The memorial for Charlie Kirk at the Turning Point USA headquarters in Phoenix, Arizona, on Sept. 11, 2025.

The chair of the Johnson County Board of Supervisors is saying no to Gov. Kim Reynolds' order that flags on public grounds be lowered to half-staff in honor of assassinated conservative figure Charlie Kirk.

Jon Green posted on social media that by his “personal authority as Chairman of the Johnson County Board of Supervisors," the county, home of Iowa City and the University of Iowa, will defy the governor’s order.

While condemning Kirk’s killing, Green, a Democrat, wrote that he will "not grant Johnson County honors to a man who made it his life’s mission to denigrate so many of the constituents I have sworn an oath to protect, and who did so much to harm not only to the marginalized, but also to degrade the fabric of our body politic.

“Johnson County flags will fly as usual. I will accept any consequence, whether legal or electoral, for my decision. It is mine alone,” he wrote.

Green was not immediately available for comment. His message sparked quick rebukes from Reynolds as well as Republican Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird.

“It’s disgraceful that a locally-elected official has chosen to put politics above human decency during a time like this,” Reynolds said on her X account.

A call to Reynolds' office was not immediately returned.

“It is small-minded and disgraceful that a leader in our state refuses to honor our American principles of freedom and free speech,” Bird wrote on her X account.

Wahls disagrees with decision; two other supervisors back it

At least one Johnson County-based Democrat disagreed with Green's decision. State Sen. Zach Wahls, D-Coralville, who represents parts of Johnson County and is running for the U.S. Senate seat that will open when current Republican Sen. Joni Ernst completes her term in early 2027, told reporters Friday that he disagreed with Green.

“I don't think that's the appropriate decision,” he said, adding that “I think they should comply with the governor's instructions on this topic.”

Wahls called Kirk’s slaying the latest in a series of acts of political violence around the country that include the assassination of Minnesota House of Representatives speaker emerita Melissa Hortman and her husband earlier this summer and the attempts on President Donald Trump’s life.

“I condemn the political violence in the strongest possible terms,” he said. “My prayers are with his widow and his two young children. You know, this is a country where we resolve our arguments with words and debate, not with weapons and violence, and we absolutely need leaders who are going to work to try and lower the temperature.”

While Green’s action came without any discussion from the four other members of the board — all Democrats — at least two endorsed it.

“I am proud to serve our county and whole-heartedly support Chair Jon Green’s defiance of the governor’s orders," Supervisor V Fixmer-Oraiz wrote in an email to the Des Moines Register. "I do not condone violence of any kind. I will continue to stand up for our marginalized and underestimated residents and Charlie Kirk’s messages of hate cannot be overlooked.”

Supervisor Mandi Remington in an email said that “while I condemn political violence, lowering our county’s flags is an honor that should reflect our community’s values. Charlie Kirk spent his career working to marginalize LGBTQ+ people, undermine women’s rights, and divide our country along lines of hate and exclusion."

“Johnson County is home to a diverse community, including many who were the direct targets of Kirk’s rhetoric," Remington wrote. "To honor him with our flags would be to dismiss the harm he caused to our neighbors and constituents. Supervisor Green's stance affirms that our county will not elevate voices that work to strip others of dignity, freedom, and belonging. I believe this decision is a principled one, rooted in respect for the people of Johnson County and the constitutional values we are sworn to protect.”

Johnson County’s longest-tenured supervisor, Rod Sullivan, emphasized that Green acted without discussing his decision with the rest of the board. But Sullivan, in an interview with the Register, also expressed frustration about flag protocols.

“You know, I honestly get a little frustrated with (flag-) flying protocols because I think a lot of people follow them when they want to follow them and don't follow them when they don't want to follow them. And I think that goes for the Governor and the president as well,” Sullivan said.

“Everything seems so vitriolic right now that this is the least of my worries, you know?” he added, saying he believes lowering the flags should be reserved for certain military personnel and elected officials.

Johnson County's fifth supervisor, Lisa Green-Douglass, did not immediately reply to an email seeking comment.

By at least one measure, Johnson County is the most Democratic-leaning in Iowa, giving the largest proportionate vote, 68.4%, to Kamala Harris in the 2024 presidential race.

Order calls for flags at half staff through Sunday

Reynolds’ order called for flying flags at half staff in honor of Kirk on all public grounds from sunrise Sept. 11 to sunset Sunday, and encouraged private individuals and businesses also to comply.

President Donald Trump issued a similar order. The directives coincided with previous ones ordering flags flown at half staff on Sept. 11 in memory of the victims of the 911 attacks in 2001.

U.S. Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks, a Republican whose district includes Iowa City, in a posting on X has called for the University of Iowa’s new Center for Intellectual Freedom to be named for Kirk.

Staff writer Stephen Gruber-Miller contributed to this article.

Kevin Baskins covers jobs and the economy for the Des Moines Register. Reach him at kbaskins@registermedia.com.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Local Iowa official defies governor's order to lower flags for Charlie Kirk

Reporting by Kevin Baskins, Des Moines Register / Des Moines Register

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