Five candidates will square off for three open seats on the Jonathan Association Board of Directors this year. Candidates were finalized last week following the association’s annual meeting on Feb. 20.

The Jonathan Association is a large homeowner’s association in Chaska encompassing 23 neighborhoods and including approximately 2,400 homes, 600 apartments and 9,000 residents. The association has a nine-member board of directors. Directors serve three-year terms.

People for a Better Jonathan (PBJ), a group formed to promote the Jonathan Association, will run three candidates this year. They are Maria Awes from Clover Ridge, Jacqueline Bensman from Neighborhood 8 and Mike Liebe from Neighborhood 3. All three submitted applications for board seats prior to the annual meeting.

Current board president Tom Davis of Autumn Woods announced that he would run at the annual meeting. Greg Boe and Jeff Majerus, other board members whose terms expire this year, are not running again.

The fifth candidate, Steve Brinks of Clover Field, did not appear at the annual meeting. According to Jonathan Association Manager Ron Fuchs, Brinks also did not submit his candidate statement to be distributed with the election ballots. “He is still a candidate,” Fuchs confirmed.

Ballots and candidate statements were at the printers on Monday and were scheduled to be mailed to Jonathan homeowners on Tuesday.

The ballots must be mailed back in time to be received by the 5 p.m., March 22 deadline. Board treasurer Tom Kerber announced at the annual meeting that they had chosen certified public accounting firm Casey, Menden, Faust and Nelson to tabulate the votes.

According to Kerber, the ballots will be sent directly to the CPA firm in Bloomington to be counted and certified on March 22. At a previous meeting, Kerber indicated that the ballots were to remain sealed until March 22. The results will be announced later that day.

At the annual meeting, Jonathan resident Gordon Means inquired as to whether or now there would be opportunity to oversee the ballot counting.

“They are willing to have some observation,” said Kerber. “But really would prefer to have no one there. They’re doing it as their job.”