Columbia will hold a special election for the Fourth Ward City Council seat after Councilor Nick Foster announced his resignation. The seat is scheduled to be filled through a special election on Aug. 4, 2026. The winner would serve the remainder of Foster’s term, which ends in April 2028. Nick Foster’s resignation was announced April 30 and effective June 12, with a relocation to Atlanta tied to his wife’s new role at Georgia State University.

The filing deadline was reported as Tuesday, and three people have applied for the vacancy: David Sorrell, Ryan King and Sharon G. Jones.

This matters to Fourth Ward residents because the council seat will shape decisions on near term issues that directly affect neighborhoods, including zoning and land use, utilities performance, housing and community development priorities, and how city services are funded. With a vacancy, the question for voters is not only who will represent the ward, but also how quickly the city returns to full decision making capacity for matters that come before City Council.

Candidate 1: 
David Sorrell is described as a long time Columbia public employee who served as director of the city’s utilities and retired after decades of work. He joined the city in 2001 as a civil engineer in Public Works, moved through roles in water and electric divisions, and later became utilities director in March 2020, with retirement described as after his tenure as utilities director.

Candidate 2: 
Ryan King is described as serving on the Housing and Community Development Commission, with a commission term ending Nov. 1, 2027. His professional work as an attorney in social services and his military service as a judge advocate in the Army Reserve. He is also a board member and race director for the Columbia Track Club.

Candidate 3: 
Sharon G Jones is chair of Columbia’s Planning and Zoning Commission, with a term ending May 31, 2028. She is a licensed attorney, graduated from the University of Missouri with a law degree in 2012, and founded the Jones Advocacy Group in 2019 to promote government transparency and accountability, based on the group’s mission statement.

The next step is the formal election process leading to Aug. 4. Voters should expect city and election officials to publish candidate information and ballot details through official channels.
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