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Three candidates line up to contest Telkwa byelection

Erik Jacobsen, Klaus Kraft and Dave Livesey have all filed their paperwork for vacant council seat
24030554_web1_TelkwaVillageSign
Telkwa Village Office sign. (Marisca Bakker photo)

Telkwans will have a choice to make Feb. 27.

As of Jan. 22, three candidates had submitted their paperwork to the Village of Telkwa office to run for councillor in an upcoming municipal byelection.

Erik Jacobsen, Klaus Kraft and Dave Livesey, all residents of the village, will vie for the chair vacated by Rick Fuerst when he stepped down in September citing work conflicts.

READ MORE: Another Telkwa Councillor calls it quits

Jacobsen is a retired landscaper and gardening columnist for this newspaper.

Kraft is a retired BC Hydro employee, who is still actively involved in his electricians union.

He said he was inspired to run because the last time Telkwa had a byelection after Matthew Monkman resigned there was only one candidate, who was acclaimed.

“I felt it was my civic duty to make sure there was an election at least,” he said, adding he felt a half-term is a good opportunity to ease into public service.

READ MORE: Telkwa business owner acclaimed to council

Livesey is a renovations contractor and drummer.

Like Kraft, he said he felt the village would be better served having an actual vote than an acclamation, adding that did not mean he thought the acclaimed councillor Derek Meerdink was doing a bad job, merely that a campaign is an opportunity for public dialogue.

He said he has had an interest in the adminstration of the village for some time and wants to be more involved.

The campaign officially starts Jan. 30.

The Smithers District Chamber of Commerce has tentatively scheduled a Zoom all-candidates forum for Thursday Feb. 11.



editor@interior-news.com

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Thom Barker

About the Author: Thom Barker

After graduating with a geology degree from Carleton University and taking a detour through the high tech business, Thom started his journalism career as a fact-checker for a magazine in Ottawa in 2002.
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