Retired Kansas City, Kansas Police Department Deputy Chief Tyrone Garner has announced his run for mayor of the Unified Government of Wyandotte County. He’ll take on current first-term WYCO Mayor David Alvey, and a crowded field of candidates in the Tues., Aug. 3 primary. The top two candidates in the primary will advance to the general election on Tues., Nov. 2.
Garner joined KCKPD straight out of high school in 1987 and spent his entire professional career in the department, with only a slight interruption to serve the United States as a member of the Army. After his honorable discharge from the military, the Wyan- dotte High School graduate returned to KCKPD where he began climbing up the ranks. Garner went on to become the youngest African-American officer promoted to the ranks of detective, captain, major and deputy police chief.
Garner has been an active member of the Wyandotte County community. He served as a KCK Community College Board of Trustee member, a governor appointed member of the Kansas African-American Affairs Commission, an Ad-Hoc Group Against Crime board member and a KCK Housing Authority Board member. Garner was also a member of both the KCK Black Police Officers Association and KCK Latino Peace Officers Association.
Ahead of filing for office, Garner spoke to a variety of com- munity members about challenges in Wyandotte County. He heard concerns about debt, poverty, inequity, discrimination, and he knew the people of Wyandotte deserve better.
- Alternatives to juvenile detention for non-violent juveniles, to include mentoring and counseling.
- An investment in making the “Quindaro Ruins” a first-class tourism destination.
- An inquiry on how best to establish cost-free high-speed
internet access hubs throughout Wyandotte County.
- The funding of a cold-case squad that can investigate and collaborate with stakeholders to revisit unsolved or questionable murders.
- The establishment of “Mayor Monday” events where residents can schedule direct access to the Mayor.
“As someone that believes in the power of positive collaboration, I am committed to fresh ideas, new solutions and positive change centered on engaged community-driven leadership,” said Garner.
To share ideas or issues with Garner, you can email him at: info@garnerformayor.com or visit his website here: www. GarnerForMayor.com.
In addition to Garner and current Mayor Alvey, at press time, other candidates for WYCO mayor are Janice Witt and Daran Duffy. The filing deadline is noon on June 1.
Other offices on the Wyandotte County ballot and some of the candidates who have filed include:
Tom Burroughs is running for his second term as Commis- sioner at-Large District 2, which covers districts 2, 3, 6 and 7.
Brownlee-Paige
Drew
manck
Townsend
Davis
Henderson
Towers
Witt
“As we stand at the crossroads of what Wyandotte County can and should be, the people and I have spoken and believe that we cannot truly become a great community until the dividing line of economic segregation is dismantled,” Garner said in a statement. “There should not be a difference in what success looks like, feels like, and can be like as you move from east to west within our community.”
Garner’s priority is to bring community driven leadership to the Mayor’s office. Some of his other goals for office include:
- Mandatory racial sensitivity, cultural understanding, anger management, servant leadership, wellness, nutrition, de-escala- tion, critical thinking and implicit bias training for all public safety personnel.
- The publishing of complaint data and dispositions against
law enforcement officers.