Candidates on ballot for April election
By Ryan Whisner rwhisner@dailyunion.com | Posted: Wednesday, January 3, 2018 10:19 am
JEFFERSON — Voters in many municipalities across Jefferson County will face a full ballot when they go to the polls for the April 3 election.
Candidates for Jefferson County Board of Supervisors, as well as seats on area city councils, village boards of trustees and town boards of supervisors had until 5 p.m. Tuesday to file nomination papers to get their name on the ballot.
Board of education candidates have the same deadline for declaring candidacy.
A primary will be held Tuesday, Feb. 20, to trim the roster of candidates in various races, including Wisconsin Supreme Court, one county board district and Lake Mills school board.
The following outlines positions for municipal, county and school board positions slated to appear on the ballot on April 3:
State Supreme Court
A seat on the Wisconsin Supreme Court is up for election.
Justice Michael Gableman’s current term expires in July 2018. Gableman announced early last year that he would not be seeking a new 10-year term.
Sauk County Circuit Court Judge Michael Screnock of Reedsburg, Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge Rebecca Dallet of Whitefish Bay and Madison attorney Tim Burns of Middleton are vying for a seat on the high court. A primary will be held Feb. 20 to narrow the field.
State Court of Appeals
A Court of Appeals judgeship is on the April 3 ballot in District IV, which includes Jefferson County.
The incumbent is Judge Joanne F. Kloppenburg. She is unopposed in her bid for a new six-year term.
COUNTY
Circuit Court
The Jefferson County Circuit Court Branch 3 judgeship will be on the ballot. Judge Robert Dehring is unopposed in a bid for his first election to a full six-year term.
In December, Gov. Scott Walker appointed Dehring to succeed Judge David J. Wambach, who retired in March 2017. The appointment carried him to the end of Wambach’s unexpired term in 2018.
County Board
All 30 seats on the Jefferson County Board of Supervisors will be on the spring ballot on Tuesday, April 3.
The following is a list of contested or open districts, the areas they cover and the candidates:
District 6
Incumbent District 6 Supervisor Ron Buchanan is being challenged by newcomer Dan Herbst in his bid for re-election.
The district includes Wards 15 and 16 in the City of Watertown.
District 10
Supervisor Lloyd Zastrow again is facing opposition from Marilyn Buelow in a bid for the District 10 seat.
Zastrow won the seat in 2016 over Buelow.
District 10 includes Wards 1 and 3 in the Town of Concord, Wards 3 and 4 in the Town of Ixonia.
District 18
Incumbent Supervisor Jennifer Hanneman filed noncandidacy papers and will not be seeking re-election in District 18. Newcomer Brandon White is running unopposed to fill her seat on the board.
The district encompasses Wards 3-5 in the City of Jefferson
District 20
Frankie Fuller, a former supervisor, is challenging incumbent Supervisor Jim Mode for his seat on the board in District 20.
The district includes Wards 1-3 in the Town of Jefferson and Ward 4 in the Town of Oakland.
District 30
District 30 incumbent Supervisor Gary Kutz is being challenged for his seat by former Supervisor Walt Christensen and newcomer D. Jae Ames.
A primary will be held on Feb. 20 to trim the roster to two candidates.
Wards 4-6 in the Town of Koshkonong and Ward 1 in the Town of Sumner are included in District 30.
Other districts
Unopposed incumbents seeking re-election include: Richard Jones, District 1, Wards 1-4 in the City of Waterloo; Mike Kelly, District 2, Wards 1-2 in the Town of Milford, Ward 1 in the Town of Waterloo, Ward 5 in the City of Waterloo; Greg David, District 3, Wards 1 and 2 in the Town of Watertown and Ward 8 in the City of Watertown; Augie Tietz, District 4, Wards 9 and 10 in the City of Watertown; James Braughler, District 5, Wards 11 and 12 in the City of Watertown; Dwayne Morris, District 7, Wards 13 and 14 in the City of Watertown; Michael Wineke, District 8, Wards 17 and 18 in the City of Watertown; Amy Rinard, District 9, Wards 1, 2, 5 and 6 in the Town of Ixonia and Ward 2 in the Village of Lac La Belle; Donald Reese, District 11, Ward 2 in the Town of Aztalan, Ward 2 in the Town of Concord and Wards 1 and 2 in the Town of Farmington; Peter Hartz, District 12, Wards 1, 2 and 3 in the Village of Johnson Creek; Ed Morse, District 13, Wards 2, 4, 6 and 7 in the City of Lake Mills; and Kirk Lund, District 14 includes Wards 1, 3, 5 and 8 in the City of Lake Mills.
Also, Steven Nass, District 15, Ward 1 in the Town of Aztalan and Wards 1-3 in the Town of Lake Mills; Laura Payne, District 16, Wards 1-3 in the Town of Oakland and Ward 1 in the Village of Cambridge; Russell Kutz, District 17, Wards 6-9 in the City of Jefferson; Jim Schroeder, District 19, Wards 1, 2 and 10 in the City of Jefferson; John C. Kannard, District 21, Wards 1-3 in the Town of Sullivan and Ward 1 in the Village of Sullivan; Blane Poulson, District 22, Ward 1 in the Town of Palmyra and Wards 1 and 2 in the Village of Palmyra; George Jaeckel, District 23, Wards 1 and 2 in the Town of Koshkonong and Ward 8 in the City of Fort Atkinson; Alyssa Spaanem, District 24, Wards 11 and 12 in the City of Whitewater; Matthew Foelker, District 25, Ward 1 in the Town of Cold Spring, Wards 1 and 2 in the Town of Hebron, Ward 3 in the Town of Koshkonong, Ward 2 in the Town of Palmyra and Ward 10 in the City of Whitewater; Gregg Patrick, District 26, Wards 1 and 2 in the City of Fort Atkinson; Conor Nelan, District 27, Wards 3 and 4 in the City of Fort Atkinson; Dick Schultz, District 28, Wards 7 and 9 in the City of Fort Atkinson; and Mary K. Roberts, District 29, Wards 5 and 6 in the City of Fort Atkinson.
CITIES
Fort Atkinson
In the City of Fort Atkinson, two city council seats are up for election.
Seats currently held by Fort Atkinson City Council members Jude Hartwick and Beth Gehred will appear on the ballot.
Both are seeking re-election and being challenged by newcomer Bruce Johnson.
Council seats are for two-year terms.
Jefferson
Residents in the City of Jefferson will cast ballots for mayor and four seats on the Jefferson Common Council in April.
Mayor Dale Oppermann’s term expires in April. For common council, positions for Districts A and C and two at-large seats are slated to appear on the ballot.
Ron Miller is the incumbent in District A, which originally included Wards 1 and 2. District C incumbent is Paul Peachey, which included Wards 5, 6 and 7.
Current at-large incumbents are Jim Horn and Richard Lares.
All the incumbents are running unopposed for new terms.
Under a new ordinance approved by the council in November, all the of the alderpersons’ seats will made into at-large positions over the next two election cycles.
The council and mayoral positions are two-year terms.
Whitewater
There will be three Whitewater Common Council positions up for election in the City of Whitewater on April 3.
They include those in Aldermanic Districts 2 and 4 and an at-large seat. Incumbents are James Schulgit, Lynn Binnie and James Allen, respectively.
Schulgit and Binnie are running for new terms unchallenged.
Allen is facing opposition from Brienne Diebolt-Brown.
All terms are for two years.
Lake Mills
Two seats on the Lake Mills City Council will be up for election this spring.
Incumbents are at-large member Michael Foster and, in Wards 2, 3, 6 and 7, Steven Fields. Both incumbents are running unopposed for re-election.
The term for the at-large seat is for three years. Fields was appointed to fill an unexpired term. The winner of that seat will serve a one-year term to complete the original unexpired term of the previous incumbent.
Waterloo
Two seats on the Waterloo Common Council are up for election in April.
On the ballot will be seats held by incumbent Ward 2 Alderperson William Springer and Alderperson-at-large Ron Griffin.
Griffin is running unopposed for re-election. Springer filed non-candidacy papers and is not seeking a new term.
Because Springer filed non-candidacy papers by the deadline, the deadline will not be extended and any candidates on the ballot will be write-ins. Anyone can file with the municipal clerk to be a write-in between now and the April election.
Each position is for a four-year term.
Watertown
Four seats on the Watertown Common Council and the mayor’s post are on the ballot. Seats in the even-numbered Districts of 2, 4, 6, and 8 will be up for election.
Council Districts 4 and 6 are located in the Jefferson County portion of the city. Incumbents are Kurt Larsen and Tim Raether, respectively.
Larsen is being challenged by Jacob Liebhart. Raether is running for a new term unopposed.
Other incumbents are Fred Smith in District 2 and Bill Maron in District 8. Smith is not eligible to seek re-election due to term limits.
Rick Tortomasi is running for District 2. Maron is being challenged by Dell Zwieg for District 8.
All terms are for two years, with a maximum of three terms or six years.
VILLAGES
Cambridge
Three positions on the Village of Cambridge Board of Trustees are on the April ballot.
Seats currently are held by incumbents Mark McNally, Paula Hollenbeck and Sue Christianson. All are running for re-election unopposed.
All positions are for two years.
Lac La Belle
The Village of Lac La Belle has two trustee positions on the April ballot.
Incumbents are John Evans and Chris Olson. Both are running for new two-year terms unopposed.
Johnson Creek
Johnson Creek residents will be filling three seats on the village board of trustees next April.
Incumbent Trustees Joseph Yaeger, David Rousayne and Steven Wollin are seeking re-election unopposed.
All positions are for two-year terms.
Sullivan
Two trustee positions are open on the Village of Sullivan Board of Trustees in the April election.
Incumbents are Randy McHugh and Tim Horton. Both are running unopposed for new two-year terms.
Palmyra
Four positions will be on the ballot in the Village of Palmyra next April, including three seats on the board of trustees and the municipal judge position.
Incumbent village Trustees include Julie Powell, William Lurvey and Cindy Bontempo. The incumbent municipal judge is Charles Warren.
All are running for re-election unopposed.
Terms for all positions are for two years.
TOWNS
Ixonia
In the Town of Ixonia, two positions on the board of supervisors are up for election April 3.
Incumbent supervisors Brian Derge and Carl Jaeger are being challenged by newcomer Janet McConaughey.
Both positions are for two-year terms.
Jefferson
The Town of Jefferson will be looking to fill two supervisor positions in the spring election.
Incumbents include Supervisor II Jim Mode and Supervisor IV Tyson Barnes.
Mode is seeking re-election unopposed.
Barnes filed noncandidacy papers and will not appear on the ballot. Newcomer Curtis Backlund is unopposed in his bid to fill Barnes seat.
Positions carry two-year terms.
Koshkonong
The Supervisor III and IV positions are up for election in the Town of Koshkonong this spring.
Incumbents are Supervisor III George Jaeckel and Supervisor IV�€ˆStacy Kutz. Both are seeking re-election. Kutz is being challenged for her seat by Jaeckel’s son, Kyle.
Both offices are for two-year terms.
Oakland
In the Town of Oakland, two positions on the board of supervisors will be up for election in the spring.
Supervisors Tom Jensen and Jimmy DeGidio are running unopposed for new two-year terms.
Other towns
No spring elections are being held in the towns of Aztalan, Cold Spring, Concord, Farmington, Hebron, Lake Mills, Milford, Palmyra, Sullivan, Sumner, Waterloo or Watertown.
SCHOOL DISTRICTS
Fort Atkinson
One seat on the School District of Fort Atkinson Board of Education will be up for election in April.
Incumbent board President Kim Patrick is unopposed in her bid for a new three-year term.
Jefferson
Three seats on the School District of Jefferson Board of Education are up for election on April 3.
On the ballot will be the Area IV seat held by incumbent Terri Wenkman. She did not file nomination papers or noncandidacy papers by the deadline. Thus, candidates for the position other than Wenkman have until 5 p.m. Friday, Jan. 5, to file a declaration of candidacy for the seat. Area IV representatives are elected on an at-large basis.
Also up for election are positions currently held by incumbents Donna Bente in Area II and Vicki Schamens in Area 1. Bente is unopposed in a bid for re-election.
Schamens is not seeking re-election. Newcomer Travis Maze is seeking the Area I seat.
Area II includes the towns of Aztalan, Farmington, Hebron, Jefferson and Oakland and Area I is the City of Jefferson.
Terms for all three positions are for three years.
Whitewater
The Whitewater Unified School District School Board has three seats on the ballot in April. The two incumbents are Dan McCrea and Kelly Davis.
The third seat previously was held by Gretchen Torres, who resigned Oct. 31. The board appointed Tom Ganser at a special meeting on Dec. 11. The appointment extends only until the April 2018 election.
McCrea is not seeking re-election.
Davis will be on the ballot along with recently appointed board member Ganser and newcomer Jean Linos.
There are two three-year terms and one two-year term available. The two top vote-getters will get the three-year terms and the third will get the two-year term.
Cambridge
Two positions on the School District of Cambridge Board of Education are slated to be on the April ballot.
Incumbents are Margaret Sullivan and Thomas Wright. Sullivan has filed for non-candidacy and is not be seeking re-election.
Wright and newcomer Sean Marren will appear on the ballot.
The seats are for three-year terms on the board.
Johnson Creek
Three seats on the Johnson Creek School District Board of Education will be on the ballot in April.
Positions held by incumbents Duane Draeger, Kellie Loeb and June Kolaske are up for election. Draeger and Kolaske will be joined on the ballot by newcomer Heidi Hartz.
Loeb is not seeking re-election to her seat on the board.
All positions are for three-year terms.
Lake Mills
Two positions will be up for election on the Lake Mills Area School District Board of Education.
The seats held by incumbents Donna Thomas, the current board treasurer, and member Rachael Davies will be on the April ballot.
Both incumbents are seeking re-election and being challenged for the seats by newcomers Ken Stetson, David Roedl and Jason Drost.
A primary will be held Feb. 20 to narrow the field.
Each seat carries a three-year term.
Palmyra
Two positions are on the April ballot for the Palmyra-Eagle Area School District Board of Education.
Incumbents Scott Hoff and Justin Thomas are unopposed in their bids for re-election.
Both positions are for three-year terms.
Oconomowoc
The Oconomowoc Area School District has three seats on the school board up for election.
Incumbents are John Suttner, Jessica Karnowski and Donald Wiemer. All three are seeking re-election.
They are being challenged by newcomer Juliet Steitzer and James Wood.
Each position is for a three-year term.
Waterloo
There are three positions on the Waterloo School District Board of Education on the April ballot.
Seats held by Area 3 incumbents Bobbi Forman and Jim Setz will be up for election.
Setz was appointed to fill an unexpired term that will be up for election again in April 2019. The seats will be divided; the top vote-getter will get the full three-year term and the recipient of the next-highest number of votes will earn a one-year term and be up for election again in 2019.
Area 3 is comprised of the City of Waterloo, Jefferson County and Sections 31, 32 and the part of Section 33 west of the Maunesha River in the Town of Portland, Dodge County, including the Village of Portland.
Area 2 incumbent Gene Kegler is unopposed in a bid for a new three-year term. Area 2 is comprised of the Town of York and part of the area west of the Crawfish River in the Town of Portland.
Watertown
Three at-large seats are up for election on the Watertown Unified School District School Board of Education.
Seats currently are held by incumbents Mark Putra, Karrie Uttech and Frances Milburn. Uttech and Milburn will be joined on the ballot by newcomer Fred Jandt.
Putra is not seeking re-election.
Each position is for a three-year term.