Meerpohl wins contested city commission seat in election

Holton voters picked Mike Meerpohl to continue to represent them in city government on Tuesday, the final municipal election to be held in the spring.

Meerpohl, seeking election to position two on the Holton City Commission, received a total of 142 votes in Tuesday’s election, beating former city commissioner Rodney Miller, who received a total of 83 votes.

Dan Brenner, running unopposed on the ballot for reelection to position four on the city commission, received a total of 191 votes.

Jackson County Clerk and Election Officer Kathy Mick said the total voter turnout in the election — 11 percent — was equal to that of the February primary election that narrowed the ballot to Meerpohl and Miller. A total of 231 of the city’s registered 2,029 voters cast ballots on or before Tuesday, Mick reported.

The election result will start the first full commission term for Meerpohl, who was appointed to the city commission in January to finish out the term of former Commissioner Erich Campbell. He is also a former member of the Holton USD 336 Board of Education, it was reported.

Starting in 2017, city commis­sion positions and other local mat­ters that had previously been de­cided in spring elections, such as school board positions, will be de­cided during fall elections. The Kansas Legislature in 2015 ap­proved the change, reportedly meant to double voter turnout in lo­cal elections but largely opposed by local elected officials and school boards across Kansas.

The regular Holton City Com­mission term is three years, it was reported. But in January, Holton City Manager Bret Bauer noted that those elected to the city commis­sion this year — as well as in 2014 and 2015 — will serve terms last­ing three years and eight months because of the new election law.

In the vote count, 93 of the votes received for Meerpohl, 56 of those received for Miller and 131 received for Brenner were registered on Tuesday at the election site, the Holton Veterans Club, with the remainder posted as advance votes. Two advance write-in votes also were received for Chris Miller and Ashley Holthaus, it was reported.

Mick said the Jackson County Commission will officially canvass the ballots at 10 a.m. Monday.