Village to hold special election to fill trustee seat

The Village of Fredonia has figured out how it will fill the seat of former Trustee Don Dohrwardt.

The Village Board last week unanimously voted to hold a special election for his replacement, which will be on the same ballot as the general election in April.

Dohrwardt, who had served on the board for 30 years, resigned on Oct. 16 as he is going through cancer treatment. He said he timed his resignation so his seat could be filled in the April election without the village having to pay for a special election on a different date. Dohwardt said he prefers trustees get elected rather than appointed.

The board on Nov. 6 discussed the idea of appointing someone who may or may not choose to run for the seat in April.

Village President Peter Lenz said operating one trustee short “could potentially cause problems with tie votes and it just optically does not look good to have a board that’s not complete.”

Trustee Richard Abegglen said the board rarely has close votes on issues, so he doesn’t see a problem having six board members.

“I think it would be right to honor the wishes of former Trustee Dohrwardt, given his over 30 years of service to this community,” he said.

Trustee DJ Syring said it doesn’t hurt to seek someone for the open spot.

“Let them have some experience in this before the election, then at the election village residents will have seen someone who has some interest in becoming a permanent seat at the table. It’s good for us to have a full board here,” he said. 

But the board couldn’t reach consensus on appointing a trustee. It did agree to hold a special election.

Clerk Michelle Johnson said she would work with her team on how to tell voters at the polls about the special election in addition to the general election.

Whoever wins the special election would serve the remainder of Dohrwardt’s term, which is up in 2027.

The board on Nov. 6 unanimously appointed three trustees to fill Dohrwardt’s former roles. Abegglen is president pro tem, Jessica Franck is chairman of the Public Works Committee, Syring is a member of that committee and Natalie Eippert is a member of the Fredonia Government Center Committee.

The board will honor Dohrwardt at the Thursday, Dec. 4, Village Board meeting.