Election deadline Tuesday

Havre and Hingham residents have until 8 p.m. Tuesday to turn in their ballots for upcoming city elections.

Ballots were sent out Oct. 14 to registered voters. Unlike in presidential or statewide elections, all voting is done by mail or dropping off a completed ballot at the Hill County Clerk and Recorder's office.

There are two contested races in Havre's nonpartisan city elections this year.

In Ward 3, retired train conductor J.D. Cass is running against Caleb Hutchins, an employee at Montana State University-Northern, after incumbent Allen “Woody” Woodwick opted not to seek a fourth term.

Likewise, former Havre school board member Ed Matter and political newcomer Douglas Vance, a vice president at Heberly & Associates, are vying to fill the Ward 1 seat being vacated by the retiring Pam Hillery.

Council members Brian Barrows of Ward 2 and Andrew Brekke of Ward 4 are unopposed in their bids for re-election.

However, it is a $30 million mill levy on the ballot that is commanding much of the discussion around the election. If the proposal passes, the money raised will, over a 20-year period, be used to repair the city’s deteriorating streets. Supporters of the measure say the city’s streets are in a state of decline and many have not been fixed for 50 or 70 years. Opponents however, say the proposal is too costly and does too little to address the issue.

Beyond Havre, two candidates, Dan Horinek and David George, are running for at-large alderman seats in Hingham.

Blaine County

In Chinook, there are no contested races. Christine Thurman has no opponent as she seeks another term on Chinook City Council. Both Clint Greytak and Mitch Haider are running for re-election to the two seats in Ward 2.

With no challengers on the ballot in nearby Harlem, City Council members Ken Hansen in Ward 1 and Marc Arensmeyer in Ward 1 will coast to another term.

Fort Belknap

On Fort Belknap Indian Reservation, elections this year are much more lively, where all eight representative seats that are up are contested races.

For the open River-Assiniboine representative seat, Kyle “Wheels” Bigby is facing John A. Allen.

David Crasco wants another term as Mountain-Assiniboine representative, but in order to get it he will have to prevail against Lynn Cliff Jr.

Assiniboine-at-large, incumbent Franklin “Randy” Perez is going up against Donovan Archambault Sr.

In another Assiniboine at-large district race, incumbents Curtis Horn and Gerald “Manny” Healy are facing off against each other. The two men each currently serve on the council, but are now vying for the same seat.

Patricia “Patty” Quisno is also running for another term as River-Gros Ventre district representative, but has found an opponent in Dominic Mesty. Both Warren Morin and Geno Levaldo are competing to fill the open Mountain-Gros Ventre district representative seat.

Both Gros Ventre at-large seats are also on the ballot. Michael “Gopher” Fox and John Hawley are competing for an open seat, while William Main Sr. is looking to take down incumbent Alvin “Jim” Kennedy in the other.

Liberty County

Mayor Noel Walston is engaged in a contentious race against Chester Cheetah, the Cheetos mascot. The effort is part of a promotional effort, whereby the popular snack was searching for a city named Chester.

The Liberty County’s Chester was selected and the company's mascot is being run as a nonofficial candidate in a social media-based campaign for the city’s top office.

Those on the ballot in races for City Council in Chester are also unopposed. Darin Scott Ross is vying for another four-year term and Adam Standiford is looking to serve for another two years as alderman.

Incumbents Tina Neer and Rachel C. Ghekiere are on the ballot for seats in Wards 2 and 3, respectively.

The Havre Daily News will have comprehensive election day coverage through our facebook page, our Twitter feeds: @HavreDaily and @AlexRossHDN as well as our website. There will be comprehensive coverage of the next day’s election results in Wednesday’s edition of the paper.