Before a nice-sized audience in the main Barton County District Court courtroom Monday morning, new Barton County Commissioner Alicia Straub was sworn in by District Judge Steve Johnson.
Straub won her seat on the commission by defeating popular incumbent Ken Lebbin in the primary. She then survived a general election write-in campaign mounted by Lebbin.
 It was a hard-fought election pitting two worthy contenders, both area natives, against one another.
None the less, when Straub took her seat at the table with the rest of the commissioners after taking her oath of office, Lebbin sat in the crowd. He was in good spirits and there were no hard feelings.
Sure, Lebbin, who was appointed to the post following the death of Commissioner Don Cates in April 2014, was disappointed he wasn’t reelected. But, he accepted the outcome without protest.
Lebbin had done an outstanding job stepping into a very difficult situation. He barely skipped a beat and became valuable member of the commission.
Undoubtedly, Straub will take over and do an equally good job.
The point is power changed hands today, but there were no riots or angry tirades. This is how we do things in small communities.
Too bad this lesson doesn’t catch on with those at the state and national levels. A lot more would get done.

Dale Hogg