Incumbent Tim Sumner of Red Lake won his third term as District 4 representative on the Beltrami County Board of Commissioners, defeating challenger Danny Anderson of Blackduck. The final tally posted at 4:26 a.m. on Wednesday had Sumner with 2,588 votes to Anderson's 1,270.
Voting totals were late in coming. Only one of the district's 26 precincts reported its votes as of 2:30 a.m. Wednesday.
Sumner won by big margins in the Red Lake area. He won by 343 votes in Ponemah, 711 votes at Red Lake Agency, 529 in Redby and 348 at Little Rock.
Anderson held advantages in Blackduck (132-128), Hines Township (243-106), Kelliher (78-33), Kelliher Township (63-14) Hornet Township (73-25), Cormant Township (74-16) and Shooks Township (90-5).
“It’s really hard to pinpoint one main issue for the county,” Sumner said. “The budget is always a topic of concern. Same with the county jail and county roads. But one thing that I’ve learned being a commissioner is some of the concerns that my constituents have aren’t always the same as the county. And people believe that their taxes are going up, and they’re kind of wondering why.”
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Anderson, who grew up in Browerville, Minn., agreed that the main issue facing the county is its annual budget, and said he would like to bring a new approach to the commission.
“Just getting some fresh new ideas in, and representation for everybody,” Anderson said. “I want to get involved and create some change instead of just sitting around and talking about it.”
Sumner, 36, is case manager, for the Red Lake Homeless Shelter.
Anderson, 34, works in automotive services.
