As a lifelong resident of Platte County, a Democrat and someone who has both worked for and retired from the county, I have to say this has been one of the most unusual election seasons I have ever witnessed.
What concerns me most is the amount of misinformation being circulated throughout our community. I believe voters deserve accurate information so they can make informed decisions at the ballot box. With that in mind, I want to address four claims I have heard during this election and provide the facts as I understand them.
Campaign fiction:
“Sheila Palmer and the Collector’s Office are slow-walking the Homestead Tax Credit program.”
The fact:
The Homestead Credit order passed by the Platte County Commission does not specify a particular tax year in which the program must appear on tax statements.
Because 2026 is not a reassessment year and because the program needs to be properly implemented and programmed, the credit is anticipated to appear on the 2027 tax statement, which is a reassessment year.
There is also another important consideration: the program is currently involved in litigation before the Missouri Supreme Court and could ultimately be thrown out. Personally, I would rather see the program implemented correctly than rush it and potentially have to reimburse the county for credits that were issued incorrectly.
Campaign fiction:
“The independent candidates went to memory care wards to collect petition signatures.”
The fact:
The independent candidates went to retirement and independent living facilities and offered registered voters there the opportunity to sign the petitions.
Memory care, dementia and Alzheimer’s wards are separate, secured areas and signatures were not obtained from those areas.
Every registered voter has the right to sign a petition. A person’s age does not make them any less of a voter or any less entitled to participate in the political process.
Every signature was reviewed, the petitions were certified and the candidates were subsequently placed back on the ballot by the Board of Elections.
It is also important to remember that signing a petition is not the same as voting for a candidate. It simply gives voters an additional choice when they cast their ballot.
Campaign fiction:
“Candidates are violating First Amendment rights by blocking people on social media.”
The fact:
The Facebook pages of Chris Kendall and Holly Cayer are campaign pages. They are not being used to conduct official government business, but rather to communicate about a political campaign.
Because they are private campaign accounts, candidates can block users or remove comments, particularly when people are using the page to harass others or are not participating in genuine discussion.
From what I have seen, legitimate questions about the campaign have been addressed. There is certainly room for disagreement in politics, but disagreement should not be confused with censorship simply because a campaign chooses to moderate its own private social media page.
Campaign fiction:
“They voted themselves raises.”
The fact:
The current elected officials voted for a pay increase that applies to the next person elected to that office, not themselves.
It is also public knowledge that some county employees currently make more than elected officials.
The newly approved raises have not yet been received by the current elected officials. In fact, elected officials have only received a raise twice in the past 16 years.
For example, the treasurer position will not receive the newly approved raise until after the 2028 election because that office is on a midterm election cycle. Therefore, Chris Kendall did not vote himself a raise.
I would hope that any candidate who has made these raises a major campaign issue would be willing to decline the raise and reimburse the county if they are elected, since they have expressed such strong opposition to higher wages.
The bottom line
I hope this helps remind people that not everything they read on social media, on websites with questionable credibility, or from political candidates running negative campaigns should automatically be accepted as fact.
Elections should be about choices, ideas, experience and what candidates can do for our community — not about repeating claims simply because they sound good politically.
Before believing or sharing something, take a moment to look for the facts. Platte County voters deserve nothing less.
Maybe if candidates spent a little less time attacking their opponents and a little more time talking about their own qualifications and plans, the facts would speak for themselves.
An Educated Voter,
Ruth Renz Gonterwitz
