Ankeny Municipal Election: Expect Low Turnout

ANKENY, IA — Uncontested municipal races are the norm in many metro area communities this fall and Ankeny is no exception. A mayor’s race and two at-large city council seats are on the ballot.

Mayoral challenger Denny Presnall's name will appear on the ballot but he announced he was dropping out of the race due to health reasons. That leaves incumbent Mayor Gary Lorenz without opposition.

Polk County election officials said there hasn't been an instance previously in which someone who dropped from a race after ballots were printed had actually won the seat, but if that were to happen, Presnall could choose to decline the position. The withdrawal deadline to have a name excluded from the ballot was Sept. 5, but Presnall did not decide to withdraw from the race until mid-October.

Two at-large city council seats also are on the Ankeny ballot. Incumbent Kerry Walter-Ashby, completing her first term, is seeking to retain her seat and Kelly Whiting, vice chairwoman of the Ankeny Planning and Zoning Commission, is running for an open seat. Whiting was appointed to the zoning commission in 2015 and the term ends in 2020, so if she is elected to the city council, she will vacate the commission position.

Without challengers, the turnout at polling sites is likely to be low on Tuesday. In 2015, when three candidates ran for the same number of Ankeny council seats, 476 was the highest vote total — which would average just over 30 votes per precinct.

Polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday. Here are the Ankeny voting sites, by precinct:

• Ankeny 1: Ankeny First United Methodist Church Christian Life Center, 710 N.E. 36th St.
• Ankeny 2: Resurrection Lutheran Church, 914 N.W. Ash Drive
• Ankeny 3, 4: Our Lady's Immaculate Heart Church, 510 E. First St.
• Ankeny 5: Cornerstone Baptist Church, 701 E. First St.
• Ankeny 6: Ankeny United Church of Christ, 602 S.E. Delaware Ave.
• Ankeny 7: First Family Church, 317 S.E. Magazine Road
• Ankeny 8, 9: Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, 517 S.W. Des Moines St.
• Ankeny 10: Lakeside Center, 400 N.W. Lakeshore Drive
• Ankeny 11, 12: Ankeny Evangelical Free Church, 118 N.W. Linden St.
• Ankeny 13, 14: Ankeny Baptist Church, 2842 S.W. Third St. (Includes Crocker 2 voters in Ankeny)
• Ankeny 15: Real Life Church, 2302 S.W. Third St.

For information about the election or voting procedures, call the Polk County Election Office at 515-286-3247.

Election 2017: Patch graphic