HILLSBORO — The ӣƵ County Council's budget coordinator announced this weekend he's running for county executive in Jefferson County.
Chris Grahn-Howard, a Republican from Cedar Hill, said in a on Sunday that he decided to run after people asked him to get involved.
Grahn-Howard has worked for the council since 2019. He previously worked as a legislative aide to Councilman Mark Harder, a Republican from Ballwin.
Republican , of Festus, has also announced he plans to run for county executive. Whitney has worked for the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office since 2002, when he began as a patrol deputy. Whitney now serves as undersheriff and as the department's chief financial officer, according to the .
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County Executive Dennis Gannon, who was first elected in 2018, said he won't run for reelection. He plans to spend more time with his grandchildren.
The Republican primary election is Aug. 4, 2026.
ӣƵ County executive Sam Page described the new features to the county's flag as it was unveiled during his State of the County address on March 11, 2025.
After public surveys, town hall meetings, multiple requests and a two-hour session on Saturday, the council doesn’t appear any closer to deciding how to spend federal pandemic aid.
Payments to a dozen who retired or quit cost over $117,000, including nearly $26,000 for Sam Alton, the former chief of staff for prosecutor Wesley Bell.
ӣƵ County Council isn't telling departments what to cut, whether it's positions, services or something else. Department leaders mull how they would trim their budgets if cuts are approved.
ӣƵ County Executive Page says he has begun an investigation into the issue.
ӣƵ County overpaid 61 staffers in 12 departments, including the County Council and County Executive Sam Page's office, since 2016.
Two ӣƵ County Council staffers still technically owe for the amounts they were overpaid.
Cutting the value of the vacancies makes a modest dent in the county's estimated $38 million budget deficit.
The ӣƵ County Council is considering a measure allowing it to remove the county executive from office. It's not the first step the council has taken to empower itself.
