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Sweeney, Qunell, Norton earn seats on Council

HEIDI DESCH | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 6 years, 1 month AGO
by HEIDI DESCH
Heidi Desch is features editor and covers Flathead County for the Daily Inter Lake. She previously served as managing editor of the Whitefish Pilot, spending 10 years at the newspaper and earning honors as best weekly newspaper in Montana. She was a reporter for the Hungry Horse News and has served as interim editor for The Western News and Bigfork Eagle. She is a graduate of the University of Montana. She can be reached at [email protected] or 406-758-4421. | November 6, 2019 5:24 AM

Voters on Tuesday selected Frank Sweeney, Steve Qunell and Rebecca Norton to spots on City Council.

Mayor John Muhlfeld was also elected to serve a third term after running unopposed in the election. He earned 1,227 votes.

It was a five-way race for Council with the top three vote-getters earning seats. Ben Davis and Harry “Hap” Peters were unsuccessful in their bid for spots on Council.

Incumbent Sweeney earned the top number of votes at 929, followed by Qunell at 883. Norton squeaked out a win earning 793 votes, just 10 votes ahead of Davis.

Peters earned 489 votes.

Sweeney was the only incumbent seeking re-election. In 2009, Sweeney, an attorney, was appointed to fill an empty seat on Council and was later elected to Council in 2011, serving ever since.

Qunell, who is a teacher, is the chairman of the city Planning Board and has served on other city committees.

Norton has served on the city Planning Board and several city committees. She owns Handworks clinic and is certified hand and occupational therapist.

Muhlfeld was appointed in 2006 to serve a two-year vacancy position on City Council, and subsequently served six years on City Council. He successfully ran for mayor in 2011 and 2015. He is a hydrologist and principal with River Design Group, Inc., a water resources engineering firm.

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