The Lawrence school board on Monday voted to appoint whichever candidate lands in fourth place in the final Nov. 7 election results to a vacant board seat.
Three seats were open in the recent election. Coming in third place behind incumbents Shannon Kimball and Kelly Jones, newcomer Matt Lancaster had 78 more votes than incumbent Bob Byers (6,096 and 6,018 votes, respectively) as of a Friday update from the Douglas County elections office.
Former board member Anne Costello resigned Oct. 27, leaving another seat to fill.
Present board members, including Gordon-Ross, Kimball, Jones and Carole Cadue-Blackwood unanimously approved the fourth-place appointment on Monday. Byers recused himself from the vote, and member Yolanda Franklin was absent Monday.
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Kimball said according to board policy, the board chooses to appoint someone or to hold an application process to fill its own vacancies.
Barring extremely unusual circumstances during the final canvass of the election results, set for Monday, Nov. 17, Lancaster will most likely be the third candidate elected to the board.
Byers — who had previously served on the school board from 2009-2013, then again by appointment from 2014 to 2015 — applied to serve on the board again in June 2023 after former board member Kay Emerson stepped down. His current appointed term runs through Jan. 12, 2026.
On Friday, Byers said he hadn’t thought about whether he’d accept what would be his third appointed term because he’s waiting for the final results.
Lancaster on Friday also said he’s not claiming victory yet. He said it’s tricky navigating the close proximity of election results and a direct appointment, and the decision warrants transparency and careful consideration.
When there was another vacant seat in 2022, the board ultimately appointed GR Gordon-Ross, who had come in fourth place out of a field of six candidates and did not win reelection in November 2021. However, the board at the time went through an application process and called in multiple candidates to be interviewed rather than select Gordon-Ross by default because of where he’d placed in the recent election. Gordon-Ross was elected again in 2023 and is now board president.
Mike Courtney, Lawrence City Commissioner-elect, was the sole public commenter on the topic Monday. He said appointing the fourth-place candidate reflects transparency and accountability.
“This situation gives you the unique opportunity to reaffirm this positive precedent for the school board, the city and the county,” Courtney said. “The voice of the people should be heard when filling vacancies in our elected bodies.”
Jones congratulated Byers and Lancaster for their likely appointment and thanked them for participating in “this very unusual circumstance we find ourselves in.”
“I feel like this is going to be an exceptionally strong board,” Jones said.
Either Byers or Lancaster will be sworn in on Jan. 12, 2026 and fill Costello’s four-year term, which was set to expire in January 2028.
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Maya Hodison (she/her), equity reporter, can be reached at mhodison@lawrencekstimes.com. Read more of her work for the Times here. Check out her staff bio here.
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