October 29, 2026, by Michael Armstrong

Special to The Seward Folly

As other cities in the Kenai Peninsula Borough hold elections on Nov. 3 at the same time as the federal, state and borough, the Seward City Council on Monday voted to move the city election date from October to November to coincide. That change would take effect in November 2027.

In a rare vote that wasn’t unanimous, the council also approved 6-1 the appointment of Cosmo Andersen to the Historic Preservation Commission. It moved to and approved on the consent agenda the appointment of a second applicant, Tiffany Siller, to the commission. Council Member Mike Calhoon asked for a vote on Andersen, citing his concerns that they might be too focused on LGBTQIA+ history in Seward. Calhoon voted against Andersen’s appointment.

In 2025, borough voters approved a citizen initiative to move the election date to coincide with the biennial state and federal date held on the first Tuesday in November. Under Seward’s charter, the date of a city election may not be changed less than one year prior to the date of the first city election affected — which meant it couldn’t be changed for this year’s election.

In proposing the change, City Clerk Kris Peck said he had been looking at the pros and cons of changing Seward’s election date. One challenge with changing the date is that voters will have to stand in two lines, mark two different ballots and place ballots in two separate tabulating machines, one for state and federal elections and another for city and borough elections.

Peck said early voting numbers this year for other borough cities convinced him that a change to November would be desirable.

“The momentum has just really clearly shifted to November, and we would be seeing voter turnout, you know, beyond our wildest dreams if we moved our election to November,” he said. “It would be like a local band going on tour with Metallica.”

Seward Mayor Sue McClure asked if the cost would be more to run elections in November. Peck said it would actually be less. It costs about $10,000 for the city to run its own election, but if it held an election at the same time as the borough, the city and borough could split the cost for $5,000 each.

McClure also raised the issue of potentially having three ballots at the same election.

“That could be confusing to people, but it could be offset by the greater turnout for our city elections,” she said.

“That’s probably my biggest concern for the absentee in-person voting,” Peck said. “It could be three of those big white envelopes and three ballots, and then on election day, a voter could potentially walk into the voting booth with the three different ballots, and then have to keep them sorted in the sleeves.”

However, the two tabulating machines are programmed to reject ballots voters attempt to scan in the wrong machine, he said.

In a memo to the council on the ordinance, Peck wrote that the council could wait until the Nov. 3 election to see how it worked, but if it did so, that would miss another window to change the election and it would be locked into an election for October 2027. He said that if the council had future misgivings, it could go back to the October election date.

Calhoon said he also had concerns about three ballots, “but I think that we can educate the population on that enough and make it worthwhile in the long run to get a larger turnout.”

Council Member Lori Draper said in talking to citizens she heard overwhelming support for a November city election date.

“I just have to agree with Council Member Calhoon that voter turnout trumps all the other issues in my mind,” she said.

On Andersen’s appointment to the Historic Preservation Commission, they had written on their application that in previous work on historic preservation in Roanoke, Virginia, they had helped maintain one of the oldest LGBTQIA+ literature collections there.

“I would love to learn and collect more about the LGBTQIA+ history in Seward,” Andersen wrote.

Calhoon said he wanted clarification from Andersen.

“Folks just wanted to make sure that you are willing to go well beyond that in your work on the commission,” he said.

Andersen responded to Calhoon’s question. Andersen serves on the Seward Pride Alliance board of directors and said they had been talking to a woman about LGBTQIA+ history.

“’They don’t know nothing about their history. We’ve been here forever, and we’ve always been here,’” Andersen said the woman told him. “…  It is about all of Seward’s history, and that includes the people that historically have not been heard, and have historically been specifically erased from history.”

They said when they lived in Roanoke, the Southwest Virginia LGBTQ+ History Project had done a lot to preserve oral histories of elders.

“It really meant a lot to me to learn that people like me had walked those same streets for a long time before me, and that we will continue to keep walking our streets for a long time to come,” Andersen said.

In response to Calhoon’s specific issue, Andersen said, “I am open and interested in all of Seward’s history. I have attended the Resurrection Bay Historical Society presentations on the earthquake, and it was very wonderful and impactful to me to learn about Seward’s specific history in Seward during that time.”

Draper defended Andersen.

“They did not say that that’s the only thing they wanted to work on in the historic commission, and I think people bring different perspectives. Tiffany said she was really interested in the cemeteries and Woodlawn cemeteries in a similar way.”

In speaking to the council earlier, Siller noted her interest in cemetery preservation.

“That’s the case with others on historic preservation,” McClure said. “They find their niche.”

Andersen’s appointment passed with only Calhoon objecting.

In other action, the council also reelected John Osenga to be vice-mayor; accepted a $500,000 legislative grant from the Alaska Department of Commerce, Community and Economic Development for harbor infrastructure; eliminated a $100 taxi permit charge, and approved new leases with the Seward Chamber of Commerce, Conference and Visitors Bureau for their Seward Highway and Harbor Boardwalk office and derby booth.

Michael Armstrong is a retired journalist currently volunteering as the editor of the Homer Independent Press. Reach him at wordfolk@gmail.com.

The Seward Folly co-publisher Robert Barnwell is a current member of the Seward City Council, but he did not participate in the editing of this story.