Although much remains to be decided before the Nov. 4 General Election, at least one thing is clear - the Leelanau County Board of Commissioners will have a new chairman next year.

The board will also have a new commissioner from District No. 6 – the district currently represented by Robert L. Hawley of Glen Arbor who decided this week that he will not run for a fifth two-year term. For the past six years of his eight years on the county board, Hawley has been elected to serve as chairman by his fellow commissioners .

“I’d been on the fence about running again for a while,” Hawley said Wednesday morning. The filing deadline to run for party nominations in the Aug. 5 Primary Election was Tuesday at 4 p.m.

“Eight years has been long enough for me,” Hawley said, “and many of the biggest issues we’ve faced during my time on the board are now out of the way.”

As examples, he cited completion of the new Government Center in Suttons Bay Township, the sale of the Maple Valley Nursing Home property and acquisition of the Veronica Valley golf course property for use as a county park.

“I hope to stay involved in the county’s efforts to improve water quality, and I will remain active in (Glen Arbor) township government,” Hawley added. He currently serves as the township zoning administrator and as president of the private, non-profit Glen Arbor Township Fire and Rescue Association.

“I also said that I would not run for re-election if others would step up for the Republican nomination,” Hawley added, “and, indeed, others have.”

In a flurry of activity Tuesday at the county clerk’s office, three would-be Republican candidates for the District No. 6 county board seat filed nominating petitions. They are William J. Irwin, Richard P. Andersen and Dan Semple.

The winner of the three-way race for the Republican nomination in August will likely face Democrat David G. Marshall of Glen Arbor Township, who filed last month to run for his party’s nomination in August.

But the three Republicans vying for the District No. 6 commissioner’s seat are not the only new names added to the list of people running for county office over the past week.

There will be a new District No. 2 commissioner next year following the decision earlier this year of the incumbent, Republican Mark Walter of Elmwood Township, to run for his party’s nomination for sheriff, challenging the Republican incumbent Sheriff Mike Oltersdorf.

This week, two Republicans and a Democrat filed to run for Walter’s county board seat. They are Republicans James A. Schaub Sr. and Klaus D. Heinert – one of whom will likely face the lone Democratic candidate in November, Victor A. Walter.

Meanwhile, in District No. 1, Republican incumbent Jean Watkoski is being challenged by fellow Republican Jeff Howell of Elmwood Township.

Howell is currently serving as an Elmwood Township trustee. Speaking after a township board meeting Tuesday night, Howell accused Watkoski of pressing to have the road she resides on paved at a cost of $25,000 to the township and $25,000 to the county Road Commission.

“You’re forgetting what you’re there for,” Howell declared. “You are there to serve the people rather than feed from the trough.”

He also criticized Watkowski for supporting the purchase of Veronica Valley for use as a county park, the process leading up to construction of a new governmental center, and the location of the center in Suttons Bay Township.

“If I had been on the County Commission, I would not have voted for it,” he said.

Watkowski when reached at home started her reply with a chuckle.

“Maybe Jeff Howell doesn’t understand that the county Road Commission is separate from the County Board of Commissioners and that we don’t control the Road Commission or its budget,” Watkoski said. “It would probably be good for somebody running for a county board seat to understand that distinction.”

In District No. 3, the Republican incumbent county commissioner, Will Bunek of Suttons Bay Township, is now facing a challenge for his party’s nomination from former county commissioner Richard A. Schmuckal of Bingham Township, who filed his paperwork at the county clerk’s office on Friday.

In November, either Bunek or Schmuckal will likely face the lone Democratic nominee for the District No. 3 commissioner’s seat, Jackie Freeman of the Village of Suttons Bay.

The only other incumbent county commissioner facing a challenge is Republican Melinda C. Lautner of Solon Township, who will run unopposed for her party’s nomination in August but will face a challenge in November from the unopposed Democratic candidate, Traci J. Cruz of Kasson Township.

The only uncontested seats on the county board are currently held by Republicans running for re-election: District No. 4 commissioner Mary P. Tonneberger of Omena, and District No. 5 commissioner David W. “Chauncey” Shiflett.

Two other county office holders are facing challenges, however.

This week, Susan E. Boyd filed for the Democratic nomination for Leelanau County Register of Deeds. In November, she will challenge the Republican incumbent Register of Deeds, Sue C. Stoffel.

The county’s longtime incumbent Republican treasurer ,Vicki A. Kilway, will face a challenge for her party’s nomination for treasurer in August from Chelly M. Roush who works as chief deputy accountant under county clerk Michelle L. Crocker.
Crocker, a Republican, is running unopposed for re-election, as is Republican prosecutor Joseph T. Hubbell. In addition, Republican drain commissioner Steven R. Christensen and Republican road commissioner John J. Popa are both running unopposed for re-election.