Incoming mayor Jennifer Ananda excited for ‘a year of change’

When Jennifer Ananda dropped off her forms to become a Lawrence City Commission candidate in 2017, she said she was literally shaking.
“It’s scary to put yourself out there,” Ananda said. “You’re saying ‘Please tell me that you find me appropriate for this.’ It’s very public and it’s very vulnerable.”
Ananda need not have worried, as she finished second in the election, earning her not only a spot on the commission but a four-year term and the position of vice mayor this year. And come Tuesday, if city commissioners stick with tradition as expected, she is set to become Lawrence’s next mayor.