Etheredge looks back at historical term as Johnson County Supervisor

John Etheredge's journey into local politics, a decision that ultimately saw him become the first Republican in more than 50 years to be elected to the Johnson County Board of Supervisors, began with an ice cream shop.

It was 2001, and Etheredge's father was attempting to open an ice cream shop near Frytown in rural Johnson County. He faced restrictions from the county's Land Use Plan, which Etheredge described as a blanket policy.

'It just really had me asking questions,” Etheredge said. 'I really wanted to get the board to identify and work that blanket backward ... to really let people who live in these areas be creative and let these people benefit their local community.”

In 2012, Etheredge was one of two candidates running independently for the Board of Supervisors but lost to incumbent Democrats Terrence Neuzil, Pat Harney and Rod Sullivan.

Defeated but not finished, Etheredge returned the next year when he was nominated by the Johnson County Republicans to challenge Democrat Terry Dahms for a seat left vacant in January 2013.

Etheredge took a door-to-door, grass-roots approach, tackling issues such as government efficiency and the Land Use Plan to drum up support leading up to the March 5 special election.

Watching the votes come in that cold night, Etheredge wasn't ready to celebrate until the final precinct reported.

'I don't bite my nails, but if I did there'd be nothing left,” he said.

Etheredge came out on top by a margin of 193 votes.

Willing to Learn

Fellow Supervisor Sullivan admitted to having reservations when the young Republican was elected - not over his party, but over Etheredge's lack of experience.

'I was pretty nervous when he started in part because it was obvious he didn't have a lot of background, but he really impressed everyone with his willingness to study and work hard and learn,” he said.

Etheredge was the first Republican elected to the Johnson County Board of Supervisors since 1958.

'He had the guts to try something nobody else had succeeded at in many years,” Johnson County Republican Party Chairman Bill Keetle said. 'Johnson County is well-known to be a Democratic county, and therefore we require somebody really special in order to win an election in Johnson County, and John Etheredge is really special.”

But sitting in his office at the Johnson County Administration Building last month, his desk cluttered as he packed his things, Etheredge said it was never about Republican versus Democrat. It was the issues.

'Yes it hasn't happened in over 50 years, but that doesn't tell me much about the parties ... to me it was finding a person who was able to articulate ideas and principles that resonate with the voting public.”

focused on Issues

During his roughly two-year term, Etheredge pushed for state legislation that increased document storage efficiencies and took the lead in trail work at the Johnson County Poor Farm.

While they didn't always see eye to eye, Supervisor Janelle Rettig said she was impressed with Etheredge's honesty and work ethic.

'That's kind of who he is. He sees something that needs to get done, and he just does it,” she said. 'Yes it was a short career, but he got passionate about certain issues, and he went out and did them, and I think that shows his personality a lot.”

A Losing Campaign

Despite his efforts to focus on policies rather than party lines in last November's campaign, Etheredge said the R next to his name never was forgotten.

'It was very difficult to reach people with my message because so many people just look at the letter before the name, and that's very unfortunate,” he said. 'To me it's all about representation, local involvement. And if you're going to promote an R or a D as the end-all, you're probably not going to get as much done as you could have.”

In the end, Etheredge's 20,394 votes Nov. 5 weren't enough to keep Mike Carberry and incumbent Rettig from returning the board to an all Democratic lineup.

His term officially ended Wednesday, and Etheredge's goal is to find work that lets him continue to serve the community.

And looking back to the ice cream shop that first got his political wheels turning, he hopes others realize the importance of participation.

'If you didn't agree with a policy, get involved,” he said. 'If you don't do it, is anybody going to?”