CRAWFORD AND VERNON - Contested primary elections in the February 15 nonpartisan Spring primary election in Crawford and Vernon counties have decided which candidates will move forward to the April 5 Spring nonpartisan election. Those primary contests were for”
• Crawford County Board of Supervisors, District 12
• North Crawford School Board
• Vernon County Board of Supervisors, Districts 6, 7 and 9
• Viroqua Mayor
Crawford County Board, District 12
Polling in the Town of Seneca and the Village of Lynxville resulted in challengers Owen DuCharme and Brian Reynolds advancing the April 5 election, with incumbent Alan Morovits (appointed in 2021 to finish the term of Larry Kelley) eliminated in the primary.
Owen DuCharme was the top vote-getter, with a total of 60 votes (55 in Seneca and five in Lynxville). Brian Reynolds garnered 54 votes, (46 in Seneca and eight in Lynxville), and Morovits 23 votes (17 in Seneca and six in Lynxville).
North Crawford
School Board
Four of the five candidates appearing on the ballot of the North Crawford School Board will move forward to appear on the ballot of the April 5 election, where voters will select two. In that election, the top vote-getter will earn a three-year term, and the candidate with the second most votes will earn a one-year term.
Moving forward will be incumbents Jerry Coleman and Mary Kuhn, and challengers Charissa Anne Richter and Kimberly Blaha. Challenger Melany Jelinek was eliminated in primary election voting.
The overall top vote-getter was incumbent Jerry Coleman (appointed in December to serve in the seat vacated by Tanya Forkash), with 231 votes. Kuhn received the second most votes at 157, followed by Richter with 145 and Blaha with 128. Jelinek came in fifth with 105 votes.
In township voting, Coleman received 82 votes in Clayton, two in Freeman, 18 in Haney, six in Scott, and 35 in Utica. In village voting, he received six in Bell Center, 39 in Gays Mills, seven in Mt. Sterling, and 36 in Soldiers Grove.
In township voting, Kuhn received 42 votes in Clayton, three in Freeman, 21 in Haney, five in Scott, and 23 in Utica. In village voting, she received four in Bell Center, 27 in Gays Mills, six in Mt. Sterling, and 26 in Soldiers Grove.
In township voting, Richter received 42 votes in Clayton, none in Freeman, 12 in Haney, five in Scott, and 31 in Utica. In village voting, she received five in Bell Center, 27 in Gays Mills, four in Mt. Sterling, and 19 in Soldiers Grove.
In township voting, Blaha received 44 votes in Clayton, none in Freeman, eight in Haney, none in Scott, and 22 in Utica. In village voting, she received four in Bell Center, 16 in Gays Mills, one in Mt. Sterling, and 33 in Soldiers Grove.
In township voting, Jelinek received 29 votes in Clayton, three in Freeman, two in Haney, one in Scott, and 14 in Utica. In village voting, she received three in Bell Center, 23 in Gays Mills, two in Mt. Sterling, and 28 in Soldiers Grove.Vernon County Board Districts 6, 7 and 9
The Vernon County Board of Supervisors had three contested primaries in the February 15 nonpartisan Spring primary election in Districts 6, 7 and 9. The board is currently undergoing a process of reducing the number of seats on the board from 29 to 19, so after redistricting, some of the seats have changed since the last time an election was held.
In the District 6 election, in primary voting in the towns of Franklin and Jefferson, John Pedretti received a total of 53 votes and Joseph Kleiber received 47 votes. The two will face each other on the April 5 ballot, with Michael Whitfield eliminated in the primary with 13 votes.
In the District 7 election, in voting in the towns of Franklin and Kickapoo, and the Village of Readstown, Nathaniel Slack received a total of 49 votes and LaVon Felton received 38 votes. The two will face each other on the April 5 ballot, with Joseph Ecklund eliminated in the primary with 24 votes.
In the District 9 election, in voting in the towns of Christiana and Viroqua, and the City of Westby, Martha Olson received a total of 82 votes and Kevin Larson received 63 votes. The two will face each other on the April 5 ballot, with AnnaJo Doerr eliminated in the primary with 50 votes.
Viroqua Mayor
Two of the three candidates for Mayor of Viroqua will move forward to face each other on the April 5 ballot. Those two are incumbent Karen Mischel with 294 votes, and Justin Running with 370 votes. Challenger Todd Overbo was eliminated in primary voting with 99 votes.
