Incoming Wichita City Council representative Brandon Johnson will be the youngest on the board by more than a decade.
Johnson won the race for the District 1 seat with about 65 percent of the vote. Speaking to supporters on election night, he reflected on the importance of engaging young residents.
"It’s about working together, bridging gaps," he said. "Age gaps, gender gaps."
The 31-year old community activist said as a council member, he wants to make sure everyone has a voice.
"I have a lot of friends that left Wichita. They didn’t feel like they had opportunity, they didn’t feel like they had a voice or were taken seriously, and I made sure I did the opposite in my campaign," he said. "Even entertainment options, how can we provide more of that for the city? They have a lot of ideas, and oftentimes they’re not listened to and I will listen.”
Unofficial numbers show overall voter turnout in Sedgwick County was 8 percent—in Wichita’s 1st District, it was 13 percent.
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