Here's a rundown of candidates for county office on the Nov. 8 ballot in Boone County.
District 1 Associate commissioner
The full-time position covers Hartsburg and Ashland. It pays $95,243,20. Two candidates - Brianna Lennon, a Democrat, and Fred Parry, a Republican - are vying for the seat.
Democrat Brianna Lennon
Age: 30
Education: Graduate of University of Missouri School of Law in 2011
Career background: Deputy director of elections from 2013 to December 2015, Missouri assistant attorney general in the Consumer Protection Unit from 2011-13
Family: Husband, Scott Fines; 1 son
Why run: "My work dealt with talking to constituents, trying to manage their concerns and the issues I kept hearing were all local. I wanted to get involved in local government in the commission level because I interacted with a lot of county officials as I was helping to provide them ways to address the challenges they were facing."
Main issues: Infrastructure in roads and bridges, economic development - particularly in the Ashland area - and bolstering efforts with the Sheriff's Department to address cyber crimes.
Republican Fred Parry
Age: 52
Education: Bachelor of general studies from University of Missouri
Career background: Publisher of Inside Columbia, Prime and CEO magazines, started publishing business in 1994
Family: Married to Melody; 2 sons
Why run: "I recently hired a CEO to run my company so I felt like this is a good time for me to get involved. There have been several issues over the years with the county commission where I was disappointed with how they handled situations. One of those was closing the Boone County fairgrounds and removing the Desert Storm memorial from courthouse square. Those two were the tipping point issues. I felt like it's a good time for me to step forward and see if I can make things better."
Main issues: Reopen the fairgrounds, improve the county's relationship with Columbia and several of the surrounding communities, lack of transparency with closed meetings, renewing the road and bridge tax expiring in 2018.
District 2 Associate commissioner
District 2 covers the northern portion of Boone County and has two candidates - Janet Thompson, a Democrat, and Brenndan Riddles, a Republican - running for the seat. It's considered a full-time position at a $95,243.20 salary.
Sheriff
One candidate, Dwayne Carey, a Democrat, is running for the Boone County sheriff position. The full-time position pays $126,817.60. Carey could not be reached for comment.
Assessor
Incumbent Tom Schauwecker, a Democrat, is the sole candidate for Boone County assessor. The full-time position pays $95,243.20.
Democrat Tom Schauwecker
Age: 63
Education: Bachelors of science business administration from University of Missouri-Columbia
Career background: Boone County assessor since 1989, worked in the assessor's office from 1981-85, appraiser for Moore & Shryock, LLC Columbia, state certified general appraiser.
Family: Married to Sharon; 2 children
Why run: "I have 31 years of service and, at my age, I could have retired. But I decided, you know what, I'm healthy, I have the best staff I've ever had and I'm still having fun. I'm going to run another term."
Main issue: Missouri is one of the few states that does not require public disclosure of sale price, but it would improve the accuracy and quality of assessments.
County treasurer
The full-time position pays $95,243.20. Incumbent Tom Darrough, a Democrat, is running unopposed.
Democrat Tom Darrough
Age: 51
Education: Bachelor of science in business administration from University of Missouri-St. Louis
Career background: Completing first term as Boone County Treasurer, computer programming consultant for 14 years, ran a construction company for 14 years
Family: Married to Cheri; 3 sons
Why run: "Because I agreed to. Being appointed means you agree to run. I like the job and would like to do it more."
Main issue: Maintaining the safety of the investments while improving returns on the $110 million the county has invested.
Public administrator
Democrat Sonja Boone is running unopposed for the full-time position that pays $95,243.20.
Democrat Sonja Boone
Age: 57
Education: Coursework at University of Missouri and Columbia College
Career background: Currently chief deputy public administrator, spent 26 years total in Boone County Public Administrator's office, 8.5 years at the Boone County National Bank
Family: Single, three children, four grandchildren, and is the guardian for two grandchildren
Why run: "I've worked in the office for a very long time and felt that I'm the best candidate for taking over the office since I've been here so long. Instead of training a new public administrator, I figured why not run myself."
Main issue: Funding for mental health services and the shortage of facilities needed for those who have been appointed to the public administrator's office.