Petoskey residents will choose delegates at ward conventions. Here's how that works.
PETOSKEY — Residents will come together on Monday night for the annual ward conventions, where they choose 15 delegates and five alternates to attend the city convention on Wednesday.
According to Petoskey City Code, the ward conventions must take place on the second Monday in July, with the citywide convention taking place that Wednesday. Those meetings help set the lineup of candidates for city elections in November.
Petoskey has four wards, or precincts. The conventions for each ward take place at the same time, at 8 p.m. on Monday, July 11.
Ward one will take place at Petoskey Middle School cafeteria, 801 Northmen Dr.
Ward two will take place at Ottawa Elementary cafeteria/gym, 871 Kalamazoo Ave.
Ward three will take place at Lincoln Elementary gym/cafeteria, 616 Connable Ave.
Ward four will take place at Sheridan Elementary cafeteria, 1415 Howard St.
The city convention will take place at the Emmet County Fairgrounds Community Center, 1129 Charlevoix Ave., at 8 p.m. on Wednesday, July 13.
The conventions are open to the public and offer residents the opportunity to nominate nonpartisan candidates to run for office. The upcoming November election will be the first election with three-year terms for council members and two-year terms for the mayor, which Petoskey residents voted to extend last year.
Anyone may attend the conventions, but only voters registered in that ward are able to vote for delegates.
Current councilors will be present to discuss issues with residents.
Petoskey is one of the few municipalities in the state that still uses the convention system for local elections. The setup was once more common, but was abandoned in other areas in favor of a petition system.
Contact reporter Tess Ware at tware@petoskeynews.com. Follow her on Twitter, @Tess_Petoskey
This article originally appeared on The Petoskey News-Review: Residents to choose delegates for ward, city conventions this week
