A special election will be held this summer to fill the vacancy on the Washington City Council.

The vacancy was created when Ward 1 council member Kerry Janecek stepped down at the end of April. Four people have already expressed interest in the seat. The council had the option to either appoint someone to fill the rest of the term or to hold a special election, to which council member Brendan DeLong said, “I’m kind of with Elaine (Moore), I was kind of leaning more towards an appointment, I didn’t really like the idea of spending money on an election and the time-frame, and everything. But now that there’s four people interested, I think [an election] would probably be the correct way to go.” The election cost is estimated between $1,800 and $2,500.

Mayor Jaron Rosien explained that those interested in being a candidate must now get 25 signatures from voters and submit the form for official nomination to be on the ballot. The council term expires December of 2019. The exact date for the special election has yet to be set; it could be held as soon as June 19th, but the Washington County Auditor’s Office tells KCII News it will likely be in July.