STEVE SMITH EDITOR@LACLEDERECORD.COM
Lebanon voters elected two new members to their city council in elections held Tuesday.
According to the Laclede County Clerk’s Office, Lebanon’s former codes administrator Joe Berkich defeated incumbent Councilwoman Sheila Mitchell. Berkich received 227 votes or 55% of the vote. Mitchell received 181 votes or 44%.
Berkich shared an e-mail statement after his win.
“Having spent four decades working alongside city staff, leadership within our community, and the residents I have had the opportunity to see firsthand what makes the City of Lebanon strong and where we can continue to improve. I understand how our city operates, and I am committed to using that experience to serve on our Council with integrity and as much transparency as possible. My job is to work hard on your behalf to make Lebanon a great place to live,” Berkich said. “As a new member of the council, I promise to listen, work hard, and always put our community first! I look forward to continuing to serve our residents and city staff with the same dedication, experience, and care that have guided my many years of work with the City of Lebanon. “
Jaret Scharnhorst was elected councilman in Ward 1 with 173 votes or 48% of the vote. He defeated Jeff Stokes who received 81 votes and Jeremy A. Goforth who received 102 votes.
Scharnhorst provided a written statement. On his victory
“ I sincerely thank everyone who came out and supported me on election day. I could not have won this election without the help of the family, friends, and neighbors who believed in me. I also want to congratulate both of my opponents on a good, clean race and I thank them both for their numerous years of service to our community. I am excited for the coming weeks and look forward to getting work for the residents of Ward 1,” he said.
Incumbent Lebanon councilmen Jeff Mutchler in Ward 3 and Chuck Jordan in Ward 4 were reelected without opposition.
Elected to the Lebanon R-3 School Board were incumbent Mary Russell with 1,349 votes, Jina Richardson with 1,270 votes and Craig Blair with 1,031 votes.
Laclede County R-1 (Conway) School Board members elected were Ricky Savage with 101 votes, Jarid Jensen with 100 votes and incumbent Courtney Gunter with 93 votes.
Lebanon Special Road District #1 voters approved a continuation of its additional 20 cents per $100 assessed valuation for a period not to exceed four years The vote was 1,036 in favor or 69 percent with 448 voters opposed.
Laclede County Clerk Linda Cansler said a total 10% of registered voters showed up at the polls Tuesday or cast absentee ballots in the election.
“A lot of voters showed up more heavily in the afternoon than there was in the mid-day,” she said. “Around 11:30 (a.m.) it was running fairly slow, but there was a good turnout for the afternoon.”
The turnout was a little higher than past April elections with 12% turnout last year and about 10% in 2024. She said turnout was likely affected by a lack of races for school board, except for Conway and Lebanon R-3.
“With the City of Lebanon having some contested races, that was the area where we saw higher turnout,” she said.
She said the election counting last Tuesday went well. She said election judges became aware of electioneering activity in Lebanon Ward 1 and investigated to make sure it was legal.
“They called to reaffirmed what they thought and measured the 25-feet and I asked if they were outside the 25-feet and they said yes,” according to Cansler. “That’s the end of our ability to make sure voters weren’t coerced into doing something or being bothered. And it works both ways. Sometimes having somebody out there helps them and sometimes having somebody out there makes them mad.”
Cansler thanked local media for helping make people aware of the election.
“I did appreciate that there was a lot of interest being driven by our media to get people engaged in the election,” she said. “And our election judges. They are the ones who get up at 3 in the morning, get equipment ready and then stay until 8 o’clock at and they get worn out. It’s a labor of love for them. They feel it’s their civic duty.”
The final April 7 election results were certified Friday. Cansler said her office is already starting to work on the upcoming August primary election.
