Municipal election ballots available tomorrow

The 2015 municipal election period has officially begun. Ballots for the vote by mail elections were sent to registered voters in applicable areas Friday. As of Wednesday, Oct. 14, late registrants and voters seeking absentee ballots will be able to vote at the county courthouse.

Of the four municipalities in Lincoln County with elections this year, Rexford, Eureka, Troy and Libby, only Eureka and Libby have contested elections. Both Troy and Rexford have two open city council seats on the ballot, but each also has just two candidates for those seats. Incumbents Joe Arts and Crystal Denton have both filed for re-election to their seats in Troy, with no challengers. Kathleen “Kat” Madiao and Bill Marvel are the only declared candidates for the two open seats in Rexford.

Eureka also has two open seats on the council, but three candidates are vying to fill those seats. Voters will cast votes for two of the three candidates, Gregory Thompson, Rosalie Adauto and Kevin Jefferies. The two candidates with the highest number of votes will be declared the winners.

The situation in Libby is more complex than that of the other municipalities in Lincoln County. Libby’s council has nine candidates seeking election to three four-year seats on the council and one candidate seeking to fill the remaining two years of another seat on a second ballot.

The two-year seat ballot is for the seat now occupied by Councilwoman Dejon Raines, who was appointed earlier this year to fill the position of Robin Benson, who resigned at the end of 2014. Montana law requires anyone appointed prior to the general municipal election to stand for election at the next general election for the remainder of the initial term, which ends Dec. 21, 2017. Raines is the only candidate who has declared for that seat.

The other three seats are those occupied by council members Gary Neff, Allen Olsen and Peggy Williams. Neff was appointed last month to fill the seat vacated by Bill Bischoff upon his resignation at the end of July. Olsen and Williams are both seeking re-election, along with seven other candidates: Arlen Magill, Joe Miller, Gary Beach, Joe Johnston, D.C. Orr, Brian Zimmerman and Libby Mayor Doug Roll. Roll has stated his intent is not to win election, but to prevent the election of Orr, Magill and Olsen.

In that race, Libby voters will be asked to select three of the nine candidates, with the top three being declared the winners. With no declared candidate in the second race, barring a write-in, Raines will continue to serve out the remainder of Benson’s term.

Libby is the only one of the municipalities that has opted for a physical balloting process. Eureka, Rexford and Troy, said Lincoln County Assistant Election Administrator Leigh Riggleman, have all voted to allow voting by mail for this cycle. Ballots for those races were mailed to all registered voters as of Friday, Oct. 9.

Eligible voters who have not yet registered can register to vote and pick up a ballot at the county court house during normal business hours. Registration and voting will be available until noon, Nov. 2, when the office will close for voting to prepare for Tuesday’s general election polling. Libby voters who are registered at that time will be able to vote at just one polling place, the Ponderosa Room at Libby City Hall.

Riggleman said she hopes to see a high voter turnout this year, as she does every year.

“I encourage everyone to vote,” she said. “That’s how our process works, people have to take the time to vote. It’s always a good thing.”