By Candida Maurer, Iowa City
There are two good candidates in Johnson County vying for one seat. This is an unfortunate result of the Iowa Legislature’s new law that forces our county to use a district approach to voting rather than an at large approach. This has put Rod Sullivan opposing V Fixmer-Oraiz in the June 2 primary election.
Rod Sullivan has been a steadfast Board member for many years and is responsible for a great number of progressive movements in our County (check out his website: www.rodsullivan.com). And though V is progressive, I believe that Rod is the obviously better candidate due to his exemplary attendance at Board meetings.
Our Board members are being paid $90,000 a year to show up and run our County. Auditor records show that V was absent from meetings (both in person and electronic) 28 times in 2024, and 40 times in 2025. During this same period, Rod missed four meetings in 2024, and seven meetings in 2025. Clearly, V does not have the same level of commitment to running our County that Rod has demonstrated.
If you feel you are voting for V because she represents diversity, have no worries! Virtually everyone on the Board, including Rod, supports diversity. And Rod Sullivan is the person who works harder, and is the person who shows up.
