2008 election summary: highlighted by five races for county commission
by Peter Jakey, Managing Editor
Election Day 2008 has arrived. Residents of Presque Isle County will take to the polls Tuesday to decide several local, state and national races. At the county level, thanks to late announcing write-in candidates, all five seats on the county board of commissioners are now contested. Democrat Wayne Vermilya was the latest to file with the county clerk?s office as a write-in. He goes up against District 1 incumbent Bob Schell, who defeated Vermilya back in August. There?s also a rematch in District 2. Kris Sorgenfrei wound up with 19 votes more than longtime incumbent Allan Bruder on the Republican side. Bruder recently filed as a write-in as well. The third candidate on the ballot in District 2 will be Democrat Marlowe Paul, who has taken a job in another state and will decline the position if he wins the election.
In District 3, (D) incumbent Mike Darga is being challenged again by (R) Milt Very. In District 4, Democrat Gary Wozniak is hoping to win back the seat he lost two years ago to (R) Carl Altman. In District 5, (R) incumbent Stephen Lang faces newcomer (D) Michael Grohowski. THE ONLY county offices being contested are sheriff and drain commissioner. (R) Bob Paschke, who was appointed as sheriff at the beginning of the year, is looking to win his first full term in office, but is opposed by Neil Repke of Posen. He has no party affiliation. (R) Charles Lyon is looking for a second term as drain commissioner. Trying to unseat him is (D) Mel Perkins, an Onaway city commissioner.
Two candidates are vying for the 89th District Judgeship, which will open up at the end of the year with the retirement of Judge Harold Johnson. Cheboygan attorneys Maria Barton and Daniel Martin are the final two candidates, which started with a field of five. (R) Peter Pettalia and (D) Andy Neumann are squaring off in the race for 106th State Representative. Pettalia is the Presque Isle Township supervisor, while Neumann is former state representative trying to get back to Lansing.
The only county-wide issue facing voters is a renewal of the Huron Undercover Narcotics (HUNT) millage. It expires this year. The request is for .30, which is an increase of .05. It funds school resource officer in all three public high schools and helps fund an officers for the HUNT team.
The recently established Posen Fire Authority has a request on the table. The ballot question will ask registered voters in Krakow, Metz, Posen and Pulawski Townships if they would approve one mill as an operating millage for the fire department for the next five years. It will fund the purchase of a couple of fire trucks in the coming years and pay for the operation of the entity. IN THE townships, there are a number of races. The race in Bearinger Township really got heated earlier this year when four of the five board members walked out, forcing the appointment of new people. The only trustee who didn?t resign is not running. Some races have been decided, while there are two trustee seats, four candidates are fighting for. They are Kay Dowker, James M. McKindles, Patricia M. Augustine and Byron DeLong. Presque Isle Township has a race for supervisor and clerk. Karen Pettalia and Patrick Pokorski are pitted against each other, while Karen Fournier and Pat Hart vie for the clerk?s position. For trustee, one of three candidates will be on the outside looking in on election night. The candidates are: Lynn Morrison, Cynthia Paavola and Brian Shumaker. In Allis Township, there are four trustees vying for two seats. The candidates are Mark Dean, Elizabeth Roat, Raymond F. Ellenberger and William M. Peterman. There are three candidates for trustee in Bismarck Township. They are Wesley Bruning, Kenneth McNealy and Jeffrey R. Prell. The top two
On the ballot for U.S. Senator is (D) incumbent Carl Levin and (R) Jack Hoogendyk Jr. The candidates for 1st District congressman are (D) Bart Stupak and (R) Tom Casperson. Don Hooper is a write-in in the First Congressional District. Polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.