WILMINGTON — Brenda K. Woods and incumbent Kerry Steed won their GOP Primary races Tuesday for Clinton County commissioner seats in unofficial results.
Steed will face another challenger in the fall general election, Dean Feldmeyer running as a Democrat.
Woods defeated Mike McCarty, who finished second, by 2,695 to 2,210 (31.8 percent to 26.1 percent).
Late Tuesday night, Woods said she is looking forward to serving the citizens of the county “with hard work and dedication to the position.”
She thanked the voters for electing her as the next county commissioner, and she also complimented the other four candidates by name “on running a wonderful campaign.”
Working hard on the campaign and going door to door to see as many residents as possible and hearing what they had to say, she believes, helped produce the winning results at the ballot box.
In a field of five, Woods, 49, of Wayne Township in east-central Clinton County, during her campaign stressed her background of working in three levels of local government in the county — county, city, and township.
In a candidate’s profile, Woods described the kind of commissioner she would like to be.
“I would be a full-time, fiscally conservative commissioner that is accountable to the taxpayers of our county. I will work hard not only for the citizens of our county but most important the backbone, the senior citizens and those residents who have helped to make our county what it is today.
“The townships, villages and city play a vital role in the future of our success through teamwork,” she continued. “Additionally, I want to create a vision for economic growth while maintaining our excellent quality of life.”
In that same question-and-answer profile, Woods responded to an inquiry about what should be done with the millions of dollars the county expects to receive from the sale of the formerly county-owned Clinton Memorial Hospital.
“The county is fully aware of the amount of money it will receive from the sale of the hospital; now is the time to make a comprehensive plan,” she stated. “Meeting with the citizens through town meetings, we can begin to develop ideas of what should be done with the monies.
“The majority can be invested, while spending the interest earned on projects meeting the needs of the county as applied. Then along with the applicant raising matching dollars to those being distributed, create a public and private partnership that creates a lasting impact,” wrote Woods.
Business owner Mike McCarty, 44, of Clarksville, placed in the second spot behind Woods in the race for the seat Clinton County Commissioner Mike Curry is vacating at year’s end.
Rounding out the field of candidates for the open seat were Clinton County Auditor Terry Habermehl, Clinton County Leadership Institute Executive Director Scott Holmer, and retired school principal and U.S. Marine Corps veteran Greg Grove.
Incumbent Clinton County Commissioner Kerry Steed, with 4,393 votes, won his party’s nomination against James G. “Jim” Fife, who had 3,949 votes.
“Running a successful campaign is definitely a family effort,” Steed said. “Valerie and I will never be able to adequately thank those in this community for their unwavering trust and support. With your help, we can now focus on winning the general election in the fall, and I can get back to serving this community as your commissioner.”
Fife congratulated Steed and thanked his family and supporters.
“The most important thing of this race is that it be a positive future for Clinton County,” Fife said. “That’s the bigger – what’s good for Clinton County.
“I was thankful for the opportunity to run for Clinton County commissioner,” Fife continued.
Reach the News Journal newsroom at 937-382-2574, ext. 4119 or on Twitter @WilmingtonNews.
