Townships elect supervisors, clerks

• Township elections

Echo Press photo by Lowell Anderson Voters were few and far between at Alexandria Township’s polling place at Good Shepherd Lutheran Church during the township elections Tuesday.

Talk about it

They came and they voted. Some in droves, others in small percentages – very small percentages.

Township elections took place Tuesday, March 9 in 19 of the 20 townships within Douglas County. (Brandon Township holds its township elections during the November election.)

In townships where there was a contested race – such as Leaf Valley and Ida – the number of voters was impressive.

“It was unbelievable,” said Pam Cuperus, clerk of Leaf Valley Township.

Cuperus said her township has a little more than 300 registered voters and more than 200 cast their ballot on Tuesday. All together, counting the 15 new registrants, 208 votes were counted for Leaf Valley Township, she said.

In the last 10 years of township elections, there has never been as many people at the polls, said Cuperus. There were fewer than 50 ballots cast last year.

“It was amazing,” she said. “Phenomenal!”

Cuperus added that she even had to run off more copies of the ballot after she was contacted by one of the election judges.

Leaf Valley wasn’t the only township with a high voter turnout – Ida Township had 140 ballots cast.

And then there were the townships that had low voter turnout, such as Evansville Township, which had nine; Belle River, which had 13 total ballots cast; and LaGrand, which had 36. The clerk of LaGrand noted that the total was only about 10 percent of the registered voters in LaGrand Township.

Here is a look at all the results:

•Alexandria Township: Joel Dahlheimer and Louis Ross were re-elected to their supervisor roles. There were 35 total votes.

•Belle River Township: Geri Rindahl was re-elected to the clerk position and Roderick L. Seward was re-elected as supervisor. There were 13 total votes.

•Carlos Township: Rebecca Anderson was re-elected as clerk; Dwayne Waldorf remains in the three-year supervisor seat and Rodney Meyers remains in the one-year supervisor seat.

•Evansville Township: Kim Ostlund was re-elected as clerk. Kay Satterlie, who didn’t refile for his position as supervisor, was voted in as supervisor by write-in votes. Out of the nine total votes, Satterlie received six.

•Holmes City Township: Gerald Prchal and Ronald Klimek were re-elected to their positions. Prchal will serve as clerk/treasurer and Klimek will serve as supervisor. There was a total of 38 votes.

•Hudson Township: Both incumbents were re-elected – Joan Eastlund for clerk and Dan New for supervisor. There was a total of 26 voters.

•Ida Township: Incumbent supervisor Orin “Clet” Blegen lost to challenger, Daniel Diedrich. Diedrich received 100 votes, while Blegen received 40. Barbara Kilgore was re-elected as clerk. There was a total of 140 ballots cast.

•LaGrand Township: Richard Bromley, incumbent supervisor, was running unopposed and received all 36 votes that were cast. (The clerk is an appointed position.)

•Lake Mary Township: Both incumbents were re-elected – Bonnie Lay as clerk and Dean Radil as supervisor. There was a total of 21 votes.

•Leaf Valley Township: Dale Diedrich was elected to the three-year supervisor position with 149 votes, defeating Dale Vollmers, 55 votes, who was appointed to a two-year supervisor position last year. Wade Nibbe was elected to the two-year supervisor position, which was held by Vollmers. Pam Cuperus was re-elected as clerk. A total of 208 votes were cast.

•Lund Township: Both incumbents were re-elected – Michelle Olsen as clerk and Wayne Martin as supervisor. A total of 21 votes were cast.

•Millerville Township: Marilyn Bitzan was re-elected as clerk and both incumbent supervisors were re-elected, as well – Pat Bock and Kenneth Kuhn.

•Miltona Township: Both incumbents are back in office – Tom Blank as clerk and Gary Anderson as supervisor. There was a total of 60 ballots.

•Moe Township: Wayne E. Becker was re-elected to the two-year supervisor position and Bruce Strandskov was re-elected to the three-year supervisor seat. There was a total of 30 voters.

•Orange Township: Jennifer Dietrich, clerk, and David Boogaard, supervisor, were re-elected. A total of 18 ballots were cast.

•Osakis Township: Gene Rasmusen was re-elected for a three-year supervisor term and Dawn McNeal was re-elected as clerk. There were 18 voters.

•Solem Township: Both incumbents were re-elected – Jaclyn Halvorson as clerk and Joe Martinson as supervisor.

•Spruce Hill Township: Colleen Burquest remains as clerk and Richard Schlosser remains as supervisor as both were re-elected. There were 35 total voters.

•Urness Township: Judi Andreasen was re-elected as clerk and Brent Johnson was re-elected for supervisor. There were 17 ballots cast.

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