It is getting down to the wire for Carroll’s special election coming up next Tuesday, Aug. 1. There are two items on the ballot, the first is for the election of a Carroll City Council member to finish out the unexpired term of an at-large seat. Brandon Vonnahme was elected to sit on the board through the fall of 2019, but a move outside the city limits required his resignation from the position in December of 2016. LaVern Dirkx was appointed as the interim member in January, with the stipulation that the at-large seat would be placed on the ballot at the next election. Dirkx and two other candidates, Matthew Hodges and Ron “Woody” Beyer, are campaigning for the job. The second item on the ballot is the much-discussed $3.8 million referendum vote on the expansion of the Carroll Public Library and the moving of city offices to the donated Commercial Savings Bank Building on North Adams Street. Community leaders are reaching out and asking Carroll citizens to have their voices heard. Mayor, Dr. Eric Jensen, wants people to find whatever way works for them and their schedule.
Executive Director of the Carroll Chamber of Commerce and Carroll Area Development Corporation (CADC), Shannon Landauer, says there has been a lot of work that has gone into the library campaign to bring facts to the discussion prior to a vote, but to remember it isn’t only about the library.
As of 8 a.m. this (Friday) morning, Carroll County Auditor, Kourtney Irlbeck says there have been 1,157 absentee ballots cast. This, she says, is falling right in line with the numbers they saw for the Carroll stadium vote that took place on Feb. 7. Irlbeck says she has seen the numbers of absentee voters continuing to increase. It is gaining in popularity, she says, because it is a way for voters to cast their ballot on their own schedule. Absentee votes can be cast until 11 a.m. Tuesday, Aug. 1 at the Carroll County Courthouse. Polls on Election Day will open at noon and voting will end at 8 p.m. Carroll Broadcasting will bring you live results from the courthouse after the polls close Tuesday evening. A full list of polling locations are listed below.
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PRECINCT POLLING PLACE
Carroll Ward One St. John Lutheran Church, 801 E. 18th
Carroll Ward Two First United Methodist Church, 1621 N. Main
Carroll Ward Three Courthouse Meeting Room, 114 E. 6th
Carroll Ward Four First United Methodist Church, 1621 N. Main
