Ken Rice announces bid for Columbia’s Ward 2 City Council seat

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Ken Rice has thrown his hat in the Second Ward Columbia City Council race.

Rice made the announcement in a Tuesday afternoon press release. The city called for a special election on Aug. 5 after Ward 2 Councilwoman Lisa Meyer announced that she would step down on May 16. Rice wrote in his release that Meyer asked him to run for her seat.

Rice recently ran an unsuccessful bid for a Columbia Board of Education seat in the April election. He made headlines later in the month by asking for community help in paying off school lunch debt.

City Clerk Sheela Amin told ABC 17 News that Rice submitted his election petition on Tuesday morning and the city is in the process of reviewing it to determine if it’s sufficient. Tuesday was the first day candidates could file.

Election packets can be picked up at the city clerk’s office and candidates have until June 3 to file, according to previous reporting.

In his release, Rice wrote that affordable housing and addressing infrastructure and public safety needs would be focuses of his campaign.

“In our city’s council-manager form of government, leadership is about collaboration, accountability, and long-term thinking. The city manager runs the day-to-day operations—but it's the council that sets the direction, the values, and the policies that shape how our city grows, serves, and thrives. I’m running because I want to be your voice in that process,” Rice wrote in the release. “I’m running because I believe in the power of public service, and I believe in us—the people who make up this city, from every neighborhood and every walk of life.”