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Nixa mayor appoints Jay Ortiz to fill District 1 council vacancy
Summary
The Nixa City Council on Aug. 26 appointed Jay Ortiz to the District 1 seat to fill a vacancy created after a disqualification and subsequent resignation following a special election; the appointment runs through the April 2026 election.
The Nixa City Council appointed Jay Ortiz on Aug. 26 to fill the vacant District 1 council seat, the council said during its regular meeting. The appointment follows a certified special municipal election held Aug. 5 and fills a seat the city records show as vacant.
City Clerk Rebecca Coffey read Resolution No. 2025-39, which states the county clerk provided certified results of the Aug. 5 special election and notes that the candidate who appeared on the ballot was disqualified by the Missouri Ethics Commission on June 10 and later submitted a resignation on Aug. 15. “Due to that disqualification and letter of resignation, the mayor has selected mister Jay Ortiz to fill that vacant seat,” Coffey said.
Mayor Jared Giddens described his selection, saying Ortiz was already active in local civic life: “He’s heavily involved with the Chamber of Commerce, has a business here in Nixa. So he is heavily invested in our community and really cares about the community. I think he’s a very fair individual, and I just think he would do a a good job.” Giddens said the appointment is to serve until the seat is on the ballot in April 2026.
Staff recommended adopting the resolution to satisfy Section 3.9 of the city charter, which requires the council to declare election results. The council then voted to approve the resolution. The mayor stated he would make the motion; the transcript also records a roll-call vote and a clerk’s reading that the motion carried.
The council did not raise additional questions during the public hearing on the appointment, and no other formal actions were attached to the appointment at the meeting.
Council members present who voted in favor included Darlene Graham, Zern Vess, Kelly Morris, Jay Ortiz (new appointee), Aaron Peterson and Sean Lucas, according to the roll call recorded after the motion passed. The resolution and appointment mean the District 1 seat will be occupied until the next regular election for that seat in April 2026.
The council packet and the resolution reference the county clerk’s certified results and the charter requirement; the council did not discuss any alternative appointment process at the meeting.
