LEWISTON — Four Ward 4 residents are considering running for that area’s City Council seat, open due to a residency error.

Only Doreen Christ, of 1 Buckley Ave., has completed the nomination petition and guaranteed herself a spot on the Feb. 7 special election ballot.

Christ was elected to the seat Nov. 8, but the vote was declared invalid when the City Clerk’s Office learned she had not lived in the ward long enough to qualify.

Christ was the only candidate on the ballot for the Ward 4 seat in November.

Charles Turgeon, of 43 Buckley St., took out nomination papers for the seat on Dec. 8, but has not returned them to the clerk’s office. Turgeon mounted a write-in campaign to oppose Christ but did not collect enough votes to win the seat. Turgeon is also the person who notified the City Clerk’s Office of Christ’s residency error.

Two others have taken out nomination papers, but had not returned them as of Wednesday: Fern Asselin of 40 Bailey Ave., and Christina Berry of 13 Dupuis Ave.

Candidates have until Dec. 22 to collect signatures and return them to the City Clerk’s Office. Candidates for Lewiston City Council must gather at least 50 signatures from registered voters from their ward.

Christ moved within the city from College Street in Ward 3 to Buckley Street in Ward 4 on July 4, almost a month after the deadline to qualify for the election.

City rules require residents seeking election to Lewiston office to be at least 20 years old and qualified to vote in their ward for three months before the municipal election.

Those rules put Christ’s residency deadline on June 9.

Those same city rules say that Christ can now seek the Ward 4 seat, since she has now lived at her address for more than three months.

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