The Madison County Board of Supervisors voted to approve Evan Simpson as a full‑time elections deputy effective Feb. 17 at $28 per hour during its February meeting. Supervisors voted in favor after staff said a background check had been completed prior to the hiring decision.

Public commenters pressed the board and Auditor Kaczynski for details about the hiring process and whether HR, the county attorney or outside employment counsel reviewed the candidate. Vicky Brenner, who identified herself as a Winterset resident, urged the board to scrutinize the hire and submitted a screenshot she said came from the candidate’s Facebook account. Brenner said the post included a comment that she quoted to the board: “it’s okay. If anyone tries to come and take Clarissa, if he's elected, they'll have a copy of the constitution and an assault rifle with a 40 round mag in their face.”

Hannah Davis, another public commenter, asked whether the auditor had reviewed the candidate’s LinkedIn and prior work with groups she named, including Turning Point USA and Americans for Prosperity, and whether those affiliations indicated partisan activity incompatible with a nonpartisan elections role. Davis also said the situation raised broader questions about whether local leaders should apologize to former officeholders if hiring decisions were mishandled.

County staff told supervisors the position had been posted, a background check completed and standard hiring steps followed; the hire was then approved by motion and voice vote. The board did not produce additional documentation about interview questions or the hiring committee during the meeting, though Brenner said she intended to request records under the Iowa Open Records law.

The hiring vote concluded the item; the board did not defer hiring pending an outside review or additional public records disclosure at that meeting.