by Mike Knaak
news@thenewsleaders.com
By Election Day, officials estimate about half of Minnesotans will already have voted. As of last week, more than 1.2 million Minnesotans cast ballots. That’s more than twice the total early voting in 2016 and 2018. Stearns County early voting is running more than 324 percent ahead of this point in 2018.
In addition to state and national races, St. Joseph voters will select a mayor, two city-council members and elect four people to the St. Cloud School Board.
For stories on all the races and candidates, go to: thenewsleaders.com/category/news/2020election/
St. Joseph
St. Joseph voters will select a mayor and two city-council members.
Current Mayor Rick Schultz faces city council member Anne Buckvold in the contest for St. Joseph mayor.
Buckvold was appointed to the council in May 2018 to fill a vacancy after Matt Killam resigned. She was elected to a full four-year term in November 2018, receiving the most votes in a three-way race for two seats. Schultz was first elected mayor in 2010. He was re-elected in 2018 without opposition.
Six people have filed for two city-council seats. Incumbents Troy Goracke and Bob Loso are on the ballot with Kelly Beniek, Carmie Mick, Paul Orvis and Mike Osterman.
The mayor serves a two-year term and council members are elected for four years.
St. Cloud School Board
Seven candidates are running for four seats on the St. Cloud School Board. Incumbents Al Dahlgren, Shannon Haws and Monica M. Segura-Schwartz are joined on the ballot by Scott Andreasen, Hani Omar-Jacobson, Omar Abdullahi Podi and Andrea Preppernau. Incumbent Jeff Pollreis did not file for re-election.
School board members serve four-year terms.
Stearns County Board
Incumbent Joe Perske is running unopposed in Stearns County Commission District 2. Commissioners serve four-year terms.
Legislature
In Senate District 13, Republican Jeff Howe of Rockville is seeking a second term. He is challenged by DFL candidate Michael Willemsen, Sauk Rapids. District 13 wraps around the city of St. Cloud and covers most of eastern Stearns County from Sartell to Paynesville to Lynden Township and Sauk Rapids in Benton County.
Rep. Lisa Demuth (R-Cold Spring) is seeking a second term in the Minnesota House of Representatives. She is challenged by DFLer Katy Westlund of Paynesville. House District 13A runs from St. Joseph west to Paynesville and south to Kimball and Lynden Township.
State senators serve four-year terms and representatives serve two-year terms.