Candidate filing period opens today for 2026 Primary Election cycle

​YORK – Today, Monday, Jan. 5, is the first day of the filing period for candidates who wish to go through the 2026 Primary Election cycle.

​Incumbents must file by Feb. 17 and non-incumbents must file by March 2.
The following are local races which will be considered in the 2026 election cycle:

• Commissioner District 1, which is now held by Daniel Grotz
• Commissioner District 3, which is now held by Andy Bowman
• Commissioner District 4, which is now held by Randy Obermier
• County Assessor, which is now held by Kurt Bulgrin
• County Attorney, which is now held by Gary Olson
• County Clerk, which is now held by Mary Melby
• County Clerk of the District Court, which is now held by Sharilyn Steube
• County Public Defender, which is now held by David Michel
• County Surveyor, which is now held by Rex Heiden
• County Sheriff, which is now held by Paul Vrbka
• County Treasurer, which is now held by Megan Williams
• Three seats on the Heartland School Board, which are now held by Jennifer Hiebner, Ryan Goertzen and Tammy Ott
• Three seats on the McCool School Board, which are now held by Alysia Clark, Krystal Rasmussen and Matt Clark
• Three seats on the York School Board, which are now held by Alex Hildebrand, Alison North and Pepper Papineau
• Three seats on the Henderson City Council, which are now held by Brian Hiebner, Jordan Hiebner and Teri Pollet
• Four seats on the York City Council, which are now held by Jeff Pieper, Scott Van Esch, Stephen Postier and Doreen Lopez
• Two seats on the village board for Bradshaw, which are now held by LJ McCormick and Terrence Werth
• Two seats on the village board for Gresham, which are now held by Conner Luettel and Kim Sheehan
• Two seats on the village board for Thayer, which are now held by Dustin Drake and Daryl Foutz
• Two seats on the village board for Waco, which are now held by Rick Pfeifer and Don Copeland

It should be noted that village board races will not appear on the Primary ballot, as they automatically advance to the general election and candidates can wait to file until later in the year (incumbents by July 15 and non-incumbents by Aug. 3). It is also noted by the county clerk’s office how some villages have not yet submitted their election certifications (which lists in the board members up for election) because the deadline for them to do so isn’t until June 15. Again, this only pertains to the village board positions.
For anyone interested in filing for federal and state-level offices must do so with the Nebraska Secretary of State’s office in Lincoln.
All those interested in running for local offices can file their candidacies with the clerk/election offices which are located on the main floor of the York County Courthouse.