Township elections are not held until March, but the time for citizens interested in running for a town board seat to file is now. Each of the townships—Lutsen, Tofte and Schroeder—is holding an election for a supervisor term of three years and a treasurer term of two years. The filing period to run opened January 1 and will close at 5 p.m. on January 15. At press time no one had filed for any of the township board seats.
Several incumbents have said they plan to file and at this point they have no opposition for township seats.
As she stepped down from her Lutsen Supervisor seat in December, now District 5 County Commissioner Ginny Storlie stressed the importance of serving the community. “I think it is really important for people to come forward,” she said.
Lutsen may have a new supervisor candidate
In Lutsen, acting supervisor Larry McNeally has said he would run for the seat vacated by Ginny Storlie when she was elected as county commissioner. McNeally was appointed to fill the vacancy on December 16.
At that December meeting, incumbent Treasurer John Groth also said he would file to run again.
To file for office in Lutsen, contact Town Clerk Amity Goettl at (218) 663-7501 or email lutsentownship@gmail.com.
Schroeder incumbents to file
Both of the Schroeder incumbents— Treasurer Alisha Kangas and Supervisor Deb Johnson—told the Cook County News-Herald that they planned to file for re-election, however neither has filed yet.
To file for office in Schroeder, contact Town Clerk Doug Schwecke at (218) 663-7599.
Tofte incumbents planning to run
Tofte town board incumbents Supervisor Paul James and Treasurer Bill Huggins both also said they would be running for reelection.
To file for office in Tofte, contact Town Clerk Barb Gervais at (218) 663-7315 or (218) 370-0763.
A non-refundable fee of $2 is charged at the time of filing. Township elections are held the second Tuesday of March. The 2015 election will be March 10.
Get involved in your township
Townships are the original form of local government in Minnesota, established as part of the Northwest Ordinance of 1787 which created the State of Minnesota. The township form of government, a carryover from Europe, served as a familiar building block to develop the state by dividing land areas into 36 square mile units known as congressional townships. Today, the term township generally refers to organized but unincorporated communities governed by a local board of supervisors and created to provide services to their residents. There are 1,790 townships across the state.
For information on how to file:
. Lutsen
Contact Clerk Amity Goettl
(218) 663-7501
. Tofte
Contact Clerk Barb Gervais
(218) 663-7315
. Schroeder
Contact Clerk Doug Schwecke
(218) 663-7599
There is a $2 fee to file as a town board candidate, payable to the town clerk of the respective township.
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