Incumbents File For City Council

All four incumbents running for seats on the Bourbon City Council have filed to be on the April 7 ballot.

Mayor Dave Lafferty, Ward 1 Alderman John Nelson, Ward 1 Alderwoman Margie Brine and Ward 2 Alderwoman Mary Heywood are seeking terms.

They have yet to draw any challengers and the filing deadline ends January 21.

Lafferty is seeking his first full-term as mayor after moving to the position following the death of Danny Skaggs on September 12.

That created a vacancy for Lafferty’s seat, which was taken by Brine. Brine’s seat is for one year and will run through April 2021.

Nelson took the seat of former Ward 1 Alderman Thomas Jordan, who resigned at the end of July. The seat will be for a two-year term.

Heywood is seeking another two-year term and is the current mayor pro tem. 

To file, candidates must go to Bourbon City Hall at 423 Old Highway 66. Candidates must be 18 or older, a citizen of the United States, an inhabitant and resident of the city for one year next preceding the election and a resident at the time filed. Candidates must also reside in the ward they seek to represent.

Candidates must file Form 5120, a Candidate’s Affidavit of Tax Payments and Bonding Requirements, declaring no delinquency in the filing or payment of any state income taxes, personal property taxes, municipal taxes, real property taxes on the place of residence as stated on the declaration of candidacy.

Each candidate must sign a candidate acknowledgement and a summary of the Conflict of Interest and Campaign Finance Laws and Personal Financial Disclosure statements that explain the consequences for failure to file in a timely manner, over which the Missouri Ethics Commission has enforcement powers pursuant to the revised statutes of Missouri.

School Board

Filings for the school board were unavailable at the time of this paper’s publication.

There are four seats that voters will have to choose.

Stephen Waldron, Sean Kaysinger and Andrew Graddy occupy seats that will carry a three-year term. 

Suzanne Louderman has a two-year seat.

Kaysinger, Graddy and Louderman all joined the school board in 2019. Kaysinger won a special election, while Graddy and Louderman were appointed to fill out the vacancies created by Ron Collins and Justin Blanton.

Candidates must declare if they are running for the three-year seats or two-year seat.

Candidates must be at least 24, US citizens, a resident taxpayer of the R-1 School District and the state of Missouri for a minimum of one year immediately preceding the election.

Candidates must not be delinquent in state income, personal property, municipal or real property taxes. Candidates must not have been found guilty to a felony or a registered sex offender. Candidates must file campaign disclosure reports with the Missouri Ethics Commission.