Tight race for Gladstone School Board

GLADSTONE -- Of the seven individuals who ran to serve on the Board of Education for Gladstone Area Schools, the four who came out on top were John Harris, John Malnar, Joe Huber, and Andrew Sturdy.

Harris and Malnar will be new faces on the baord. The seats that were up had been occupied by Nathan Neumeier, who did not seek reelection; Henry Knoch; Sturdy; and Huber.

Mackenzie Pfeiffer, who was appointed to the board in July after the departure of Phil DeMay, will continue her partial term, if Tuesday’s ballot count is confirmed. She surpassed the other certified write-in candidate by just one vote.

It was a close race, with the seven candidates on the ballot for the full four-year terms all earning between 1,100 and 1,500 votes.

Others on the Gladstone Area School Board of Education, with terms expiring in 2028, are Steve Tackman and Jesse Seger. The superintendent -- not an elected position -- is Jay Kulbertis.

The district includes residents of the City of Gladstone, Escanaba Township and Brampton Township.

The number of votes earned by the candidates, according to Delta County’s results published on enhancedvoting.com, were as follows: 1,434 for Harris; 1,385 for Malnar, 1,384 for Huber; 1,366 for Sturdy; 1,199 for Knoch; 1,159 for Mitch West; and 1,128 for Brandon Langenfeld.

The partial term had no names on the ballot, but Pfeiffer and James Anderson were both certified write-ins. Pfeiffer got 13 votes, and Anderson had 12.

The Gladstone Area Schools Board of Education regularly meets at 6 p.m. on the third Monday of each month in the Gladstone Public Library. Meetings are open to the public.