Martin, Whitman seek 4th District seat
By Angie Landsverk
Incumbent Chuck Whitman faces Dmitri Martin this April for a seat on the Waupaca Common Council.
Both are seeking to represent the city’s 4th Aldermanic District.
The deadline to file nomination papers to be a candidate in the spring election was 5 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 2.
“I have the time and commitment to do it,” said Whitman, who is seeking a sixth term on the council.
The Waupaca native has been retired from the Waupaca County Highway Department since June 2014.
He worked there for 37 years.
This August marks 40 years of Whitman being a member of the Waupaca Fire Department.
He and his wife Cindy have two children and five grandchildren.
Whitman represented the 4th Aldermanic District for three consecutive terms, beginning in April 2000, and did not seek re-election in 2006.
In April 2015, Whitman ran unopposed for the seat.
He won and was also re-elected in 2017.
Whitman believes he is doing a good job on the council, and said he learns a lot about the city by being on it.
He sees his service as something he should do for his community.
“Everybody should be involved in some way or another helping their community,” Whitman said. “It’s something I can do.”
Martin is seeking his first term on the council.
“I’m interested in playing a more active role in the community. I’m on the school board, and I’d like to, in addition, be active in some of the policy making on city council,” he said.
He would like to involve his 4th Ward constituents in his decision making process by polling them on certain issues.
“If it works within my role on the council, perhaps it could be something other council members participate in and possibly spread to other communities,” Martin said.
He hopes involving his constituents in the process would lead them to becoming more involved in the community themselves.
“That’s my hope with the city council,” he said.
Martin is also seeking a second term on Waupaca’s school board.
He holds a degree in psychology from the University of Wisconsin-Platteville.
Martin has lived in Waupaca since 1997, moving here after accepting a position with the Boy Scouts.
He managed the Boy Scout programs in Waupaca and Waushara counties until 2003.
He met his wife Lori in Waupaca.
Their daughter Dhara is a second grader at Waupaca Learning Center.
Martin’s professional background includes being a business owner – building homes from 2003 to 2007 and then changing the direction of his business to home energy assessments and home improvements.
In 2016, he suspended his business and ran for State Assembly.
After that, he worked for Mike McCabe, serving as McCabe’s statewide field director in his run for governor.
“In November, I got my Realtor’s license, and I’ve recently joined a firm in town,” Martin said.
In Waupaca’s other four aldermanic districts, all the incumbents are seeking re-election and running unopposed in the April 2 election.
Mary Phair is the candidate in the 1st Aldermanic District, and is seeking a second term.
In the 2nd Aldermanic District, Paul Hagen is seeking re-election.
This April will mark 23 years of service on the council for Hagen.
Scott Purchatzke is seeking re-election in the 3rd Aldermanic district, seeking a seventh term.
In the 5th Aldermanic District, Steve Hackett is seeking a ninth term on the council.