The voters have decided, Mark Smith will be the next mayor of West Liberty in 2024. Elections were held for mayor, the city council and school board seats on Tuesday, Nov. 7, at the West Liberty Community Center.
“I feel very honored that the voters selected me,” said Smith, who spent more than 20 years in the Iowa House in the state Capitol in Des Moines, including more than five years as the House Minority Leader, before moving to West Liberty.
“This is a delightful small town with a historic downtown, I’ll do anything I can to help downtown,” he said. “West Liberty is going to grow, so we need to plan for that growth in a manner that keeps the spirit and vitality of the community.”
Smith defeated West Liberty High School alumni Joe Elizondo in a tight race, with Smith snagging 226 votes to Elizondo’s 193 votes. He will replace current West Liberty mayor Ethan Anderson, who did not run to retain the seat.
While there were three West Liberty City Council seats up for grabs, only two candidates appeared on the ballot. Incumbents Cara McFerren and Joshua Shiltz Costa raked in 300 and 322 votes respectively.
Meanwhile, Tim Parizek received 20 write-in votes to secure the third seat. Voters cast 55 other write-in votes.
This means that Cara McFerren, Joshua Shiltz Costa, Tim Parizek, Dana Dominguez and Omar Martinez will comprise the West Liberty City Council this January, joined by Mayor Mark Smith.
Daufeldt, Burroughs and Achen win school board seats
For the West Liberty School Board election, eight names appeared on the ballot in a hotly contested election, but only three were chosen.
Audra Daufeldt was the No. 1 vote getter with 434 votes, while Jacob Burroughs, 404 votes, and Kira Achen, 385 votes, were also elected by the community out of a total 2,430 ballots casted.
Jacob Burroughs will reclaim his seat, while the other two candidates will be replacing outgoing school board members Jeff Laughlin and Carla Shield.
The 2024 school board will be composed of Jacob Burroughs, Rebecca Vargas, Ed Moreno, Audra Daufeldt and Kira Achen under the guidance of Superintendent Shaun Kruger.
Dickey stays Atalissa mayor
The City of Atalissa also had a tight race on its hands with two candidates for mayor. In the end, incumbent Angie Dickey held onto her seat with 39 votes, beating out opponent Kandice Blick with 27 votes.
With only one name on the ballot but three seats up for election, it was a bit unorthodox for the Atalissa city council election. Annie Gerstbrein, the lone name on the ballot, won with 47 votes. Meanwhile, Bryan VanDusen and Tim Devore won as write-ins.
Nichols elects mayor, full council
In Nichols, lone mayoral candidate Linsey Reimers won the seat with 27 votes. Also a bit unorthodox, all five seats were up for grabs in the city council. Those seats will be filled by Kelsie Lampe, Cynthia Massey, John J. Hudson, Russell E. Grim, and Jay Hora.