KMXT 100.1 FM Public Radio in Kodiak, Alaska
There are 19 opportunities to run for local elective office here in Kodiak, scattered between city council, borough assembly, school board and service areas. But as filing deadlines approach this Friday and next, only two people have thrown their hats into the ring.
There are three seats up for grabs on both the Kodiak Island Borough Assembly and the School Board, as well as a number of service area boards, according to Borough Clerk Nova Javier:
— (No Locals 1 40 sec “… don’t have any applicants as of today.”)
There are three seats available on the Kodiak Island Borough Assembly, all for three years, but as of yesterday afternoon, only one person, Judy Fulp, has returned the required paperwork. The incumbents are Tom Abell, Reed Oswalt and Sue Jeffrey. On the school board, there are a pair of seats for three years and one for a single year, and nobody has stepped forward. The incumbents are Betty Odell, Jeff Stephen (steven) and Peggy Rauwolf. The deadline for signing up to run for any of the borough seats is Friday – the day after tomorrow.
The deadline to file for Kodiak City Council is the end of next week, on September 5th. So far no one has filed, and only the incumbents, Charlie Davidson and Tom Walters, have taken out nominating packets – and that was just last night at the city council work session. There are two seats available on the council, for three years apiece.
Candidates are required to have a nominating petition signed by 10 registered voters, which are checked by the clerk’s office for authenticity. City Clerk Debbie Marlar says inevitably, some of the signatures are not valid. And she says if a candidate waits until the last minute to file and doesn’t have enough valid signatures, they will not get on the ballot.
Javier says individuals can stage a write-in campaign if they decide to run after the filing deadline:
— (No Locals 2 15 sec “…packets and turn them into the clerk’s office.”)
Javier says there are five nominating packets still outstanding, though she doesn’t know for which seats their owners will be filing.
Once again, the deadline to file for borough seats is this Friday, and for city council, it’s next Friday. The Kodiak Municipal Elections will be on October 7th.
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