Looking for Great Leaders

Filings for office for City Council open on August 26 and remain open until 5:00 pm on September 9th. There are two council seats and the mayor seat open. These all carry 4 year terms. The filing fee is $2. Applicants must be a resident of the city for the past 30 days and be at least 21 years old upon assuming office.

Application is simple; just fill out a form for candidacy. Upon filing at city hall for candidacy you will be given a good deal of information. The packet includes among other things a Campaign Manual; financial reporting forms; two chapters from the League of Minnesota Handbook discussing council structure and role and Form and Structure of the city; a map; city and MnDOT sign information; and other city specific items.

The State of Minnesota through the Secretary of State will offer a new service on the web providing for an official listing of candidates that have filed for an office. This will be updated daily. Anyone interested in seeing who has filed can get the information online at www.sos.state.mm.us . These listings will be under municipal election searches and by looking for Becker you can look up either Candidate at Large or Mayor filings.

The election is held on November 4th, 2008 from 7:00 am to 8:00 pm. Pre-registration is encouraged however you can also register the day of the election. A valid picture ID is needed which shows a street address to verify residency. You can also bring a neighbor or someone that can vouch that’s a city resident to verify residency. One issue that comes up each year is where do you live? Becker is a community of people that live in a number of different jurisdictions. If you live in Becker Township your polling place is the Town Hall on Hancock Street. As a city resident your polling place is City Hall at 12060 Sherburne Avenue.

Pre-registration can be accomplished in a number of different ways. City and county offices will have registration cards available. If you call the county of residence they will mail out a card to you. When renewing your driver’s license you can also be registered. All mailed registrations must be received by your county of residence by October 14 to be placed on the registration role for voting.

Participating in the election process either as a candidate or a voter is one of the most important freedoms we have. Please exercise that freedom and get out and vote.