Candidate filing period ends May 17

Depending on the number of filings, it could be a busy election season for cities and districts on the West Plains.

Those interested in public office have until 4 p.m. Friday, May 17, to file an application with the Spokane County Elections Office as candidates for numerous elected positions countywide, including 16 in the cities of Cheney, Airway Heights and Medical Lake along with both school districts. Filing can be done online, with credit cards accepted to cover filing fees, at the county’s website at http://www.spokanecounty.org/elections or in person at county offices at 1033 W. Gardner Ave. in Spokane.

Four city of Cheney positions are open, including mayor and three on the City Council. As of Tuesday, Mayor Tom Trulove had filed for re-election as had Councilwoman Teresa Overhauser for Position 4. At council Position 3, currently held by John Taves, Dan Hilton had filed, while Position 1 held by Fred Pollard remained open.

In Medical Lake, incumbent Mayor John Higgins, along with current council members Shirley Maike, Position 2 and Arthur (AJ) Burton, Position 3 had filed, with Position 4, currently held by Jeff King, open.

The only race so far is in Airway Heights for council Position 2 where Jack Collins is challenging incumbent Steven Lawrence. Patrick Rushing and Tanya Dashiell have both filed for re-election to council Position 1, Council Chair and Position 4, respectively.

Three director positions in the Cheney School District and two in Medical Lake’s are up for election. In Cheney, Suzanne Dolle has filed for re-election to Director Position 2, with Henry Browne filing for Position 3. Browne was appointed to the position in January, replacing Larry Haskell. As of Tuesday no one had filed for the Director 1 position currently held by Marcie Estrellado.

In Medical Lake, no one had yet to file for the Director 1 and 5 positions currently held by Kelly Fouts and Margaret Schweikhardt.

There were also positions up for election in Spokane County Fire District’s 3 and 10 along with the Williams Lake Sewer District.

All positions on the ballot are four-year terms.

The primary is Aug. 6 with ballots scheduled to begin arriving in voter’s mailboxes around July 19. The general election is Nov. 5.

John McCallum can be reached at jmac@cheneyfreepress.com.