Lee Stubbs — longtime owner and publisher of The Citizen — ousted an incumbent to win a Ward 2 spot on the Platte City Board of Aldermen in the Tuesday, April 7 general municipal election.
Stubbs, 52, received exactly 50 percent of the reported votes in the unofficial results, totaling 125. Ron Porter, seeking a fifth non-consecutive term, garnered 120 votes. Porter, 79, is a semi-retired resident who served two terms from 2002 to 2005 and then again from 2012 to 2015.
Vickie Atkins (Ward 1) and John Higgins (Ward 3) — both incumbents — were reelected in unopposed races.
“I appreciate the support of all those who voted for me, and I look forward to serving the residents of Platte City,” Stubbs said in a statement. “I also want to thank Ron Porter for his many years of public service.”
A 1980 graduate of Platte County High School, Stubbs went on to work in the newspaper industry after earning an English degree with emphasis in journalism from UMKC. He returned to Platte City to work at The Citizen in 1995 and bought the paper in 1998, owning it until its sale this past summer.
Prior to his election, Stubbs said he believed his unique experience of covering various municipal boards through the years provides a unique perspective on local government.