Tuesday was a good day to be a challenger for public office in Iola. A PAIR of contested races also were decided for the USD 257 Board of Education. A PAIR OF holdovers for the Allen Community College Board of Trustees, Ken McGuffin and Spencer Ambler, earned re-election. They’ll be joined by Mary Kay Heard. Former trustee Delbert Nelson fell just short of earning a seat. (Three were open). THE CONTESTED races for the Humboldt City Council were anything but competitive. WRITE-IN ballots will be used to fill out city councils in both Moran and Gas.
Several newcomers to the political realm won office in a number of city and school elections, including two challengers who beat out incumbents for the Iola City Council.
In Iola’s Ward 3, Austin Sigg defeated Councilman Eugene Myrick, 103 votes to 86 (54 percent to 46 percent), while challenger Aaron Franklin dispatched incumbent Steven French, 140 votes to 92 (60 percent to 40 percent).
“I’m glad the campaigning is done,” Sigg said this morning by telephone. “I’m ready to get started, ready to help.”
Mayor Joel Wicoff and councilmen Jon Wells (Ward 1) and Bob Shaughnessy (Ward 2) all were unopposed.
Iolan Dan Willis defeated Virginia Macha for the board’s at-large seat. Willis received 672 votes to Macha’s 605 (53 percent to 46 percent).
Meanwhile, Jen Taylor received 149 votes to Stan Grigsby’s 104 (59 percent to 41 percent) in the board’s First District.
“I’m humbled and honored the USD 257 patrons gave a guy a chance to represent the district he grew up in,” Willis said after the results were announced. “I know there are going to be a lot of things we’ll have to consider very fast.”
Taylor, too, expressed gratitude for her election.
“I’m excited and humbled and grateful the people pulled for me,” she said.
Incumbent Doug Dunlap, District 2, and former board member Mary Apt, District 3, were unopposed.
The new school board members will take office in July.
The voting breakdown was McGuffin, 1,250 votes; Heard, 1,160; Ambler, 1,121; and Nelson, 885.
Jeb Kaufman easily defeated Robert Lachenmaier, 125 votes to 21, or 86 percent to 14 percent, for Ward 1, Position 1. Likewise, Sarah Lassman received 111 votes to Jean Moore’s 40, 74 percent to 26 percent.
For USD 258’s school board, with four at-large seats to be filled, incumbents Joe Works and Sandra Whitaker retained seats. Former board member Donald Hauser also won a seat, as did newcomer Scott Murrow.
Eight candidates were seeking the four seats.
The voting breakdown: Works, 383 votes; Hauser, 280; Murrow, 260; Whitaker, 207; Craig Mintz, 202; Joyce Allen, 199; Clayton Schoendaller, 150; and Briana Wilkerson, 131.
With two vacancies on the Moran Council, James Mueller — the only announced candidate — received 51 votes. A combined 43 write-in votes were cast.
Mayor Phillip Merkel was unopposed in his bid for re-election.
Meanwhile, in the election for Gas Council, Larry Robertson received 42 votes and George Grisier 37. Nine write-in votes were cast for candidates whose names have yet to be identified.
Both Sherrie Riebel, county clerk, and Jill Allen, deputy county clerk, are out of the office today.
Taylor, Willis earn school board seats
