Gov. Parkinson nominates new commerce secretary

TOPEKA, (AP) – The former chairman of the state Chamber of Commerce has been tapped to lead the Kansas Department of Commerce.
Gov. Mark Parkinson announced the nomination of William Thornton this past week.
He will replace David Kerr, who announced Thursday a decision to leave the commerce department to become Missouri’s director of the Department of Economic Development.
The job change has some Kansas lawmakers questioning whether Kerr and Parkinson’s administration have been aggressive enough in trying to attract an office complex for Missouri-based Cerner Corp. and a major league soccer stadium to Kansas City, Kan.
Thornton will take over as secretary of the Kansas Department of Commerce on Nov. 9.
He is from Atchison and serves on the Kansas Board of Regents.