and tackling drug addiction.
Atkinson has said he supports the data center project because it can transform Independence, but wants to work to guarantee that Nebius keeps the promises it’s made to the city. Atkinson has been endorsed by several unions in the area, including those in the building trades and Independence’s firefighters union and the city’s Fraternal Order of Police.
Jackie Dorman
Dorman is a lifelong resident of Independence and has worked as a real estate agent for more than two decades. Dorman’s priorities include supporting small businesses, public safety and restoring faith in the city government. She is endorsed by the International Association of Fire Fighters Local 781 and Independence’s Fraternal Order of Police.
Dorman is the only city council candidate opposed to the Nebius data center. At the meeting where the city council approved the data center tax breaks, Dorman gave public comment against the abatement. She said the meetings involving the data center felt like the city council was trying to “justify legally” how they can proceed without public input.
Jared Fears
Fears was elected to serve as one of the city’s at-large council members in 2022 and is seeking reelection. He’s lived in Independence for more than 50 years and serves as a scout leader. Fears currently serves on the Mid-America Regional Council and as the city’s representative on the Public Utilities Advisory Board, the Board of Adjustment and the Industrial Development Authority.
Fears voted in favor of the tax incentives for the Nebius data center. At the city council meeting where it approved the tax breaks, Fears said “the long-term benefits to Independence outweigh the concerns,” and that the city has embedded safeguards into its abatement plan that eliminate financial risk from the deal. Fears has been endorsed by the Greater Kansas City Building & Construction Trades Council.
Lucy Young
Young served on the Independence city council from 1998 to 2002 and again from 2006 to 2012, when she retired for health reasons. She recently served on the general obligation bond committee. Young has been endorsed by Independence’s firefighters union and the city’s Fraternal Order of Police.
Young is a staunch advocate of the tax incentives for Nebius and spoke in favor of them at multiple city council meetings. She’s said she believes the data center’s payments in lieu of taxes will give the city revenue to repair and replace city services that have been reduced or cut.
