Four candidates eye City Council seats

Four candidates will oppose each other for two seats in the Fallon City Council general election.

Rachel Dahl will face off against Susan Smith-Savala for the Ward I seat while the Ward III seat will be contested between James D. Richardson and Eric W. Blakey to determine the four-year terms.

The Ward I race will be a rematch from 2009, when Dahl outdistanced Smith-Savala with 69 percent of the vote (142-65).

Early voting begins Saturday at City Hall and continues through May 31. The regular election day is June 4, when the polls will be open from 7 a.m. until 7 p.m. at the Fallon Convention Center.

The next two Saturdays, early voting will be available from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. at the City Clerk’s office at City Hall, 55 W. Williams Ave. Early voting will continue Monday through Friday until May 31 at the City Clerk’s office, from 8 a.m.-6 p.m.

Blakey, 40, owns and operates Hotwire Electric. Blakey, who has lived in Fallon since 1996, is a 10-year member of the Fallon/Churchill Volunteer Fire Department, has served as a reserve deputy sheriff and as president of the Churchill County Youth Softball Association.

Smith-Savala, 64, has lived in Fallon for nine years. She retired from a career in law enforcement after serving as a police officer and sheriff’s deputy in San Diego from 1973-90.

She is not involved with any community organizations — “I’m just very active in my community and with my neighbors. I like government.”

Dahl and Richardson are the incumbents who were elected to their first terms in 2009. Dahl and Richardson are both 1987 Churchill County High School graduates who later earned their degrees from the University of Nevada, Reno.

Richardson, 43, joined the Nevada Department of Public Safety, Adult Parole and Probation Division, and currently serves as supervisor of the Fallon office. He has been active in the community as a youth sports coach and is a member of the New Frontier Treatment Center’s board of directors.

Dahl, 43, is an educator who currently teaches eighth grade reading at Churchill County Middle School. She previously taught English at CCHS and political science at Western Nevada College. Dahl was recently appointed to the National League of Cities Energy, Environment and Natural Resources Steering Committee.

Ward I has 1,346 registered voters, and Ward III has 1,290 registered voters, according to Clerk/Treasurer Gary Cordes.