A familiar face is returning to the Marshall County Council Monday. Steve Harper was chosen to fill the remainder of Judy Stone’s term, during a Republican Party caucus Friday.
He told precinct committee members that his previous experience on the council will be useful at a time when the county faces reduced income tax revenues due to COVID-19 while also adding a court to its judicial system. “We’re going to need somebody on the council that has done the budgeting process before and is going to know how to be able to manipulate those funds and know which funds can be used and which funds can’t be,” he said.
Harper cited some successes during his term on the council, including the Metronet, jail bond refinancing, and a PASER study that paved the way for Community Crossings funding and the improvement of Marshall County’s roads. He says Stone reached out personally to ask if he would be interested in filling her District 4 seat.
Harper was chosen Friday over longtime insurance agency owner Kip Cook. Cook noted that while he hasn’t held a county-level office before, he’s had a long history with the Republican Party and was elected as a state convention delegate in 1980.
Adam Faulstich had also filed paperwork for Friday’s caucus but withdrew minutes before it began. Instead, he voted as one of the precinct committeemen.
Harper took the oath of office right after the caucus ended. He’s expected to join the council for Monday morning’s meeting. Harper says he does plan to seek reelection when the current term ends in 2022.
