Gobel & Council Win Re-election

WAITSBURG - Preliminary election results for Waitsburg's city government show incumbent Mayor Walt Gobel and the current five city council membe rs re- turned to office by a landslide.

With 357 votes cast, Gobel obtained 276 votes compared to challenger Bart Baxter's 64 votes. Among the candidates for council, Kevin House got the largest number of votes with 293, followed by Orville Branson with 283, Karl Newell with 279, Marty Dunn with 272 and Scott Nettles with 250.

City council candidate Greg McVey, who ran in support of Baxter, received 119 votes.

City Clerk Randy Hinchliffe said a few more votes were expected to come in late Tuesday, but not enough to change the lopsided results. The turnout compared to 461 votes cast last year and 265 in 2009.

"I'm happy that the voters saw fit to re-elect the whole council," Gobel said. "It tells me we must be heading in the right direction and doing the right thing for the people to vote us back in again."

Gobel said the council had a good first year, and members worked together well "for the good of Waitsburg."

Baxter called the results "a good old country butt whooping," but said he's glad he ran just to stir things up a bit and prompt the incumbents to embrace some of his ideas.

"My purpose was served," he said. "They had to be pushed a little."

Gobel credited Baxter and current councilman Nettles with bringing a better use of the Fairgrounds higher up on the political agenda. The mayor-re-elect said he wants to create a new Fairgrounds Committee to take a closer look at the possibilities and welcomes local residents' ideas for the facility.

McVey congratulated the current council members on their re-election and thanked the residents who voted for him.

"I was hoping to give it a shot and I did," he said. "But it's up to the community. I hope their decisions will be good for the community and for kids."

Branson said Waitsburg residents chose continuity over change.

Hinchliffe said the elections results will be certified on April 20.