School board race gains contenders

With the upcoming end of the legislative session threatening to make politics boring, the Havre Public Schools Elementary District Board of Trustees has three seats up for election on May 3.

Following last week's deadline, the race is now being run by four candidates: Curtis Smeby, Darlene Bricker, Cindy Erickson and Curt Curtis.

Curtis, the one newcomer, is a local minister at the Havre Assembly of God Church in Highland Park.

Smeby and Bricker were elected to their first terms in the 2008 school board elections.

Both of the trustees had intended to run again since the beginning of the nominee process.

They were already gathering signatures at the last school board meeting on March 8.

At that time, Erickson said that she had not decided whether or not to run again.

She was appointed to the board in 2009, to complete a term for Les Odegard who was elected with Smeby and Bricker, but left mid-term due to a conflict of interest after his wife became the principal at Highland Park Early Primary School.

Erickson was then elected in the following election.

While she was uncdecided about whether to run for the position again, Curtis applied.