Nathan Colombo, Dawn Roberts and Brian Stanfield appear to be joining Mayor Carolin Harvey, councilmembers Adam Loos, Clare Killman and Nancy Maxwell on the Carbondale City Council – pending an official election certification.
As of Wednesday, April 2, just one day after the election, 4,285 votes had been counted. Of those counted votes, Colombo had earned 780, Roberts 917 and Stanfield 748.
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Lee Fronabarger fell just short at 666 votes, while Jason Endicott followed behind with 547. Write-in candidates LaCaje Hill and Ginger Rye-Sanders also came up short, with Hill accumulating 307 votes and Rye-Sanders grabbing 320.
The election is not technically over and has yet to be officially certified. According to the Jackson County election results, while all in-person votes have been counted from each precinct, mail-in votes are still coming in.
Jackson County Clerk Frank Byrd told the Daily Egyptian that his office has 15 days to finalize the tally.
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While speculative, it is unlikely that the mail-in ballots change the results within the next 15 days. The candidates currently in the lead, Colombo, Roberts and Stanfield, have all claimed victory.
Although this is his first victory, this was not Colombo’s first attempt at elected office; he notably ran for Carbondale mayor in 2019, narrowly losing to former Mayor Mike Henry after campaigning for a congressional seat the year before.
“I’ve been running for office for six years, and it’s nice to finally accomplish the end goal of getting elected,” Colombo said.
Excited to be taking a seat alongside Stanfield and Roberts, Colombo said he is looking forward to collaborating with the new City Council.
“I’m thrilled. I have a good, personal and professional working relationship with the majority of the folks that are on council or elected,” Colombo said. “The one person that I do not yet have a deeper relationship with, Brian Stanfield, I’m really looking forward to building a relationship.”
Colombo is active both in the Carbondale community and on social media. His values are built from his passion for public service and his commitment to his community – a place he can make the most difference, he said.
“I’ve watched the numbers come in for the past several years and have a pretty good idea of how this shakes out,” Colombo said Tuesday night as results came in. “I mean, the numbers are where they are. The outcome is going to land at Dawn, Nathan and Brian as the folks elected in this contest.”
Stanfield said he plans to hit the ground running in the coming weeks, setting his sights on the upcoming public interest meetings concerning rental housing in Carbondale.
“We’ve worked long and hard,” Stanfield said Tuesday night. “I think that this is the right combination of people.”
During his campaign, Stanfield highlighted housing and homelessness as two issues that could be solved together by utilizing the expertise available and the research being done by SIU students and faculty. By utilizing them, Stanfield said, the city would give Salukis a reason to stay in Carbondale and contribute to the community.
Stanfield is an SIU alumnus from Iowa who fell in love with Carbondale during his time as a graduate student in the late ‘90s. He is currently a philosophy professor at John A. Logan College with a five-star rating on Rate My Professor.
Roberts said she is looking forward to working with Stanfield and Colombo in bringing different strengths to the table.
“I think we’ll balance each other well on council,” Roberts said. “There’s real potential to do some good.”
Roberts is a Carbondale native whose family roots run deep within the city. A graduate of Carbondale Community High School and SIU, Roberts will now hold office while she simultaneously pursues a PhD in population health.
“This campaign came together thanks to a lot of hard work and a great team,” Roberts said. “Right now, I’m feeling a mix of relief, gratitude and responsibility. It has been a lot of long days and door-knocking, but I’ve really enjoyed the conversations I’ve had with folks – that really was one of the best parts of this experience.”
Roberts has worked in the technology sector for most of her life, but made a pivot to a career more focused on humanitarian science after her time working at the Center for Rural Health and Social Service Development.
The newly elected council members will take their seats at the first City Council meeting in May.
“Carbondale changes people that go on to change the world,” Colombo said. “I think what we do in Carbondale has a broader impact, on the world at large, even in its tiny little way, and I intend to act accordingly and respect the station that’s been afforded to me.”
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