Republic voters pass recreational marijuana tax Willard mayor candidates tie, Ash Grove school board seats go to Stacey, Reece

Greene County Citizens went to the polls on Tuesday, April 2, to vote in the municipal elections. Below are the results from the contested races:

Republic

Ward II Council:
In the race for Ward II Councilman – four-year term, voters chose Garry Wilson, who got 62 votes, or about 42 percent of the total. Melanie Clark was second, with 41 votes, or 28 percent, and Jeremy Mathis received 36 votes or 24 percent. Joan Stevens, who dropped out of the race, received eight votes, or about 5 percent, and there were two write-ins, totaling about one percent.
In the race for Ward II Councilman – one year term, voters overwhelmingly chose Darran Campbell, who got 112 votes, or about 70 percent, while Kelly Young received 45 votes or 28 percent. There were also four write ins, which totaled 2 percent.

Ward III Council
In the race for Ward III Councilman -four-year term, voters chose Christopher Updike, who received 82 votes, or 46 percent. Justin Snider was second with 55 votes, or about 31 percent, and Sean Jones was third, with 34 votes or 19 percent. There were also eight write-ins, which totaled four percent.
In the race for Ward III Councilman – one year term, Brian Fields won 125 votes, or about 68 percent, to beat out Dave Gragg, who received 52 votes, or about 28 percent. There were also seven write-in votes, which made up four percent.

Propositions
Republic voters approved all of the propositions/questions on the ballot. Proposition G, which imposed a three-percent sales tax on recreational use marijuana sold within city limits, received 419 “Yes” votes, or about 59 percent, and 292 “No” votes, or 41 percent.
- Question One, which called for the amending of the city charter to have the city administrator appoint the city attorney, instead of the mayor, received 361 “Yes” votes, or 52 percent, and 334 “No” votes, or 48 percent.
- Question Two, which called for amending the city charter “to establish a schedule for the election of council members to staggered four-year terms at the General Municipal Election to be held on even years,” received 510 “Yes” votes, or 73 percent, and 190 “No” votes, or 27 percent.
- Question Three, which called for the charter to “be amended to clarify that a vacancy in the council shall be filled for the remainder of the unexpired term, if any, at the next regular municipal election with expiring council seats on the ballot,” received 496 “Yes” votes, or 71 percent, and 200 “No” votes, or 29 percent.
- Question Four, which called for amending the charter “to establish requirements and procedures for the first and second reading of ordinances by title during a single open council meeting, and for final passage of an ordinance as part of the consent agenda at an open council meeting,” passed, to make capital planning part of the annual budget,” received 466 “Yes” votes, or 67 percent, and 228 “No” votes, or 33 percent.
- Finally, Questions Six, which called for “Charter of the City of Republic, Section 10.3 be repealed to allow for the administrative management of temporary permits issued for the operation of public utilities in accord with Republic Municipal Code,” received 398 “Yes” votes, or 58 percent, and 289 “No” votes, or 42 percent.

Ash Grove

City Alderman, Ward Two
In the race for city alderman, incumbent Cody Allhands received 71 votes, or about 70 percent, to defeat Troy Watts, who received 29 votes, or about 29 percent.

School Board
Cody Stacey and Amanda Reece were chosen to sit on the Ash Grove R-IV School Board. Stacey received 266 votes, or about 24 percent of the votes, while Reece received 244 votes, or about 22 percent. Among the other candidates, David Hazelrigg came in third with 221 votes, or 20 percent of the votes, incumbent Jeremy Willmon received 201 votes or about 19 percent and Rachelle Vaughn received 155 votes, or about 15 percent.

Willard

Mayor
The race for Mayor of Willard ended in a tie with both candidates, Samuel Snider and Troy Smith each getting 349 votes, or almost 50 percent each. There were also five write-in votes, making up about one percent.
There were two proposed methods of deciding the tie breaker: a coin toss or a run-off election. Smith favored the coin toss, citing the expense of a run-off election, while Snider said he favored a run-off election. As of press time, the matter had not been resolved, but it was reported that the city would most likely hold the run-off election. In the meantime, Sam Baird, interim mayor, will continue to hold his seat.

School Board
Willard voters chose Matthew Young and Amanda Gooch to sit on the Willard R-2 School Board. Young received 1,103 votes, or about 35 percent, and Gooch received 828 votes, or about 26 percent. Among the other candidates, Megan Patrick received 738 votes, or about 24 percent, and Renee McKelvie received 434 votes, or about 14 percent. There were also 34 write-in votes, which accounted for about 1 percent.

Alderman
In the race for Willard Alderman, Ward I, Casey Biellier was the voters choice; receiving 129 votes, or 55 percent, while Jeremy Hill received 101 votes, or about 44 percent. There were also three write-in votes, which made up about one percent.