Time to decide
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ANR
It’s 2022 election season again, or soon will be, which begs the question for local would-be voters as to whom shall I vote for, and why?
Area residents made some of those decisions already in the May primary, though after a long summer pause it’s time again to tune in to contested local races, of which there are several.
With the Nov. 8 general election now just over a month away the News-Register would like to help in that subjective process by providing personal profiles on candidates in races of local interest.
Political ads will soon be flooding the airwaves, a sure sign that the voting booth (or mail-in ballot envelopes) will be opening soon. People want to know who they are voting for, though modern-day campaigns often end up taking a negative slant the higher the stakes get for elected office. Folks around here would much prefer to see candidates take the high road, touting their own skillset and platform rather than going low to discredit their opponent, though sadly even in Nebraska we can expect to see some of those tactics.
Fortunately, that’s not the case in Hamilton County, where several races are being contested. In an effort to help voters better understand their choices, we have once again invited local candidates to share some insight on their background, reasons for running, and what they see as priority issues in their respective jurisdictions.
As for the contested general elections, profiles will be published as follows:
Oct. 5 — Giltner School Board race featuring Ross Lyon, Nate Most, Jamie Bendorf, Brandon Hunnicutt, Logan Rath and Joel Hinrichs;
Oct. 5 — Dist. 34 legislative race, featuring Loren Lippincott and Mike Reimers;
Oct. 12 — Aurora 4R School Board, featuring Cyndi Muilenburg, Tyler Stark, Tessa Stevens, Chad Svoboda and Pat Shaw.
Oct. 12 — Nebraska State Board of Education District 5 race, featuring Kirk Penner and Helen Raikes.
Oct. 19 -- Aurora City Council Ward 3 race, featuring Dan Bartling and Jacy Henk.
This profile series will be a good read, frankly, challenging candidates to put their thoughts, goals and objectives in writing. We will be doing some additional reporting on some of the races, covering the Oct. 3 Dist. 34 debate in Central City, for example, and taking a deeper dive into some of the issues facing the Nebraska Board of Education.
We thank the candidates in advance for their participation and invite reader/voters to clip and save to help make an informed decision.
Kurt Johnson
