Bloomington voters will cast their ballots for three (3) city council seats and four (4) school board seats this November. It is still early in the election cycle, but some candidates are already declaring.
Nathan Coulter, the incumbent in one of the two At-Large seats, has announced that he will be running for re-election. Coulter is the Legislative Assistant for State Senator Melissa Wiklund (DFL, Richfield).
We are aware that Paul King and Ric Oliva will challenge Coulter. Paul King is the principle at the James King Insurance agency and a fund-raiser for community causes. Ric Oliva has announced his candidacy. Oliva is a database administrator for Wings Credit Union, executive director of the Three Rivers Music Academy, and a former Bloomington School Board chair.
Jack Baloga is the incumbent city coucil member for Bloomington’s Ward 3. Baloga has not announced his intention to run for re-election. Kevin Heinen, a long-time Bloomington resident and 2015 candidate for a Bloomington At-Large seat, will run for the Ward 3 seat.
Patrick Martin is the incumbent city council member for Bloomington’s Ward 4. We are not aware that Martin has announced a decision on running again. We understand that Victor Rivas has committed to enter the Ward 4 race. We will be seeking more information on Rivas for future publication.
The School Board terms for Beth Beebe, Tom Bennett, Jim Sorum, and Dawn Steigauf complete at the end of this year. Beth Beebe plans to pursue a second term. We have not heard the plans of other members. Nor have we heard of other Bloomington residents who have made the commitment to run for a new four-year term.