Carol Thompson attended a Colorado Springs City Council candidates’ forum Monday to hear from the District 3 contenders, Councilman Jerry Heimlicher and challenger Dave Gardner.

She thought she lived in that district.

To her surprise, she received what she thought was the wrong mail-in ballot for the April 7 city election. It had one name on it, District 1 incumbent Scott Hente.

Thompson is among more than 20,000 city residents whose voting districts changed after the city redrew council district boundaries last year.

Of the council’s nine members, four represent districts and four members and the mayor are elected citywide.

Required every four years, the boundary-line adjustments are needed to assure each council district contains an equal number of residents, about 101,000. Changes occur when the city’s growth patterns vary.

City Clerk Kathryn Young, who oversees the election, said the shift in lines affects residents in 39 precincts, about a quarter of the total.

Young said notices were sent in November to all those affected, but Thompson said she and several neighbors don’t remember getting one.

“Why in the world didn’t we get a new voter-information card?” Thompson asked.

Voter cards are issued by the El Paso County Clerk and Recorder’s Office and show congressional, state legislative, county commissioner and City Council districts. County election manager Liz Olson said cards are sent prior to a general election and only when a name change, address change or party change is made to a voter’s record.

Ballots were mailed out Tuesday, and some had already been filled out and returned by Wednesday, Young said. “I never, in my wildest imagination, thought people would be bringing back ballots this soon,” she said.

The city ballot also includes several measures dealing with city revenue and two other council races: District 4, in which Bernie Herpin and Tony Carpenter are seeking an open seat, and District 2 in which incumbent Darryl Glenn is running unopposed.

Ballots must be received by April 7 and can be dropped off by 7 p.m. on Election Day at the City Clerk’s Office, 30 S. Nevada Ave.

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Call Zubeck at 636-0238

Voter information

Voters who haven’t received a ballot by Friday and believe they’re eligible should contact the City Clerk’s Office at 385-5901, or go to the clerk’s office, 30 S. Nevada Ave, Suite 101.

Ballots can be dropped off from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays, beginning Monday through April 6. On Election Day, hours will be 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. at these drop-off sites:

• City Clerk’s Office, 30 S. Nevada Ave.• Cottonwood Creek Rec Center, 3920 Dublin Blvd.• Colorado Springs Senior Center, 1514 N. Hancock Ave.• Fire Station No. 17, 3750 Tutt Blvd.• Fire Station No. 9, 622 Garden of the Gods Road

In this 2006 file photo, toddlers get fitted with bibs by day-care worker Jennifer Vallejo before lunch at KidsKare Child Development Center. Photo by The Gazette