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http:// --> Weather Forecast Ashland, Oregon HOME Archive Backpage Business Classifieds Columnists Contact Us Forum Hot Topics Local Issues Most Viewed Nation & World Obituaries Online Games Opinion/Editorial O-Zone Photo Galleries Place an Ad Rate Card Readers Polls Revels Real Estate Guide Shakespeare Special Sections Sports Subscribe Valley & State Video Weather Etcetera --> Movie Preview --> Hottest Galleries: November 5, 2008 Stromberg likely next mayor By Julie French Ashland Daily Tidings Ashland Mayor John Stromberg John Stromberg held his 10-point margin over the field of seven mayoral candidates overnight, making him the likely next mayor of Ashland with 59.14 percent of the votes counted, according to the Jackson County elections office. Stromberg captured 3,247 votes, 40.78 percent of the vote, according to county updates just after 1:30 a.m. this morning. George Kramer had the second-strongest showing, at 29.78 percent, or 2,371 votes. Stromberg, current chair of the Planning Commission, said this morning he was "energized, excited and impressed with the community," even as he waited until all votes were counted to celebrate victory. "My life experience says you don't act prematurely on something like this," he said. "It's important we wait until they get the votes counted, but I think it's looking good." A victory would be the result of a collaboration of many individual efforts and community involvement, and he wants that movement to continue if he is elected, he said. "That's what we're looking for in Ashland, that kind of energy and unlocking that intelligence and creativity." Stromberg will replace Mayor John Morrison when he is sworn in at the first City Council meeting in January. Morrison chose not to seek re-election. Kramer accepted his defeat, saying it would take "a pretty amazing statistical flip" for him to win. "I would expect that John has won, and I am impressed that he got 40 percent," he said. "In a seven-person race, that is quite a testament." Kramer, a historic preservationist, said he will continue to serve the city as he has for the past 25 years. He served on the Ashland Historic Commission in the 1980s and is the current chairman of the Oregon Heritage Commission. "Although this is a disappointing loss, it's certainly not going to be the end of my commitment to Ashland," he said. Art Bullock, who has filed numerous lawsuits against the city and only registered to vote the day before filing for mayor, came in third, with 11.12 percent of the vote. He could not be reached for comment. Steve Hauck, a former city councilor, garnered 7.86 percent of the vote, the result of an election that essentially settled into a two-man race, he said. "At the end I didn't expect to win, but I thought I'd do better than I did," he said. Hauck just began a second three-year term on the Housing Commission, which will continue to be a top priority of his, he said, and he hopes to work with the next mayor to implement the neighborhood associations that were central to his platform. Jenifer Carr and Tom Frantz both claimed slightly more than 4 percent of the vote. Frantz congratulated Stromberg for being a good listener and a team player and said he hoped to continue his involvement in Ashland politics. "I'll appear again," he said. "I haven't been in the limelight for a while, but I'll be back." Carr expressed disappointment over the direction of the city. "I just see Ashland not going anywhere in the near future," she said. "I think we're going to be at a status quo kind of place, which I think is too bad." She will continue to push for the youth conservation corps that she proposed in her campaign and suggest City Hall hire more seniors to do clerical work, she said. Updated election results are available on Jackson County's Web site, at www.co.jackson.or.us . Staff writer Julie French can be reached at 482-3456 ext. 227 or [email protected] . Advertisement: Advertisement: Partners: Security Cameras & Systems Advertisement: Copyright © 2008 Ashland Daily Tidings and Ottaway Newspapers. All Rights Reserved. Southern Oregon Media Group: Mail Tribune.com – Ashland Daily Tidings – Medford Nickel Del.icio.us