In light of the passing of longtime Fourth Ward Councilor Al Hoop on March 20, the Marshalltown city council discussed the plan for filling the vacancy during Monday night’s meeting and ultimately voted unanimously to move forward with setting up a special election on July 16.

City Clerk Alicia Hunter explained that any appointment must be made within 60 days of the vacancy, so that deadline would be May 19. If the council opted to go the special election route, she added, it could be held on either July 16 or July 23. If a new councilor was appointed, he or she would automatically go on the ballot in November, but the winner of a special election would serve the remainder of Hoop’s term, which runs until the end of 2027.

Mayor Pro-Tem Mike Ladehoff went around the room to gauge each councilor’s opinion beginning with Mark Mitchell, who felt the constituents should make the choice and supported a special election. Councilor Barry Kell went in the opposite direction and said that due to the timeline and the cost of a special election (between $10,000 and $12,000), he favored the appointment route.

“Last fall, it looks like 402 people voted from that ward. That’s a pretty expensive election for a relatively low turnout,” Kell said.

Ladehoff preferred a special election because he wasn’t sure there was a candidate who could garner four votes given the current makeup of the council. Councilor Greg Nichols agreed with Ladehoff and contended the low turnout in the 2023 election may have been at least partially due to Hoop running unopposed.

Councilor Jeff Schneider’s first thoughts aligned with Kell’s, he said, but as he sensed which way the rest of the council was thinking, he felt a special election was inevitable. Gary Thompson spoke last and reiterated his longstanding conviction that no elected position should be filled by appointment.

“No matter if only two people turn out to vote, they have a choice of who represents them. And I can guarantee you, if we do appoint, I personally will get the petition to have a special election as I did in (the) First Ward that seated your Mayor Pro-Tem,” he said in reference to Ladehoff winning a special election over appointed Councilor Raymond Starks back in 2021. “I strongly believe the taxpayers have a right to choose their representation, so it’s a no-brainer for me. Special election.”

Nichols then made a motion with a second from Thompson, and with no public comments, it passed unanimously. The item was merely up for discussion on Monday, so a formal resolution will still need to be approved at a future meeting.

On Tuesday afternoon, Jessie Chizek of the Marshall County Auditor/Recorder’s office told the T-R that the filing deadline for the election will be June 21 at 5 p.m.

“Filing can begin once the resolution calling for the special election has been signed and filed with the Auditor’s Office. There is no start time when signatures can be obtained,” Chizek said. “The candidates will need at least 69 signatures on the petition, but of course, we always suggest more. There can only be Fourth Ward residents on the petition.”

Any potential candidates with questions on how to properly complete the paperwork are encouraged to contact the auditor/recorder’s office at (641) 844-2725 or (641) 754-6323. The number for the election Line is (641) 754-6302.

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Contact Robert Maharry at 641-753-6611 ext. 255 or rmaharry@timesrepublican.com.