NEW PALESTINE — After the votes were cast and counted, newly elected New Palestine Town Council member Teri Reed was all smiles with a younger member of the family sitting tightly in her arms.
“We worked really hard for this, even going door to door,” Reed said, standing inside the Hancock County Annex Building. “I want our council to be a team so the community can trust us.”
Reed was the biggest vote-getter for the council during the general election Tuesday where five Republican candidates and two Independents were on the ballot with the top five vote getters earning the five open seats on the council.
The candidates were incumbent Bill Niemier, Republican, New Palestine Town Council at large; Robert (Rocky) Cooper, Republican, New Palestine Town Council at large; Ethan L. Maple, Republican, New Palestine Town Council at large; Chad Molinder, Republican, New Palestine Town Council at large; Reed, Republican, New Palestine Town Council at large; Adam Axthelm, Independent, New Palestine Town Council at large; and Ryan Hartley, Independent, New Palestine Town Council at large.
Reed secured 369 votes (18.76%), Molinder came in second with 307 votes (15.61%), Maple was third with 295 votes (15%), Niemier was fourth with 267 votes (13.57%) and Hartley came in fifth with 246 votes (12.51%) — one vote better than Axthelm, who came in sixth with 245 votes (12.46%). Cooper finished in seventh place with 238 votes (12.10%).
Reed noted she was thrilled to see things turn out the way they did and feels the voters picked a good group.
“It’s an honor and I’m very excited to be elected to serve,” she said. “I spend the day with all the guys and we’ve already started to bond.”
Molinder, a 19-year veteran of military service, went into the race highlighting his military experience, saying that kind of unique leadership gives him good skills. He also ran because he said he wanted to serve the residents in New Palestine, a place he loves and is raising his children in.
“The great part about the race is there were a lot of great people out there who were passionate about being on the council and put in the work,” Molinder said.
When asked if he was surprised how the votes fell and how contested the race was, with the fifth- and sixth-place vote-getters only separated by one vote, Molinder noted it just goes to show how many good people wanted to serve and how close the support was.
“It’s not about where you place with the votes as much as it is about getting a chance to get on the council and serve,” Molinder said.
Maple, who serves as a local pastor for a Mt. Comfort Church and also in Philadelphia, said he wanted to be a part of the council because he has good leadership skills and wanted a chance to help the council work collectively together for the best interests of the town.
“I am really looking forward to being a part of this council,” Maple said. “I’m going to take these next few months and educate myself and learn more about the responsibilities and about what people are really interested in.”
Niemier was the only council member among five current council members who decided to run for re-election and hoped the voters would give him another term. After the ballots were counted, he said he is looking forward to working with four new members who have the best interest of the town at heart.
“We haven’t had that during these past four years,” Niemier said. “There has been a lot of negative criticism about this current council, so I’m very grateful to be given another chance to serve, and I will do it to the best of my ability.”
Hartley, who works for the county highway department, had attended several council meetings and said he wanted to serve the community in a larger way and running for the council seemed like the way to do that.
“I’m still taking it all in,” Hartley said. “Everyone who was running, they are all good people, and we didn’t expect that close of a race.”
His daughter, Alana Hartley, cast her first ever vote, Hartley said. She made it a point to stop and support him, and that meant the world to him as well as the victory.
“They say every vote counts, and it really is true,” Hartley said. “You work hard and you meet a lot of people, and in the end every single one of those encounters matter.”
Axthelm had been involved in local government working on several commissions including being a member of the board of zoning appeals. He said he was running due to the fact there were multiple open seats up for grabs and now seemed like a good time to run for the town’s main governing body.
Cooper, who moved to New Palestine three years ago, came to the race with some good council experience. He had worked as a town official in Carthage several years ago and said that was beneficial and he felt that experience might help him make some tough decisions down the road if elected.
