By Rod Rose/The Lebanon Reporter
Lebanon — At least two caucuses will be held by county Republican officials to choose successors to former Boone County Commissioner Harold “Huck” Lewis and County Councilman Bill Soards.
Lewis was elected mayor of Lebanon Saturday at a caucus of the city’s 14 Republican Party precinct chairmen. He was sworn into office Tuesday, after resigning as Third District Commissioner. Lewis was elected to that position in 2004 with 73 percent of the more-than-20,000 votes cast; he was re-elected in 2008 with 65.4 percent of 25,000 votes.
Soards, the Boone County Councilman from District One, resigned effective June 1, after being named president of AT&T;’s Colorado operations. He was elected in 2006, with 70 percent of 4,834 votes.
State law stipulates successors to elected officials who leave office be chosen by a caucus of their party.
All 49 precinct committee chairs will vote on a District Three Commissioner, because the office is on a county-wide ballot, said Boone County Clerk Penny Bogan.
Residency requirements mandate the candidate live in Center, Harrison, Perry or Worth townships, Bogan said.
Residents of Ulen, however, are ineligible, because the tiny town, which comprises Center Precinct 15 and is surrounded by Lebanon, is in Commissioner District Two.
County Council District One includes the 18 precincts in Eagle Township. Only GOP precinct chairs in those precincts will vote for Soards’ successor.
Candidates for that office may live in the township, including Zionsville.
Boone County Republican Party Chairwoman Debbie Ottinger said Tuesday she hoped to have caucus dates chosen by the end of the week.
“A declaration of candidacy” must be filed 72 hours before the caucus deadline.
Candidates for either the commissioner or council vacancy should send a letter of interest to Ottinger at 2116 Garfield St., Lebanon, IN 46052.
