Current Bend City Councilor Kathie Eckman has asked Sally Russell to take her place on the Bend City Council, telling Russell (pictured at right) in an email that she would like to step down almost immediately.

Eckman, who has served on and off the council for two decades, lost her bid for reelection last night to Russell by nearly 10 percentage points.  

Russell said this afternoon that her appointment to Eckman’s position is likely to be discussed at the Bend City Council meeting to be held tonight at 7 p.m. at City Hall in downtown Bend.

“It’s conceivable that I could be sworn in either tonight or at the next meeting,” said Russell.

If so, Russell said she would be willing to tackle thorny issues such as the Bridge Creek water project right away.

Hey ya'll,

Cascades Lakes Highway is closing on Tuesday, Nov. 13, from Dutchman Flats to Deschutes Bridge. Will open again in late spring/early summer after the snow melts. We'd say get one last ride in but it's gonna be cold as ____ this weekend. So, (sigh) winter is upon us.

United States President and Vice President

Barack Obama (DEM) 274 Electoral votes

Expect full results from the state and Central Oregon races in just a moment. But here's the answers you're looking for most.

United States President and Vice President

Barack Obama (DEM) 274 Electoral votes

Get out and party tonight! Here’s the lowdown on all the best places to see the candidates and watch the returns.

Official Election Parties

1. Bend Parks and Recreation District, GoodLife Brewery, 70 SW Century Dr.

2. Republican Party, 7-11 p.m., Sun Mountain Fun Center, 300 NE Bend River Mall Dr.

3. Tea Party, 7 p.m., Shilo Inn, 3105 O B Riley Rd.

Sally Russell and Kathie Eckman are gettin’ into it!

These two candidates for Position 3 on the Bend City Council are each firing off negative ads in The Bulletin, and in Kathie’s case, with a follow-up mailer that says Sally is an unemployed environmental extremist.

Definitely a little nasty for a city council race. Here’s how it’s all gone down.

Sally started running this ad in The Bulletin in mid-October:

Chris Christie, governor of New Jersey, says he will not play politics. Hear his assessment of  Obama's handling of the storm here.

In this video a man videoing emergency workers on his street catches the facade of a building in Brooklyn sluffing off.

Power provider Con Edison eventually shut down power to much of New York City to prevent damage to equipment. Watch an initial explosion at a ConEd facility in this video.

We got this letter from a reader and we thought we'd share.

He wants to ban leaf-blowers in Bend.

What do you think?

I would like to propose a Leaf-Blower BAN here in Bend for the following reasons:

Oh man, how embarrassing: We told you the wrong day on our very own event!

Battle of the Badlands Arm Wrestling Championship is actually on Saturday, Oct. 27, not that wrong date we told you on our picks page this week. Weigh-ins start at The Old Stone at 4:30 p.m. with competition beginning at 6 p.m.

Multiple weight classes for men and women mean you could be a contender!

So, gather your buddies and get down there for the kind of thing that just doesn’t happen around here often enough—this…