Yolonda Fountain Henderson

Yolonda Fountain Henderson (born c. 1965)^[2] is an American politician. She has served as a member of the Missouri House of Representatives from the 85th district since 2023. A member of the Democratic Party, she previously served as mayor of Jennings, Missouri, between 2015 and 2016.^[3]

Yolonda Fountain Henderson
Member of the Missouri House of Representatives from the 85th district
Incumbent
Assumed office January 4, 2023 (2023-01-04)
Preceded by	Kevin Windham Jr.
Mayor of Jennings
In office 2015 (2015) – May 24, 2016 (2016-05-24)
Preceded by	Benjamin Sutphin
Succeeded by	Francine Dugger
Personal details
Born	c. 1965 (age 58–59) St. Louis, Missouri, U.S.[1]
Political party	Democratic

Political career

Henderson served as president of the Jennings, Missouri school board before serving as the first African-American female city councilwoman for Jennings.^[1]

Mayor of Jennings

Henderson was elected mayor of the city of Jennings in April 2015.^[4] Shortly after being sworn in as mayor, she filed a lawsuit against the city council and several top city officials.^[5][6][7]

In February 2016, articles of impeachment were written, which cited 19 allegations against Henderson; it was down to 12 by the time of her impeachment.^[5] On May 24, the city council voted to impeach Henderson through a unanimous vote. Francine Dugger succeeded her as mayor pro tempore.^[8][9]

Missouri House of Representatives

Henderson was elected to the Missouri House of Representatives in 2022. She was unopposed in the general election.^[10]

Electoral history

2022 Missouri House of Representatives election, District 85^[11][10]

Primary election
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Yolonda Fountain Henderson	1,885	53.08
	Democratic	Yonnee Fortson	1,190	33.51
	Democratic	Donovan Meeks	476	13.41
Total votes			3,551	100.00
General election
	Democratic	Yolonda Fountain Henderson	7,026	100.00
Total votes			7,026	100.00

References

1. "Representative Yolonda Fountain Henderson". Missouri House of Representatives. Retrieved December 31, 2023.
2. "Democratic—Yolonda Fountain Henderson". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. October 27, 2022. p. V5. Retrieved December 30, 2023 – via Newspapers.com. Age: 57
3. "Representative Yolonda Fountain Henderson". Missouri House of Representatives. Retrieved December 31, 2023.
4. Gillerman, Margaret S. (June 22, 2015). "Angry Jennings council calls private session to discuss suit filed by mayor". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved December 31, 2023.
5. Stewart, Mariah (May 25, 2016). "Jennings mayor Yolonda Fountain-Henderson impeached". The St. Louis American. Retrieved December 31, 2023.
6. Bassler, Hunter (August 19, 2023). "Timeline: The political turmoil that led to mass resignation of Jennings' officials". KSDK. Retrieved December 31, 2023.
7. Gillerman, Margaret (June 23, 2015). "Jennings council, residents rail against mayor". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. p. A002. Retrieved December 31, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
8. Clancy, Sam (May 24, 2016). "Jennings mayor impeached after unanimous vote". KSDK. Retrieved December 31, 2023.
9. Stewart, Mariah (May 27, 2016). "Impeached Jennings mayor accuses the city of a witch hunt". KWMU. Retrieved December 31, 2023.
10. "State of Missouri - General Election" (PDF). Missouri Secretary of State. December 9, 2022. Retrieved December 31, 2023.
11. "State of Missouri - Primary Election" (PDF). Missouri Secretary of State. August 26, 2022. Retrieved December 30, 2023.