After the Tuesday, Apr. 10 election mayoral votes were counted, Sioux Falls was left with no new mayor. Now, citizens are now faced with a more narrow decision for mayor: Paul TenHaken or Jolene Loetscher.

Sioux Falls Mayor, Mike “My Man” Huether, has reached the end of his four-year term limit, and with this ending comes the new beginning for one of the many candidates eager for the chance to take on Sioux Falls politics. The first election narrowed down the number of candidates from six down to two, with TenHanken and Loetscher winning 34 percent and 25 percent of the total votes respectively.

Loetscher and TenHanken may credit their marginal leads to the many young voters who turned out to the polls, giving them an extra boost in votes. The two candidates, both with business backgrounds, noted that voters are not placing political experience as the most important factor when choosing a candidate; rather, they want someone capable of leading Sioux Falls into an advanced future.

Former candidates were quick to lend their support to the mayoral finalists. Greg Jamison and Dave Munson both announced their endorsements for TenHaken shortly after the first results came out, and Kenny Anderson Jr. announced his endorsement of Loetscher over the weekend.

With this new support, Loescher and TenHaken are ready to take on the next round of elections. They participated in a mayoral debate on Wednesday, Apr. 25 to give voters one last chance to view their potential platforms and to reach out to new voters before the runoff.

Students at LHS are prepared to participate in the upcoming vote. According to a voluntary survey sent out to LHS Juniors and Seniors, 25 percent of respondents were registered and ready to vote. Though only 14 percent of students took part in the last round of elections, the expected turn out for the May 1 election is more promising with 23 percent ready to cast their ballot.

The second-round election will be held on Tuesday, May. 1 with the winner being crowned Sioux Falls’ next mayor.