Election season in the Mat-Su Borough opens with the start of candidate filing July 17

PALMER — Annual elections are scheduled for Oct. 3, 2017 throughout the Mat-Su Borough. A number of borough assembly and school board trustee posts, as well as city council seats and mayoral spots for the incorporated cities of Palmer, Wasilla and Houston.

Individuals wishing to run for open seats have a window of opportunity to file. That window opens at 8 a.m. on Monday, July 17 and closes at 5 p.m. on Friday, July 28—unless otherwise listed. The following are the various government units, which seats are up for grabs and available information on running requirements, if any and where to pick up application and/or packets.

Borough

The Mat-Su has two, three-year assembly positions up for grab. Both end October of 2020. District Four, which includes the greater Wasilla area, is currently occupied by Steve Colligan. Dan Mayfield currently holds the District Five spot. District Five is comprised of the Big Lake area south to Point MacKenzie.

Candidate qualifications are as follows: Any person is eligible for borough office if the person is a qualified voter of the borough and meets state and borough requirements for the office.

Candidates for assembly seats shall reside in the borough and in the assembly district for which they file and meet the requirements of MSB 2.12.030. Packets are expected to be available this week at the borough building in Palmer.

Palmer

The City of Palmer has three, three-year seats open. Included are the seats of Brad Hanson and Linda Combs. Hanson was first elected to the council in 2002 and has been reelected every term since. Combs was first elected in 2011 and currently serves as deputy mayor. The council is comprised of a mayor and six trustees.

Candidate qualifications are as follows: To qualify as a candidate for council member, a person must meet the following requirements of the Palmer Municipal Code (PMC) 18.15.010 and 2.04.031: Any person is eligible for city office if the person is a qualified voter of the city and meets state and city requirements for the office. Candidates must reside in the city or in territory annexed into the city for one continuous year immediately prior to the election. Additionally, the candidate must provide sufficient proof that they are eligible, or will be eligible by the date of the election, to be recognized as a candidate for any election.

Candidates may obtain a nominating petition packet from the clerk’s office or download one from the city’s website at www.cityofpalmer.org/elections beginning July 12, 2017.

To be a valid nominating petition, the candidate must file a completed “Candidates Information and Statement” form accompanied by a petition containing a minimum of 20 signatures of registered City of Palmer voters pursuant to PMC 18.15.020. Completed petitions may be filed with the Palmer City Clerk’s Office beginning at 8 a.m. on July 17, 2017. All candidates must file a valid nominating petition with the Palmer city clerk by 4 p.m. on July 28, 2017, to be placed on the ballot.

For further information contact the clerk’s office at (907) 761-1301, email elections@palmerak.org or visit www.cityofpalmer.org/elections.

Wasilla

Wasilla has three, council positions and one mayor opening. All are three-year terms. The Mayor position is currently held by first-termer Bert Cottle. Stu Graham was elected to the Seat C on council in 2014 and appointed as deputy mayor in October of last year.

Council members Glenda Ledford and Mike Dryden were both appointed this January to replace colleagues David Wilson and Colleen Sullivan-Leonard. Both moved on to serve in state legislative posts. Ledford currently holds Seat A and Dryden Seat D. If no candidate receives at least 40 percent of the vote cast, a runoff election between the top two candidates will be held.

Candidates must meet the following qualifications: be a registered and qualified voter of the city of Wasilla pursuant to WMC 4.08.010. Is a resident of the city or of territory annexed to the city, for one-year immediately prior to the election. No person shall serve as mayor or on the city council for more than two consecutive, full terms in office, without a break in service for at least one full year.

Candidates may be required to provide additional proof of qualification as required by the Wasilla City clerk. Candidates must comply with financial disclosure and campaign reporting requirements as required by the Alaska Public Offices Commission.

To file for office, interested persons must file a completed “Declaration of Candidacy” form accompanied by an Alaska Public Offices Commission “Public Official Financial Disclosure” statement with the clerk’s office at the Wasilla City Hall, 290 E Herning Avenue Wasilla.The Declaration of Candidacy must be submitted in original form and will not be accepted electronically by fax or email.

Contact the clerk’s office at 907-373-9090 or email clerk@ci.wasilla.ak.us with any questions.

For more information, visit www.cityofwasilla.com/departments-divisions/city-clerk/election-information/candidate-information

Houston

In Houston, Seat A, currently held by Mayor Virgie Thompson, and Seat B held by Gina Jorgensen are expiring. Both are three year terms.

For more information, or to pick up packets, stop at the city offices located at, 13878 West Armstrong, Houston. Or call 907-892-6869.

Mat-Su Borough School Board

Members of the school board are elected to three-year terms on a staggered basis. Two seats are up for grabs this fall—R. “Ole” Larson in Seat D and Kelsey Trimmer in Seat E. Candidates for the School Board seats shall reside in the Borough and within the Assembly District boundaries for which they file (MSB 19.04).

Packets can be picked up at the MSBSD main offices at 501 North Gulkana Street in Palmer or call 907-746-9207 for more information.