MOKANE, Mo. -- It doesn't happen often, but in Mokane it happened twice.
Two write-in candidates have officially won the April 3 municipal election over other names listed on the ballot, with Peggy Nalls elected mayor and Lori Weakland elected alderman.
The small city of 187 people turned out in a big way, with almost half of Mokane's 125 registered voters casting a ballot last Tuesday, according to results from the Callaway County Clerk's office. The final count gave Nalls 23 votes and Weakland 26 votes, winning them the election.
Two others, Ray Jennings and Becky Davis, were elected to aldermen seats.
"We did it the old-fashioned way; we got out and talked to people," Nalls said after the election. "We went door-to-door. We got on the phone. We went to the store; we went to the bar; we went to where the people were. We put signs up and said, 'Here's what we have done and here's what we want to do with the city. We want to keep doing this, but we need your support, and it's not going to be easy because our names aren't going to be on the ballot."
The election comes after a year of turmoil for Mokane that involved multiple resignations of city leaders, at one point leaving the city with only one alderman, Jo Belmont, and no mayor. Belmont served as mayor pro-tem for about a month at the beginning of 2018, and she appointed Jennings and Davis to the positions to which they have now been elected.
Nalls - who was appointed early last year and resigned in December citing frustrations with the Board of Aldermen before it included Davis and Jennings - was reappointed in February. Weakland is the only new addition to city leadership, elected to Belmont's position.
The runner-up for mayor of Mokane, Danny Lamons, said he does not think those elected will be good for the city. Lamons also said he is concerned the city tried to tamper with his and two family members' registration to be on the ballot, although all candidates who registered appeared on the ballot. Lamons has lodged his complaints with the Missouri Attorney General's Office, which is reviewing them.
Lamons' complaints follow confusion over whether he and his family members had asked a previous city clerk to remove them from the ballot. Mokane city clerk Angie Niederschulte, did not take the office until late December and said she was given a letter by the previous clerk saying Lamons and his family members wanted to resign. Callaway County clerk Denise Hubbard said Niederschulte contacted her office on the issue to resolve the confusion. Hubbard said unless there was a written letter by a candidate to rescind their candidacy or through a court order, a name could not be taken off a ballot.
Before the election, Nalls and the Board of Aldermen focused largely on improving and fixing the town's aging water and sewer infrastructure. Now that the election is over, Nalls said the group has more planned for the city.
Nalls said the city wants to continue work to repair its water and sewer system. So far, Mokane has received one grant and is close to obtaining another, she added. Nalls said the city also is working to put together a team of residents to flush water lines.
Mokane is currently using equipment from the Missouri Department of Natural Resources to treat its water after the discovery of bacterial issues, and the city has had difficulties meeting guidelines for its sewer systems, according to DNR representatives.
Nalls said another goal for Mokane is to make itself more accessible to residents. She said a Facebook page or website have been discussed but plans include more public postings and sending flyers with the city's water and sewer invoices.
"We want to put something in place so that we can be responsive to the concerns of the city, so we get a good dialogue going with people even if they can't come to the board meeting," Nalls said.
The city also is trying to obtain a grant from the Community Development Block Grant Program, which would help fund demolition of abandoned buildings. If Mokane gets the grant, Nalls said, it would help raise property values and improve the look of the town.