Politics & Government

Filing Ends For Mehlville School and Fire Boards

Several candidates are running for only a few positions.

Five people waited in the lobby of the to see if any last-minute candidates were going to walk in and put their name on the already nine-person ballot.

Minutes ticked by until finally, Sharon Peiffer locked the door.

Nine people filed for the three open school board positions currently occupied by Erin Weber and Drew Frauenhoffer and the vacated position of Karl Frank Jr.

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Here are the candidates in the order in which they filed:

  • Marea Kluth-Hoppe
  • John E. Roland Jr.
  • Deb Langland
  • Elaine Powers
  • Rich Franz
  • Michael E. Doyel
  • Mark Stoner
  • Franchesca Gindler
  • David A. Wessel

Kluth-Hoppe is no stranger to the board. She served from 2002 until 2005 but did not get elected for another term. Langland has also previously run for the board. 

Find out what's happening in Mehlville-Oakvillewith free, real-time updates from Patch.

"Historically speaking, I've noticed we get a bunch of people that file on the first day, and then some on the last. Not very many come in between," said Sharon Peiffer with the district. Applicants file with Peiffer in the superintendent's office.

Peiffer’s prediction was only a little off. Five people filed the first day, one filed on Jan. 12, two on Jan. 14 and only one on the last day.

Applicants must be a United States citizen and a resident taxpayer in the Mehlville School District. They must have lived in Missouri for a minimum of one year preceding the election and be 24 years of age according to the St. Louis County website.

As for the Mehlville Fire Protection District, four candidates filed for current chairman Aaron Hilmer’s position, including Hilmer himself. 

The other candidates were Mike Klund, R.L. Praprotnik and *Keith Floyd.

Hilmer has held the position since his election in April 2005, running with a promise to lower taxes for district residents. As chairman, he pushed a ballot to lower taxes while adding new fire houses, trucks and ambulances. 

However, his critics, namely the Local 1889 firefighters' union, question Hilmer's dedication to the firefighters. They've filed more than 20 different lawsuits and complaints against the board. 

Candidates must be more than 25 years old and a voter of the district one year prior to the election.

Patch will be contacting all candidates running and featuring biographies and platforms on each candidate in the order in which they filed. These features will run weekly leading up to the election. 

What issues do you think the school and fire board candidates should focus on? Submit a and we'll share your thoughts with the community. 

*Editor's note: Keith Floyd withdrew his candidacy for the open MFPD board of directors position on Feb. 14. He will no longer be running in April's election. 


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