County shares final list of candidates filed for city/school election
Area candidates have filed paperwork to be on the ballot for the Nov. 4 city/school election.
The filing deadline for the candidates was Sept. 18 for city candidates and Sept. 19 for those seeking positions on school boards. County Auditor Jill Ozuna said there are some contested races this year.
“The Red Oak Mayor’s race will be a contested race, we have two candidates filed for that. Also, in Stanton, there is a contested race for the Stanton At-Large council positions. There are three seats but we have four candidates who have filed,” commented Ozuna.
While some races will be contested, Ozuna said, as always, there will be some races that have less filings than needed.
“In the city of Grant, there are five seats for Grant Council Member At-Large, but we only have three candidates that have filed, so there’s two open seats that will need write-ins there. Also, in the City of Coburg no one has filed for the Coburg Mayor’s position, and there are two Coburg Council Member At-Large seats, and no one has filed for them. There are a couple of other races that are short on filings as well,” Ozuna said.
The complete candidate breakdown is as follows:
Red Oak city offices and candidates filed:
• Mayor, vote for one: John Haidsiak, Tim Fridolph.
• Council Member Ward Two, vote for one: Terry Koppa.
• Council Member At Large, vote for one: John Gross, Jeanice Lester.
• Council Member Ward One, to fill a vacancy, vote for one: Levi Franks.
Elliott city offices and candidates filed:
• Mayor, vote for one: Michael A. Carson.
• Council Member At Large, vote for three: Chris Tischer, Nancy Jo Nelson.
Grant city offices and candidates filed:
• Mayor, vote for one: Clay Amos.
• Council Member At Large, vote for five: Zelda Swartz, Lyn Sliger, and Erin Amos.
Villisca city offices and candidates filed:
• Mayor, vote for one: Marilyn Halda.
• Council Member At Large, vote for two: Vince Abraham.
• Council Member At Large, to fill vacancy, a two year term: Jane Albertie.
Stanton city offices and candidates filed:
• Council Member At Large, vote for three: Chris Stephens, Justin Rhamy, Wes Royal, and Jeff Sebeniecher.
Coburg city offices and candidates filed:
• Mayor, vote for one: no candidates filed.
• Council Member At Large, vote for two: no candidates filed.
Red Oak School Board:
• Director At Large, vote for three: Kelly Osheim, Bryce Johnson, and Bret Blackman.
• Director At Large to fill vacancy, vote for one: Ricky A. Rohrig
Stanton School Board:
• Director At Large, vote for three: Cameron Lewellen, Alex Cabbage, Ryan Hart, and Jaclyn Hoyt.
Villisca School Board:
• Director At Large, vote for two: Thomas Gourley, Leland Shipley.
Southwestern Community College:
Director District One, vote for one: Jane Ernst.
Director District Three, vote for one: Susan Stearns.
Director District Five, vote for one: Kevin Britten.
Director District Six, vote for one: Zach Gunsolley.
Ozuna felt it will be an interesting election, and shared an update on the county’s current voter registration count.
“As of the candidate filings, we have 6,515 registered voters in Montgomery County. Of those, 1,022 are Democrat, 3,605 are Republican, 1,830 are no party, and 57 are other, which would be, say, Libertarian. Absentee voting will begin on Oct. 15,” Ozuna stated.