JOHNSON COUNTY — Five candidates, three Democratic and two Republican, are on the June 7 primary election ballot in a bid to run for two open seats on the Johnson County Board of Supervisors.
V Fixmer-Oraiz, incumbent Jon Green, and Seth Zimmerman are the Democrats while Jammie Bradshaw and former Iowa City Community School District Board member Phil Hemingway are the Republicans.
The Solon Economist sent out a questionnaire to all five candidates and will run their responses as-written (with minor corrections for spelling and punctuation), and in the order they were received. Zimmerman’s responses were published in our May 19 edition, and this week we have Bradshaw and Hemingway. We hope to feature the remaining candidates in our June 2 editions.
Jammie Bradshaw is a mother of four, wife of a veteran, ten-year veteran of the U.S. Air Force, and a breast cancer survivor currently working as a drone pilot and technician. “I have never held public office and do not consider myself to be a politician,” she said. “I am merely one of the people working to serve the people.”
Phil Hemingway was born and raised on his family’s Century Farm in rural Johnson County between Morse and Oasis. “I am the fourth generation to have lived and worked on that farm,” he said. He spent five years managing Roy Carver’s cattle ranch in Belize, Central America, where he met his future wife, Anita. The couple have been married for 30 years and have one daughter, Monica, who attended Iowa City schools and graduated from the University of Iowa with a degree in chemical engineering. “I also worked in Africa and the former Soviet Union and have operated my own auto and truck repair business in Johnson County since 1997. All my life I have worked with my hands, either in agriculture of in the skilled trades.” Hemingway was elected to the Iowa City Community School Board in 2015 and served one four-year term.
Why are you hoping to run for the Board of Supervisors?
Bradshaw – “I am running for the Board of Supervisors because I firmly believe that if something is wrong or needs changing and you don’t stand up to change it then you cannot complain. I have a record of serving in the military for ten years and have been a mom for 16 years. I want to teach my children that if there is something that needs to be changed you have to be willing to put in the effort and do the work. I believe that serving as a supervisor gives me the ability to try to change things in Johnson County for the better, and it also allows me to continue the record of service. As a member of this County and community, I want to see it excel and for people to be proud to be from Johnson County. The best way that I believe that I can help make this happen is by serving the people of Johnson County and giving them a voice.”
Hemingway – “I look to bring fiscal oversight, rural representation, and a fresh perspective to the board of supervisors. My blue-collar background and common sense are presently lacking on the county board. Johnson County desperately needs a fiscal watchdog and someone with farming and rural life experience to bring balance to the board.”
What do you see as the most pressing issues in Johnson County? Why? And how would you propose to address them?
Bradshaw – “The most pressing issues that I see in Johnson County are the taxes and cost of living. If we can lower the taxes in Johnson County, it would bring businesses to the county, create more jobs, and stimulate the economy. By lowering the taxes, it would put more money in the pockets of the people who really need it: the citizens of Johnson County. Lower taxes would also help to make housing, food, and everyday life easier to afford and better to live. The other issue that ties into the taxes is that the voice of the people of Johnson County has for far too long been silenced. Decisions are made for the people without the input of the people. These tie together because if you do not have a way for the people to have a say in what happens in their county then ultimately it becomes the governed over the people and not the governed by the people.
The ways that I would work to change and correct the problems that I see is by giving a voice back to the people. This is by making it so that the supervisors are easily accessible, whether that be via text, call, or email. I would also propose that meetings are held at least once a month at nights, and at least once a month at a different town hall location. This would give all citizens in Johnson County the ability to come out and voice their thoughts and opinions on what happens in the county in which they live. The way I would work to lower taxes would be by examining the budget and working with those in each field to find areas where we can eliminate waste. This would put more money back in the pockets of the citizens of Johnson County and in turn stimulate the economy and create an amazing place to live.”
Hemingway – “Inflation doesn’t just start in Washington, D.C., it starts right here in Johnson County with our supervisors’ over-regulatory and burdensome policies and actions. We are in a hyperinflationary period where the cost of everything is going through the roof. The present Supervisors raising their personal salaries in the midst of this hyperinflationary period only serves as a poor example of failed leadership. I also am the only candidate in the last five election cycles who has pledged to not seek, nor accept, a raise in compensation during my term. I said that in 2018 and I stand by it today. We must lower the financial burden on every resident of Johnson County, and it has to start with the supervisors.”
What separates you from your fellow contenders?
Bradshaw – “I’m not a politician. I am just like you, a regular tax paying citizen of Johnson County. I am not seeking this position to become a politician, but rather instead to serve my neighbor. I know what it is like to struggle with putting food on the table and paying the light bill. I have served my country, and I work hard every day to teach my children that being a part of a community means standing up when that community needs help. I have worked my whole life to make the world that I live in the best it can be and this is something that I would like to continue to do for the people of Johnson County. I am here to merely be a voice for and to serve the people of Johnson County”
Hemingway – “The board of supervisors needs a watchdog to hold the line on costs and provide the necessary fiscal oversight to make Johnson County more livable for all residents. As chairman of the ICCSD finance committee, I audited every check and receipt of district spending every two weeks. The ICCSD budget is double that of Johnson County’s budget and three times the employees. I provided this service to the community as an unpaid volunteer. As a supervisor, I plan to bring the same scrutiny to county spending that I did to the school district. Referring to my ICCSD school board service, the Gazette editorial board stated: “There simply is no other member of the school board with his tenacity or attention to detail especially on fiscal matters.” The county would benefit having me as a fiscal watchdog.”

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Phil Hemingway