Republican Marty Chitty, a self-described conservative Christian, and Democratic candidate Ross Eveland, an Instacart driver and umpire, are campaigning against each other to represent the historic eastern area of Ames, Cambridge, Collins and Huxley on the Story County Board of Supervisors in the 2nd district.
“I’ve already been a supervisor for a term, and I’d like to go back…because that’s my constituency,” Chitty said. “As opposed to trying to make amends and peace with the factions here in Ames. I’m a conservative, Christian Republican.”
Chitty previously served on the board from 2016 to 2018. Chitty is currently the president of the Nevada School Board and has been on that board for nearly 20 years.
“I would like to think that I have the opportunity to pick up where I left off, because I think, as I have done electrical work both at the school and at the county, some things that you can perform transcend the time that you spent there,” Chitty said.
Chitty referenced the Tedesco Center.
“We have an eight-bed clinical mental health facility that was a transition group home by the county for people that were in a situation where they should not be left in an emergency room or jail setting, because they were in a crisis setting,” Chitty said. “We had the facility Mary Greeley asked about, and they could make that happen.”
Chitty often attends city council meetings in all the towns that he would represent if elected. He also door knocks with his wife.
Eveland currently works as a delivery driver for Instacart and does a lot of baseball officiating and umpiring, usually around 200 games a year.
“I’ve got a lot of different life experiences and leadership,” Eveland said. “I feel like I can make politics a little more civil again. I want to keep making Story County a great place to live. I chose to live here and I plan to stay here, win or lose, so I would like it to be a place that my kids can grow up and, when they get older, stay here if they want to.”
Eveland said he feels open to learning and finding answers to questions.
“I’ll never stop working to get better at my job,” Eveland said. “Once you think you’re good at your job is usually when you become bad at your job, and I think a lot of politicians, especially those at the national level, kind of lose that sight because they think, well, they made it, so they can just do whatever they want, and I just hope that never changes me.”
Eveland has been attending city council meetings and parades in the towns he’d represent if elected. He also does door knocking.
“I’m not a politician,” Eveland said. “I’m just going to keep being myself, and my goal as supervisor is not to have power or money; it’s just to make a difference. If I win, I hope it doesn’t change me as a person. That’s my biggest goal in life: to not change unless it’s for the better. I don’t want to lose sight of my morals and ethics; that’s my goal. That’s how I run my campaign. I try to keep it as positive as possible and authentic.”
Election day is Tuesday. To learn more about the candidates for the 2nd district of the Story County Board of Supervisors, please visit their respective webpages: Marty Chitty and Ross Eveland.