Washington County plans to appoint new Attorney

WASHINGTON — County Supervisors voted unanimously Tuesday morning that they would appoint a replacement to outgoing County Attorney John Gish, rather than hold a special election for the position. The vote puts plans in motion to find a replacement to Gish, who will begin a position as Iowa’s Assistant Attorney General for Victim Services in late January.

County Supervisor Jack Seward Jr. said officials would start looking for appointees right away.

“My vision would be that the chair appoints two individuals from this board to review the applications that are received, and narrow it down to three or four that this board could interview as a whole,” he said.

County Auditor Dan Widmer said the public could still require a special election by petition, with a deadline of 14 days after an eventual appointment is announced. Still, Gish said he recommended the appointment process, which was how he initially came to serve the county in 2017.

“I think more lawyers will show interest in an appointment because that doesn’t take up too much effort and time away from their work and practice,” Gish said at a work session last week. “Whereas, if you do a special election, you’ll probably be getting just those who are willing to take the time to campaign, get petitions, signatures, and that kind of thing.”

As the county awaits applicants for the office, Supervisors have named Anthony Janney as the interim. Janney previously served as County Attorney during Gish’s deployment to Kuwait in 2020, and was still on county pay records as a casual part-timer for the Attorney’s Office.

Starting Jan. 16, Janney will return to full-time status as the interim county attorney, until a longer-term replacement is appointed or elected.

“I think his knowledge of the area, his familiarity with law enforcement, the judges and the system in Washington County will provide continuity between my departure and eventual successor,” Gish said. “This is the best possible workaround, and I think he’s eager to get back to work down in Washington.”

When an appointment is made, state code says the office of County Attorney would come up for election again in the next general election, in this case, 2024. The office would then return to its four-year term length after another election in 2026, placing it back on the midterm election cycle.

AnnaMarie Ward also contributed to this report

Comments: Kalen.McCain@southeastiowaunion.com