CENTRALIA — The City of Centralia has announced that petition packets will be available in the City Clerk’s Office beginning August 30, for residents interested in running for one of two city council seats that will be on the April 2017 Consolidated Election.
The seats up for election are both 4-year terms and are currently held by Council Members Howard Jones and Andre Marshall.
Interested candidates can begin circulating nominating petitions on August 30th. The signed nominating petitions must be submitted to the City Clerk’s Office between Monday, November 21 through 5 p.m. and Monday, November 28.
If more than one person is in line to file at 7:30 a.m. Monday, November 21, a lottery will be conducted to determine ballot placement of those candidates.
Petitions received in the mail November 21, will be considered as filed at 7:30 a.m. and would be eligible for the lottery when deciding placement.
Candidates filing simultaneously in the last hour on November 28 will also be included in a lottery drawing to determine final ballot position.
If nine or more candidates file for the available seats, a Primary Election will be held Tuesday, February 28, 2017. The General Election will be held Tuesday, April 4, 2017. The winning candidates will be seated at the first regular special meeting on May 2017.
The City Clerk’s Office is located at Centralia City Hall, 222 S. Poplar, Centralia. Office hours are 7:30 a.m. through 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. In accordance with State Law, this office will remain open until 5:00 p.m. on Monday, November 28th to accept petitions.
The Candidate Guide is available on the State Board of Elections website at www.elections.il.gov. All candidates should consult the guide and are advised to obtain legal counsel regarding their qualifications for office and how to correctly circulate, complete and file their petitions.
Any questions regarding this election may be directed to the City Clerk, Kim Enke at 533-7625 or by e-mail at kaenke@cityofcentralia.org.