08-04-2025
Impeachment of Carthage mayor opens door for two mayoral candidates
CARTHAGE, Mo. — The impeachment of former Carthage mayor, Dan Rife has left the city in need of a new mayor.
The candidates — David 'Bren' Flanigan and Ed Hardesty — are both running for the position.
'I spent three decades in service to the nation and by extension, Carthage. I take a tremendous amount of pride in that, and I feel that it is incumbent upon me to continue my service by offering my experience to the city of Carthage, the city which I love,' said Flanigan.
'I decided to run for mayor to help the city calm down and get back to what I fell in love with. The divide is silly. You can have a division of opinion without hating the other person,' said Hardesty.
The winner of Tuesday's election (4/8) will serve just one year — fulfilling the remainder of Rife's four-year term which began in 2022.
'My goal is to calm things down and get back to business. We need to work on our roads. We need to make our parks safer. We need to concentrate on the vandalism that's been hitting our brand-new bathrooms,' said Hardesty.
'In addition to my background, I bring, I think, a demeanor, a level of experience, and a love of Carthage, which is unrivaled. And the fact I'm retired means that I'm full time and I can serve as a full-time mayor,' said Flanigan.
With Rife vowing to continue fighting the legal battle over his impeachment, both candidates say if the courts rule in Rife's favor, they would willingly give the seat back.
'If there's a judicial ruling that renders the election moot and Dan, the mayor, certainly he'll be the mayor, and I step out of the way without any issue at all,' said Flanigan.
'Of course, I would give it back to him. It's his rightful seat. I'm only running because of that one-year action and to, like I said, try to make it friendly again,' said Hardesty.
Flanigan and Hardesty agree that maintaining civility within council chambers is imperative to the operation of city government.
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