Candidates file for school board, Mat-Su assembly seats

MAT-SU -- Two Mat-Su Borough Assembly seats and three at-large Mat-Su Borough School Board seats will be on the October municipal ballot, and the field of candidates is set.

The filing deadline for the five races closed at 5 p.m. Friday. On the list of candidates were several new names, and several incumbents.

Incumbent school board members Larry DeVilbiss and Dan Contini are both being challenged for their school board seats.

DeVilbiss has held his seat on the school board for nine years. Contini, current Mat-Su School Board president, faces two challengers -- Palmer resident Dee Nelson and Hatcher Pass resident Cheryl Turner.

DeVilbiss, who was elected to the school board in 2001 after serving on the assembly for two consecutive terms, faces two challengers as well -- Beverly Erbey of Palmer and Stephen Fee of Houston.

Linda Menard faces Palmer resident Sydney Jacobs in her bid for a fourth term on the school board.

In the two assembly races, both incumbent candidates are being challenged. Bruce Bush, who was elected to the assembly in 2001, replacing DeVilbiss in the District 1 seat, currently represents Butte, Lazy Mountain, Sutton, Chickaloon and the eastern Mat-Su. He is facing two challengers -- Sutton resident Lynne Woods and Butte resident Thomas Bergey.

Bill Allen, who holds the District 2 seat, representing the city of Palmer, is running for his seat a third time, although he's served on the assembly a year and a half. Allen was appointed to the assembly in March 2003 after former assembly member Sara Jansen stepped down to pursue a job with the city of Palmer. Under Mat-Su Borough Code, Allen had to run for election at the next regular municipal election in order to keep his seat on the assembly. He ran unopposed during the 2003 municipal election, retaining his seat for the remainder of the term he was originally appointed into. That term expires in October, so Allen is running for his first full, three-year term.

Challenging Allen is Palmer resident Helene Antel, former school board member.

Candidate filing information is available at the Mat-Su Borough election Web site, www.matsuborough.com/Election.

The municipal election will be held Oct. 5.

Contact Rindi White at rindi.white@frontiersman.com.