A ballot snafu means races for Helena Citizens Council will be postponed for more than a month.

City Attorney Dave Nielsen has recommended city commissioners void the HCC mail-ballot election at their Oct. 29 meeting, and Lewis and Clark County elections supervisor Marilyn Bracken said any HCC ballots returned to her office will be destroyed.

New ballots will be mailed Nov. 26, Bracken said, and will be due back Dec. 11.

Other mail-ballot city races, including City Commission seats, the City Court bench, a $7.85 million parks bond and two war referendums, aren't affected by the error. Those ballots, mailed Friday, are due back at the Clerk and Recorder's Office by Nov. 6 at 8 p.m.

All 28 seats on the citizens council are open in the election, with four spots in each of the HCC's seven districts. Each of the districts is composed of several voting precincts. On ballots sent out Friday, elections officials only included candidates living in residents' precincts -- meaning citizens wouldn't get to choose from the full slate of candidates in their districts.

Some residents received blank ballots because no candidates live in their precincts.

Nielsen determined voters should be able to choose from all candidates in their district and not be limited to those only living in their precinct. The new ballots sent out next month will include all candidates for each district.

The ballots prompted a slew of e-mails over the weekend and on Monday from citizens council candidates.

"The growing consensus is that if ... this is correct procedure, it is very unfair," District 2 Rep. Lynne Boone wrote.

" ... providing a voter an incomplete list of all district representative candidates wastes city time ... unnecessarily," District 2 Rep. Rebecca Ridenour said.

Other candidates also chimed in, agreeing a change had to be made.

Bracken said the city charter is unclear on the subject, but she agreed to make the needed changes.

"I did it by precincts and I should have done it by districts," she said.

Boone said she and others are happy with the resolution.

"I am very satisfied," she said. "I think the attorney (Nielsen) jumped on it ... and dealt with it. And I think that's wonderful, that he definitely made it a priority and dealt with business."

Reporter Larry Kline: 447-4075 or larry.kline@helenair.com