Roger Garcia was appointed to the Douglas County Board of Commissioners to represent District 1 after a special committee interviewed applicants last Friday.

Garcia – one of seven finalists – will take over after losing by only three votes in the May 2020 Democratic primary to former board member Mike Boyle, who won the race but died in September.

In a Facebook post Friday, Garcia offered a celebratory statement: “Beloved community, we did it! It has been a 2 1/2 year journey to become Douglas County Commissioner for District 1. First, through a long campaign that started in March 2019 where we only (lost) by 3 votes and now through an appointment process that included 14 talented applicants. To be chosen is an honor and a blessing and now the real work begins.”

The selection process began with applications, followed by a committee meeting on Oct. 13 to determine the interview process, review applications and winnow down a list of applicants to be interviewed. At las Friday’s meeting, public comments were taken and finalists were interviewed. The committee made their pick after conducting the interviews.

During Garcia’s interview, he talked about representing all people in the diverse district.

“I want to be a commissioner that can effectively engage different cultural and linguistic groups being someone who is fully bilingual in English and Spanish and who also actively works with agencies that serve many diverse groups in Douglas County,” Garcia said.

Now appointed, Garcia will serve for the remainder of the current term. The board seat will be on the ballot in 2024.

Boyle, who died Sept. 13, had planned to return to his seat which he had served on since 1997.

The committee members were Douglas County Clerk Dan Esch, Douglas County Treasurer John Ewing and Douglas County Attorney Don Kleine.

Both Esch and Ewing voted for Garcia, while Kleine supported retired Omaha Deputy Police Chief Mark Martinez.

Other finalister were Daniel Martin, Sara Howard, Kimara Snipes, Angel Starks, Jim Thompson and Patrick Venditte.

Garcia will be sworn in during a ceremony Monday, Nov. 1, at noon in Courtroom 501 of the Douglas County Courthouse.