Carthage seeks out ‘neutral’ candidates to fill multiple vacant council seats
CARTHAGE, Mo. — Following a successful recall vote and the impeachment of the mayor, the Carthage City Council now finds themselves in a precarious situation.
Ten voting members make up the Carthage City Council, but the number of people serving on council is much lower — following the resignation of Dustin Edge, and the recall of Tiffany Cossey. Not long after Mayor Dan Rife was impeached, Mayor Pro Tem Alan Snow was sworn in as the city's new mayor, and is no longer a voting member of the council.
Now, with a total of four vacancies, the council is in a tight spot. It takes six members for the council to conduct city business.
We've reached out to Mayor Snow for comment about the current state of the council but have yet to hear back.
Assistant City Administrator, Traci Cox says Mayor Snow gave her permission to speak on behalf of the city.
Cox says Snow is meeting with city employees and department heads, discussing ways to regain the trust of Carthage residents.
"City operations continue because we have really good staff that's filling in the gaps, but the main goal is to appoint a council member that is neutral and willing to work with everyone going forward. It's going to be a slow process, he (Snow) doesn't want to rush into anything because he wants to make the right decision, a decision that's best for the city," said Cox.
We also reached out to other council members today, including Jana Schramm.
Schramm replied with a statement, saying, "Moving forward, Mayor Pro Tem Alan Snow is actively seeking individuals to fill the vacant Ward seats to ensure we maintain a quorum for committee meetings. Despite the setback we continue to make progress, and the collaboration among our council remains strong. We are committed to getting work done and working together for the betterment of our city."
Meanwhile, impeached mayor, Dan Rife has filed an injunction in Jasper County Court, asking a judge to reinstate him as mayor until the court can decide the question about the legitimacy of his impeachment. He is still waiting on a judge to be appointed in his case.
The next scheduled meeting of the Carthage Council is on November 12 at 6:30 p.m.
How Did We Get Here?
This tense power struggle within Carthage city government first emerged in mid-2023, when Mayor Dan Rife fired all the board members of the city-owned Carthage Water and Electric Plant because they failed to comply with his request for financial details.
The City Council immediately reinstated the members of the board, drawing a battle line that pitted former City Administrator Greg Dagnan, Mayor Dan Rife, and former City Attorney Nate Dally against the council and backers of the CWEP board.
That was followed by criminal charges of embezzlement against former Parks & Recreation Director Mark Peterson, after Dagnan reportedly found money missing when preparing the city budget. After a forensic audit, Peterson is facing felony charges of money laundering and stealing.
Backers of CWEP's board, dotted with powerful people, including some elected officials, formed a political action committee, Carthage Citizens United, to promote candidates for the City Council who would fire Dagnan and impeach Rife.
That slate of Jana Schramm, Tom Barlow, Dustin Edge, and Derek Peterson – son of the accused former Parks & Recreation director – was elected April 2, and immediately fired Dagnan and started the impeachment of Rife, who had blocked the firing. The city attorney, the administrative assistant, the fire chief, and a few other city employees resigned.
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