Mayor Hall reelected; Darga, Nowak, Sobeck, win council seats
by Peter Jakey– Managing Editor
Close to half of the registered voters in the City of Rogers City showed up at the polls Tuesday, resulting in a close race for mayor and a change on the council. There were 1,006 votes cast at the high school, but less than 100 votes separated the three-term incumbent Beach Hall and a newcomer to the political scene, Ted Urban Jr. Hall received 538 votes, while Urban ended the night with 444. Shortly after the results were released from city hall, Urban called Hall on the telephone to congratulate him on winning.
?THERE WAS heavier voting than we usually see in an off-year election,? said Hall Tuesday night. ?From that standpoint, I am delighted, I look forward to working with the new council; hopefully, whatever differences we?ve had during the campaign will be put behind us and the whole community will work together to move the city ahead.? In the race for three council seats, incumbents Darrin Darga and Gary Nowak were retained, but Patrick Lamb was edged out after serving four years on council. In his first attempt at getting voted onto council, Presque Isle Electric and Gas Co-operative chief financial officer Tom Sobeck was the top vote-getter by more than 100 votes. Sobeck had 665 votes and was followed by Nowak with 537. Lamb was a close third with 512, while Robert Starnes III finished a distant fourth with 95 votes.
?I FEEL FORTUNATE enough that people were confident enough in me to put me in that seat,? Sobeck said Tuesday when reached on the phone. ?I want to thank the voters for having confidence in me,? said Nowak. ?I look forward to working with the rest of council.?
Regarding his return in January he added, ?I try to vote the way people would want me to. I don?t think of my personal agenda; I think about what the people want because they are the ones that elected me and I?m very happy to have another four years.? Sobeck and Nowak will begin new four-year terms after the first of the year. Darga was the clear favorite to finish the final t
?WHAT I?M most excited about is the voter turnout,? said Darga. ?I think it is great to see the people of Rogers City getting involved in their local government.? ?On a personal note, I am really happy with the results. I?m really looking forward to the next two years. I think we are at a real exciting time for Rogers City. It couldn?t be any more exciting for me to help play a role in all of the things we have coming up in the next couple of years.?
Darga was appointed to council back in June. There were 2,231 registered voters in Rogers City, and according to city clerk Theresa Heinzel, about 45 percent of them voted in Tuesday?s election. The results are unofficial until certified by the county board of canvassers.