Lakewood City Council Election: Ward 5 Faces Possible Recount

LAKEWOOD, CO — Candidate Wendi Strom pulled ahead in Lakewood's Ward 5 election race by 647 votes — enough to clinch her one of two seats for her ward on City Council. But the race between candidates Tom Keefe and Mary Janssen for the second Ward 5 seat is so close, there may be a recount, Jeffco elections officials said.

Janssen leads Keefe by only 7 votes.

More than 99 percent of votes have been tallied in Jefferson County, but official elections results won't be announced until all ballots are received from military and overseas voters.

The Jefferson County Clerk and Recorder's office is also awaiting results from voters who had issues with their ballots — they have until midnight Wednesday to fix the issue, officials said.

Colorado is using TXT2Cure technology, first launched by Secretary of State Jena Griswold in 2020, which allows voters to fix their ballot issues using their phones to ensure their vote is counted.

The Ward 5 recount would of course only take place after all votes are in.

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Four candidates campaigned for two seats in Ward 5: Keefe, Strom, Janssen and Michael Gunstanson.

Keefe is an associate professor at the Rocky Mountain College of Art + Design, where he teaches history, politics and world religions. He's a former member of the Jefferson County Historical Commission, and a current member of the First Judicial District Judicial Retention Commission.

"I am committed to a safer, stronger, and greener Lakewood," Keefe's Patch profile read. "Safety includes personal safety, property safety, and traffic safety. Stronger means fiscal responsibility and increasing our municipal employee retention."

Keefe's platform also included investing in infrastructure, small businesses and the expansion of local parks and open spaces.

Like Keefe, Strom's campaign platform included public safety, small business investment and sustainability.

Strom has spent more than two decades working in the financial services sector, and has spent the past 12 years working as a certified financial planner.

"I've been helping people be good stewards with their finances for 20 years," Strom's profile read.

"I have budget experience and look forward to using this to make sure the city is in the best place possible to continue to keep our parks clean and safe, offer the programs and services our community enjoys and relies on, and has the flexibility to implement other programs that can advance us in areas like sustainability and public safety."

The majority of candidates said that one of their top goals is to gather as much feedback as possible from constituents; however, Janssen pledged to create a 'Ward 5 Citizen Cabinet' that would include residents from each of the district's neighborhoods.

"It's about finding solutions that likely won't 100% please everyone but we still end up making Lakewood even better than now," Janssen's profile read.

Janssen, who has owned a photography studio in Ward 5 for the past 35 years, said she's dedicated to improving capital maintenance, strengthening neighborhood partnerships with local businesses and reducing crime in Lakewood.

"We must reduce the double-digit increase in crime rates," she said.