District 3 is entirely in Fort Dodge, encompassing the eastern part of the city.

Name: Bob Thode

Address: Fort Dodge

Occupation: Retired police captain

Party: Democratic

Why should the voters pick you?

“I have represented the citizens of District 3 for eight years. I work well with city, county and state representatives and being retired allows me the time needed to fulfill the obligations required to properly represent Webster County.

“I also represent Webster County on several boards that allow me the opportunity to interact with supervisors from across the state where we share information on a regular basis, which allows me to be a better representative for Webster County.”

In your opinion what is the No. 1 issue facing the county and what would you seek to do about it?

“Growth. Webster County has been working hard to bring industry to our area. There are two people on our board that spend countless hours working with the staff at the Growth Alliance to bring good paying jobs to our area. We are also working to bring new housing to our area.”

Explain why you believe the county government does or does not have a deficit.

“Webster County does not have a deficit. Per state code we cannot certify a negative budget. I believe when people see funds being transferred, they assume that it is to cover a deficit. Not true. In a recent transfer it was monies held in reserve to pay for the Lehigh Tower project. That project fell behind schedule and when the tower, building radio equipment was installed, a transfer of funds from the reserve to E911 was made to make the payment.”

What are the infrastructure issues you believe need to be addressed?

“There is a five-year plan submitted to the board from our secondary road engineer that has a list of bridges he would like to replace. Whether a concrete culvert or a tank car is used in the replacement decides how many replacements we can do that year. The list of bridges also shows which bridges can wait five years or if they need to be replaced that year. Our county engineer has been working hard to acquire federal funding and grants to assist funding these projects which would include replacing the Lehigh bridge.”

What needs to be done to improve emergency medical services in the rural parts of the county?

“The Webster County Board of Supervisors has already passed a resolution declaring EMS an essential service. There is an advisory council working on researching and assessing what service will be needed and the board should be hearing from them soon. We are hoping to bring this to the voters early this spring.”