Two candidates for Wright County Supervisor who lost in the primary election last week could still be on the general election ballot in November, thanks to write-in votes.
The board of supervisors heard on June 10 about a quirk in Iowa law that would allow the two men to stay in the races for the District 1 and 5 seats.
Greg Schipull, who lost to incumbent Rick Rasmussen by 12 votes in District 1, could run on the Libertarian ticket in November. Schipull was the only person receiving write-in votes on the Libertarian ballots that were cast on June 4.
Todd Foss, who lost to Betty Ellis in a three-way race in District 5, received more than 35 percent of the write-in votes cast by Democratic voters last week. That means he could run as a Democrat in November.
Schipull and Foss were contacted by the auditor’s office after Monday’s vote canvass. They have seven days to file as candidates for the November ballot.
The men can run with different party affiliations for the same seats that they lost in the primary since they were the write-in winners. The new “sore loser” law passed recently in Iowa does not apply to that situation.
County Auditor Betty Ellis said “everything was perfect” during the election and the resulting post-election audit required by the state. Ellis added that there were no issues at the polls and no problems with cybersecurity.
In other business, the supervisors:
—heard that the new bridge on C-70 will “hopefully” be open by July 4 if the weather cooperates during the rest of the project;
—heard from County Engineer Adam Clemons that rural residents should avoid blowing grass onto the gravel roads while mowing. “It’s a huge problem for the guys when they are blading the roads,” Clemons said;
—approved the fuel bid for 2024-25 from AgVantage FS. The company submitted the lowest price among the four bidders;
—approved the final bill on the Galt blacktop paving. The total cost was $599,000;
—and heard that the sheriff’s office collected $3,196 in mileage, weapons permits, and copier charges last month.
