August 06, 2008 12:59 am
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By Derek Spellman
dspellman@joplinglobe.com
PINEVILLE, Mo. — With turnout at just over 23 percent, McDonald County voters on Tuesday decided contested primaries for sheriff, County Commission seats and coroner.
Eight candidates filed between the Democratic and Republican primaries to replace Sheriff Don Schlessman, who is not seeking re-election.
Gregg Sweeten outdistanced five Republican challengers to win his party’s nomination for sheriff, finishing with 900 votes. He was followed by John Bunch, 536 votes; Brandon Beshears, 444 votes; Thomas Coble, 89 votes; Ivan Russell, 68 votes; and Luap McKeever, 20 votes.
Sweeten, 43, of Pineville, is currently chief deputy in McDonald County and director of the county’s emergency management services.
Krystin Lewis, of Pineville, said she has known Sweeten for years and that she knows he has character. That was why she cast her vote for him.
“I think he would be a great sheriff,” she said outside the polling place at Pineville Christian Church.
Sweeten will take on Robert M. Evenson in the general election. Evenson on Tuesday edged out rival Jeff Sutherland for the Democratic nomination by a margin of 513 to 246.
Evenson, 37, served as sheriff of McDonald County from 2001 to 2004 after winning the November 2000 election. He lost to Schlessman in 2004.
Experience was the chief reason Bob Mears, of rural Pineville, said he supported Evenson.
“He has been there before,” said Mears, who also cited Evenson’s willingness to work with other law-enforcement agencies and his professional demeanor.
Between the two parties, a total of seven candidates were in the running for the Eastern District commission seat.
In that race, Republican incumbent Sam Gaskill moved one step closer to a second term after fending off four challengers. Gaskill, 76, was first elected to the commission in 2004.
Gaskill finished with 405 votes, followed by Joe Stephens, 276 votes; Darrel Watson, 148 votes; Clarence Scott, 147 votes; and Beverly Longnecker, 123 votes.
Gaskill will face Loren Garren in the November general election. Garren, 61, of Goodman, beat Scott Sanders for the Democratic nomination, 221 to 212.
In the race for Western District commissioner, Ronald Walker won the Republican nod and the right to take on Democratic incumbent Gayle Brock in November. Brock was unopposed in the Democratic primary.
Walker captured 498 votes, compared with 237 and 162 votes for rivals Paul Gardner and Milton Wolf, respectively. Walker, 59, of Southwest City, is a cattle rancher who served two terms on the McDonald County School Board.
In the race for coroner, challenger Tracy Dowd beat incumbent B.J. Goodwin III for the Republican nomination. Dowd finished with 1,083 votes to Goodwin’s 950. Dowd will face Democratic nominee Doc Halverson, who was unopposed in Tuesday’s primary.
Dowd, 43, of Noel, is the co-owner of Walker Dowd Funeral Home and worked for the McDonald County coroner’s office for 10 years. Goodwin was appointed to the position of coroner in 2006 to fill out the term left by the retirement of Gale Duncan.
Also Tuesday, voters in Anderson approved a proposal to continue a 35-cent levy per $100 assessed valuation for another five years by a margin of 200 to 76. The measure needed a simple majority.
The property tax is for general revenue, and has been used to finance a variety of operations, including police and fire services, the city’s utility bills and street lighting.
A 35-cent tax levy translates to an annual tax of $66.50 on a home with a market value of $100,000.
By the numbers
There are a total of 12,674 registered voters in McDonald County, and 2,933 of them cast a ballot in Tuesday’s election, for a turnout of 23.14 percent.
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