Primary engaged voters

Lakewood turnout was relatively high

By Jason Arndt
Staff Writer
In last week’s Lakewood School Board primary election, nearly 13 percent of all registered voters in Twin Lakes hit the polls, more than the number who cast votes in the state Supreme Court primary.

The local primary, a first for the village in more than a decade, pitted two incumbents against four challengers for four spots in the April 5 spring election ballot.

Village Clerk Julie Harms said she doesn’t know why voters turned out in higher numbers than last year’s spring election, but believes it could be attributed to a desire for change.

Harms reports there were no issues related to the new Voter ID law. Poll workers registered 20 new voters.

Lakewood District Administrator Joe Price was impressed with the turnout, which brought in 389 total votes, compared to 316 in the state primary.

“It is great to have that kind of turnout for a primary and shows that the community is becoming more engaged with all that we are doing,” Price said.

The community was engaged, drawing in three newcomers, a current board member at another school district and two incumbents.

After both incumbents, Board Clerk Kathy Ticha and President Amanda Hahn took the top two spots, Steve Turner, who was third, and Scott Whipple, who was fourth, advanced to the general election.

Ticha, a board member since 1999, garnered 106 votes while Hahn, elected in 2013, brought in 82.

Turner currently serves on the Wilmot Union High School Board and Whipple ran for the first time.

Barry Woods and Nicholas Heckel did not advance after their first run for an elected position.

The village has 3,024 registered voters and accrued a 12.9 percent turnout.

In the state primary, where three ran for the Supreme Court, there was a 10.4 percent turnout, with 173 voters picking Rebecca G. Bradley and 116 for JoAnne F. Kloppenburg.

Joe Donald garnered 27 votes from village voters and was subsequently eliminated from the election statewide.


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