INDEPENDENCE TWP. — Residents in the City of Clarkston and Independence Township still have time to file nominating petitions if they would like to run for public office in the primary and general elections.
There are seats up for election on the Independence Township Board of Trustees and the Clarkston City Council.
Some positions are partisan while others are nonpartisan. See each section below for specific filing instructions. Partisan candidates will appear on the Aug. 6 Primary Election ballot and the Nov. 5 General Election ballot. Nonpartisan candidates will appear on the general election ballot only.
Independence Township Board of Trustees
All seven seats on the Independence Township Board of Trustees are up for election, which includes supervisor, clerk, treasurer and four trustee seats. Terms are for four years.
Supervisor Jose Aliaga will seek a second term.
Resident Brian Milosch filed to run for supervisor in February but withdrew his filing in late March.
Treasurer Paul Brown has indicated that he will not seek reelection, however, residents Erik Kline and Mark Petterson have filed to run for treasurer.
Clerk Cari Neubeck is also up for reelection and will seek another term. Resident Marianne Hallett has also filed to run for clerk.
So far, there have been no filings to fill the four open trustee positions.
The township board election is a partisan election so candidates will be placed on the Aug. 6 Primary Election and the Nov. 5 General Election ballots.
A candidate must be at least 18 years of age, a resident of the township for at least 30 days and a qualified elector of the township by the filing deadline. To appear on the ballot, partisan candidates must file nominating petitions containing a sufficient number of signatures and an affidavit of identity with the township clerk’s office by 4 p.m. April 23.
Candidates can pay a $100 fee in lieu of file nominating petitions.
Any candidate who wishes to withdraw their name from the ballot must do so by 4 p.m. April 26.
Forms are available at the Independence Township Clerk’s Office, 6483 Waldon Center Dr.
City Council
There are four seats up for election on the seven-member Clarkston City Council, including one mayoral seat and three council member positions. All positions are two-year terms.
The Clarkston City Council is nonpartisan so candidates will be placed on the Nov. 5 General Election ballot.
Candidates can pick up filing packets at Clarkston City Hall, 375 Depot Rd., from the clerk’s office and must file an affidavit of identity and nominating petitions by 4 p.m. on July 23.
Other offices:
Incumbent state Rep. Mike Harris (R-Waterford) is up for reelection this year and is expected to seek reelection in November.
In the Oakland County Board of Commissioners District 8 race, incumbent Commissioner Karen Joliat (R-Waterford) has filed and will seek reelection.
Anyone who wants information on running for Oakland County offices or state representative can visit the Oakland County Election Division website at www.oakgov.com under the Clerk/Register of Deeds tab.