Two filed for vacant Ward 1 seat, filing open through Feb. 14

Two have filed so far in the special election to fill the Ward 1 seat on the Bemidji City Council.

This was the now at-large council member Audrey Thayer’s seat before she advanced to her new position after last fall’s election cycle.

Gwenia Fiskevold Gould. Submitted.

Gwenia Fiskevold Gould, who announced her intention to run last week, is one of the candidates who have filed, as is current Ward 3 Council Member Ron Johnson.

After redistricting last spring, Johnson’s home address moved from Ward 3 into Ward 1, but the city charter allows Johnson to continue his term through the end of 2024.

Filing will close at 5 p.m. on Feb. 14 and is open to eligible Ward 1 residents. The term would be effective through the end of 2024.

Ron Johnson

More information is available on the City’s website and at City Hall.

The initial special election will be in April, and if more than two candidates file and no one wins more than 50 percent of the vote, a secondary election will be held in August.


Larissa Donovan is the News Director for the stations of Paul Bunyan Broadcasting and has been, almost without interruption, since Election Day 2016. She covers all the beats in north-central Minnesota, such as local government, crime, education, environment and social issues. She studied communications at Bemidji State University. You can follow along with Larissa's live tweets of meetings and events on Twitter!


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