Election filing deadline nears

MARENGO — Candidates for the Nov. 7 city election must file papers with their city offices by 5 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 21 to appear on the ballot, said Deputy Auditor Sara Fricke last week.

Candidates must file State of Iowa nomination petitions for non-partisan office and State of Iowa affidavits of candidacy. Both forms are available online at the Secretary of State’s website, sos.iowa.gov/elect, and at local city offices.

The Secretary of State’s website also has information about rules and regulations for candidates.

City elections are held in odd-numbered years on the first Thursday after the first Monday in November to elect city officers and vote on public measures.

All Iowa cities hold regular city elections, which are held in conjunction with school board elections.

Candidates collect signatures on nomination petitions to get their names on the ballot. In towns with fewer than 2,499 residents, candidates must collect signatures of at least 10 eligible electors (voters) of the city in which they are filing.

Towns with 2,499-7,900 residents must collect 25 signatures to make the ballot.

Eligible electors must be citizens of the United States, residents of Iowa and at least 18 years old.

Convicted felons are not eligible electors unless their voting rights have been restored by the president or governor. Anyone who is judged incompetent by the court or who can claim the right to vote in any other place is not an eligible elector.

In Marengo, two four-year city council positions and the position of mayor are up for grabs. The terms of Mayor Adam Rabe and council members Sue Peterson and Matt Fults expire this year.

Ladora will vote for a mayor and three council members. Terms for Mayor Kevin York and Council Members Brian Ward and Craig York are up. Electors will also fill the council seat vacated by Kevin York when he was appointed mayor to fill a vacancy.

In Millersburg, Mayor Richard Fry’s term expires this year, as do the council terms of Charles Gensley, Jeff Clark and Michael Gorsch.

North English will vote for a mayor and three council positions. The terms of Daniel Strohman, Louis Garringer, Kathy O’Rourke and Gerald Haugland will expire this year.

Parnell residents will vote for all council seats and for mayor. All council positions are two-year terms. The positions are currently held by Matt Stoner, Jared Dhondt, Rick Rodgers, Ann Krakow, Travis Dermody and Jamie Abernathy.

The City of Victor will also elect a full council to two-year terms and a mayor to replace Marla Faga who was appointed when Roger Pawalk resigned.

Terms of Daniel Cavin, Joan Robinson, James Rajtora and Shawn Sternhagen expire this year.

In Williamsburg, positions held by Mayor Adam Grier and council members Anne Zalenski, Tyler Marshall and Dale Walter will be on the ballot in November.

Schools

School elections are held in conjunction with city elections in the state of Iowa.

In Iowa County, English Valleys will elect three school board members to four-year terms. The seats are currently held by Matthew Clarahan, Susan Schaefer and Katie Taukei, who was appointed to take the seat left vacant by the resignation of Brandon VanDee.

At HLV, the four-year terms of Laura Blomme, David Doran and Michael Kolesar are expiring.

The terms of Ellen Young and Jay Hall are up at Iowa Valley School District in Marengo.

Williamsburg Community School District’s Quinn Wolfe and Mark Armstrong will end their terms this fall.

Cities and schools have until Sept. 21 to inform the county auditor of any public measures they’d like to place on the ballot.