A blend of rookies and veterans

With five newcomers on Tuesday’s ballot for Creston City Council compared to just two incumbents, at least two newcomers were sure to earn a spot on the council.

Voters selected the incumbent in races with someone running for reelection. Jen Worisek was unopposed in Ward 3 while Jocelyn Blazek was selected for another term in Ward 1. Toby Henry and Jason Cook took the other two contested races.

Results from the Union County Auditor’s Office will remain unofficial until approved by the Union County Board of Supervisors Nov. 18.

The only race between incumbent and newcomer was Ward 1 where Jocelyn Blazek will continue to serve, defeating newcomer Sanchez 99-83.

Blazek has been serving for the last six years. In a statement prepared for the Oct. 16 candidate forum, Blazek said she is proud to be a part of a council that has accomplished a number of goals over the last six years.

“There a few more objectives I would like to see us achieve, in particular, an upgrade of the stormwater and sewer system infrastructure, specifically in older areas of the city where the current infrastructure is not sufficient to meet current capacity, completion of the uptown revitalization project, the establishment of affordable, quality housing, specifically for low to moderate income individuals and families and the opportunity to establish more positive relationships between the city and its departments and the community as a whole,” she said.

The at-large race was between Henry, an insurance agent, and Army veteran Brandon Cozad. The voters chose the lifetime Crestonian, Henry, with 946 votes compared to Cozad’s 248. Henry fills the seat previously held by Richard Madison.

While Henry said his main priority is lowering the tax burden on residents, he also shared his thoughts on what areas the city needs to continue investing in.

“We need to keep investing in our city employees that are hard working, that are doing their job correctly,” Henry said. “We can’t keep losing good workers... I would never be in favor of shortchanging our city employees.”

Finally, Ward 5 residents chose Cook, an audience regular at city council, over Karen Drake. Cook received 186 votes compared to Drake’s 164. Cook fills the seat previously held by Steve Wintermute.

For Cook, Creston’s biggest obstacle is being a community in decline. “We have an aging population,” he said. “Our new website states that we are a growing community. The only metric I can find we are growing in is our cost of living. We began restricting housing, began pushing people out without giving them a reason to come back.”

Worisek received 201 votes to retain her Ward 3 seat. She originally earned the spot via appointment after Matt Levine resigned in early 2024. Worisek had originally run for the Ward 3 seat but was defeated by Levine.

The seat winners will be sworn in to city council in January, with the first meeting scheduled to be held Jan. 6 at 6 p.m.

Area races

ARISPE

City council

Elected: Kathy Groves (19), Tom Hansen (19), Write-in (7)

CROMWELL

Mayor

Elected: Curt Angell (30)

City council

Elected: Tonya Rehmeyer (23), Robert Hepp (25), Dylan McVay (23), Judy Hopkins (26), Jacob McGehee (23)

Not elected: Anthony Hoadley (17), Dustin Hepp (15)

LORIMOR

Mayor

Elected: Write-in (To be announced)

City council

Elected: Jody King (24), Mathew Lenhart (40)

Tie for third: Karen Tucker (21), Timmy Oneil (21). If the 36 write-in votes do not affect the third-place tie, a random drawing will select the third member between Tucker and Oneil.

SHANNON CITY

Mayor

Elected: Write-in (To be announced)

City Council

Elected: Glen Hoyt Jr (5), Debra Brumfield (8), Robert Brumfield (11).

THAYER

Mayor

Elected: Write-in (To be announced)

City council

Elected: 5 seats, all write-in (To be announced)