Thran, Kite, Bernard win Douglas races

Clerk-Treasurer Ted Thran will face Independent American Robert Conner in the general election in November.

Thran thanked supporters for giving him his first election victory after his appointment in 2008.

Former Assemblyman Lynn Hettrick congratulated Thran in a letter to The Record-Courier.

"Ted did a good job of getting out his voters and he deserved to win," I'm sure he will continue to do a good job for Douglas County."

Thran won almost 50 percent with 4,021 votes to Hettrick's 3,315 and Stephanie Brooks' 739.

Matt Bernard will go into the general election with the lead in the first primary election for the Minden Town Board. Bernard won 454 votes, leading Roxanne Stangle and Robert Hellwinkel in the crowd of seven candidates for the board. All but one, Jon S. Erb, will go to the general election.

William Souligny who came in fourth in the race said he knocked on 900 doors during the campaign.

"I really enjoyed it," he said. "Most everyone was so nice and thanked me for coming to talk to them."

Souligny said he'll be back on the campaign trail in September.

Former Douglas County commissioner, Republican Kelly Kite will face Democrat JoEtta Brown and Independent American David Schuller in the general election.

Kite defeated nearest opponent Jim Wheeler, 2,767-2,057 votes. Former commissioner Barbara Smallwood received 1,918 votes and Janet Murphy received 1,401 votes.

In statewide races, Douglas voters favored Sharron Angle in the U.S. Senate race and Brian Sandoval for governor.

"We need a governor change," said Minden resident Fredrick Stevenson, who cast his primary ballot at the CVIC Hall on Esmeralda Ave. "Of course, the Senate, too. We need a big change in the Senate."

Wife Bette Stevenson said she didn't mind the primary in June.

"I don't have anything else to do because I'm too old," she joked.

Another Minden couple, Jim and Margaret Shiffert, had no reservations about stating where they were politically.

"I want to get a bunch of Republicans in there," said Margaret Shiffert.

"I want the same thing she wants," said her husband. "I want to get a bunch of Republicans and get the Democrats out."

Margaret Shiffert said she didn't notice a difference between voting in June or the later months of primaries past.

"It's still summer," she said.

At Gardnerville Volunteer Fire Department Station No. 2, off Douglas Avenue, Gardnerville resident Heather Garwood also had no problem revealing her political intentions.

"I hope to vote Harry Reid out," she said, though she didn't reveal which Republican opponent she supported.

When it came to the June primary, she said, "I have no preference."

Gardnerville resident Terri Hickey, 57, said she's voted in every election since she was 18.

"I wanted to do early voting, but I just didn't get to it," she said. "I love the fact of early voting."

Nonetheless, walking through the strong sunshine of Election Day, Hickey was determined to cast her vote.

"Change," she said. "The famous word. We need to get back to conservative values."

Republican Lt. Gov. Brian Krolicki, a Stateline resident, defeated primary opponent Barbara Woollen both in Douglas and the state. He will face Democrat Jessica Sferrrazza in the general election.

Final Douglas County results came in at about 10 p.m. In all 11,712 voters took part in the election, with 6,078 casting ballots on Election Day. Just under half the ballots in the election were cast early or absentee.