The recall election is over, but the political battle continues. Even though John Day residents voted to remove Heather Rookstool from the mayor’s office, the margin was narrow — as of Saturday morning, it was 33 votes out of 483 cast. Now that division is playing out in a tussle over how the next mayor should be chosen. Rookstool’s supporters want the council to appoint her replacement. Backers of the recall effort want to put the question to a vote of the people. Strong arguments can be made for both options, and the Eagle will be covering how the issue plays out.

Coming up in this week’s edition, we’ll have stories on high school graduation rates, plans for a new wastewater treatment plant for John Day and Canyon City, the upcoming legislative session, the shooting of a wild horse from the Big Summit herd and the shooting of a bull running loose at Dayville School.

In case you missed it, last week’s Eagle carried our coverage of the recall of John Day Mayor Heather Rookstool and an investigation into claims that a local dispensary was offering discounts in exchange for votes. We also had stories on the importance of air ambulance coverage in Northeast Oregon, plans for upgrading the Grant County Fairgrounds, an upcoming count of homeless Oregonians and personnel changes at Grant School District.

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As always, if you have comments or questions about the Eagle, or want to pass along a story idea, send me an email at this address: editor@bmeagle.com.

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— Bennett Hall, Editor