Nevada County Justice of the Peace District 7 candidates prioritize roads and constituent engagement

Regina Iriseri and Judy Olmmer, candidates for Nevada County Justice of the Peace District 7, told Spark Today in separate "Coffee with the Candidates" interviews that road maintenance and increased constituent engagement are their top priorities.

Regina Iriseri, who said she grew up in Lower Nevada County and holds a master's degree in criminology from Sam Houston State University, said community engagement guided her decision to run. "When I took office last year, I created a Facebook group," Iriseri said, naming the page "JP District 7 Nevada County, Arkansas," and adding that she posts agendas and solicits resident feedback there. She framed her candidacy as filling a gap: "people didn't know who their representative was on the quorum court," she said, and she ran to give district residents a voice.

Iriseri said her professional background in juvenile probation and her time living in military communities shaped her approach. Asked how she would spend a hypothetical $1 million grant, she named infrastructure first and said she would also seek to attract industry to reverse population decline and broaden the county's revenue base.

Judy Olmmer, who said she has lived in District 7 for 17 years and has served as a fire chief and as a commissioner and chairwoman of the board of elections, described similar priorities. "There's nine JPs and there's nine districts, one per district," Olmmer said in describing the quorum court's role; she added that the court meets monthly to decide budgets and allocate funds. Olmmer said improving county roads and maintaining equipment so crews can fix roads are central goals. She said she would split a $1 million grant between road work and purchases for fire departments and first responders to improve emergency response.

Both candidates described specific outreach plans: Iriseri emphasized online engagement through her Facebook group and said she votes in the quorum court based on resident feedback; Olmmer proposed an open-door policy, phone and email contact and occasional polls to surface constituent concerns.

The two candidates offered personal appeals to voters: Iriseri said, "If communication is important to you, I'm your gal," while Olmmer closed by urging turnout: "Just get out and vote. Your voice matters. Make a difference." The segment was part of Spark Today's Coffee with the Candidates series featuring one-on-one conversations with local candidates.

The interviews did not record formal policy proposals with specific dollar amounts beyond the candidates' stated priorities, and no campaign platforms or endorsements were cited on air. Voters seeking the full interviews or additional details on each candidate's platform can consult Spark Today's program listings.