Ankeny Election: Lorenz, Walter-Ashby Re-elected; Whiting Elected

ANKENY, IA — Ankeny voters have a new City Council member with the election of Kelly Whiting Tuesday night. Whiting was running for one of two seats and was chosen along with incumbent Kerry Walter-Ashby to serve on the council. Mayor Gary Lorenz also won re-election.

Lorenz had one challenger early in the race when former school board member Dennis Presnall announced he was running. But Presnall withdrew in mid-October after announcing he needed to focus on a health issue.

Presnall's name was on the ballot since his withdrawal was not announced until after the official deadline. He received about 22 percent of the vote total, according to unofficial results from the Polk County Election Office. Lorenz, who received nearly 76 percent of the vote total, had 1,217 votes to Presnall's 357.

Whiting is currently vice chairwoman of the Ankeny Planning and Zoning Commission, to which she was appointed in 2015. She was running for an open council seat and received 1,013 votes.

Walter-Ashby, a first-term council member, received 1,280 votes.

Election 2017: Patch graphic