The June 2 election is approaching, and Britton voters will have races in both Ward 2 and Ward 3 for two-year terms on the Britton City Council.
In Ward 2, Torrey Jones and Phil Pruitt are seeking election, while Ward 3 voters will choose between James Lang and Roger Cease.
This year, city elections will be combined with county elections on a single ballot. Voters will cast ballots at their regular polling places, with polls open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Early and absentee voting is already underway.
To help residents learn more about the candidates and their priorities, the Journal invited each to complete a questionnaire. Their responses follow.
Background information
Torrey Jones: I am married to my wife, Nicole, and we have two daughters, Nevaeh and Jocelyn. I work for Intellifarms Northern Division.
Phil Pruitt: I was born and raised in a suburb of Wichita, KS. I’m married (Erin) and a father of 3 (Rylee, Delaney and Chellon). After 35 years in the Health Care/Bio-Medical industry, I retired in July of 2025. While working in the healthcare industry, I held sales, marketing, account manager and leadership positions that took Erin and I to locations throughout the South and Central US. We moved to Britton in 2017 to get close to family and become part of a smaller community. Erin and I became the owners of the Kree Mee in the summer of 2022.
Roger Cease: I work at the Britton Grain Terminal. My wife is Rosie. I have three daughters, eleven brothers and sisters, and I’m a grandpa and great grandpa.
James Lang: I am the oldest son of Sonya and Joe Lang. I have lived in Britton all my life except for two years while I was attending Lake Area Technical College. I currently work at USLBM (Formally Truss Pro’s) and have been there for 6 years.
What is your reason for running for the board? What unique qualifications will you bring to the table?
Jones: I want to see this town get cleaned up so it looks good again and so people are able to drive around without losing a tire or anything worse. I have a degree in accounting, so I am good with numbers, and I am a very easy-going individual. My father-in-law was a city employee for more than 45 years, and my father was on the council and also served as mayor. I feel like I have good insight from their experience and knowledge to help get things back in order. I am a very meticulous person when it comes to anything I do, so I will put all of myself into getting this town back to what it once was.
Pruitt: My original goal was to simply be of service to the community, since I was told no one else was running. Therefore, I decided to put my name in the ring. My professional experience would bring to the council another business minded person that would focus on budget allocation fitting the needs of the community as a whole. I have held leadership positions in the business world that required strict budgeting adherence, making sure every decision brought forth a return on the investment being made. I want to find more ways for the community to be up to date on the decisions being made. Transparency would allow for more voices to be heard and hopefully more engagement with the council.
Cease: I am running because I want to help make changes around here, putting trees back in the boulevards, start to repair our streets, and to start cleaning up our town so people can say how clean and nice this town is again. I worked as a city employee and city foreman for nearly 47 ½ years and I’ve lived in Britton all my life.
Lang: I am running for city council because it is important for young people to get involved with local government and I want to be instrumental in helping Britton grow and prosper for years to come. The qualifications that I bring to the table are 1) I think outside of the box 2) I am willing to listen. 3) I am a conservative Republican but do not vote straight party line. I do my research on candidates/issues and vote accordingly and 4) I work well with others.
What do you feel is the biggest issue facing Britton, and how do you think the city should deal with that challenge?
Jones: I feel like our biggest issue is the city not having the finances to do the maintenance and upkeep on our streets. I feel like there is not enough work going into looking for funding and there may be overspending on things not needed within our town.
Pruitt: Honestly, I didn’t think the community had many issues. Britton is a great place to live and raise a family. When I started talking to neighbors and friends - the issues started flowing. Unfortunately, budgets are static and “needs” of the community continue to grow. How can a small community address all the wants and needs on a limited budget? Streets always seem to be on the top of the list that rarely get solved. There needs to be an open an honest conversation on what it will take to get Britton streets addressed. How can the city afford to update the streets as well as fulfill all the other commitments? Priorities will need to be reviewed and tough choices made. A long-term plan needs to be developed on what it will take to upgrade the streets in different sections of the city. I know it will come at a big cost - but putting it off until a different time will only cost more.
Cease: Our streets are the biggest issue. The main thing is getting them fixed. Applying for grants for them. Going back to chip sealing. It might be a band-aid for a while, but it will hold them up until we can get them repaired.
Lang: I think that Britton needs to actively seek new growth opportunities.
Aside from the biggest challenge facing Britton, what would be your next priority for the city and how would you address it?
Jones: I think making sure money is spent correctly is a big priority. Everything costs money, but making the right decisions when spending that money is detrimental to a city budget.
Pruitt: In today’s world of numerous ways to get information, it seems difficult to know what the city council is focusing on in Britton. What happened during the last city council meeting? I know I can jump on a zoom call to watch it live, but there isn’t an archive of previous meetings to watch on demand. Not everyone gets the paper, so making the meetings available to watch at a later time would be helpful. Meeting minutes found on the city website are helpful but don’t capture the full conversation. Archiving the zoom meetings would allow anyone to watch/listen to the entire conversation and better understand decisions being made. The best ideas will come from a community with better understanding of the challenges the council are facing.
Cease: My next priority for the city would be to have city employees do the work instead of hiring it out, unless it is something they cannot do. I also believe in having people come to the meetings and talk to us so we can see what we can do for them.
Lang: The next priority would be affordable housing for families and then events/activities for individuals in town to participate in.
What does success look like for Britton over the next ten years?
Jones: Getting the town back to looking like it used to and having funding for maintenance in order to maintain it. If we can’t get the streets and the spending under control, then I don’t see the outcome looking very good for our town and our wonderful residents.
Pruitt: Success would look like Britton continuing to be a great place to live and raise a family. I would really like to see our population grow and more businesses open up on Main Street.
Cease: If it keeps going as is, it’s not looking good. We need to get our town back to the way it used to be, clean and nice looking, and hopefully bring in more businesses.
Lang: Investment in our current infrastructure and amenities, coming together as a community to help grow Britton.
Why should voters choose you over the other candidate?
Jones: I am a person who will hear anyone out no matter what the issue may be. People should be able to be heard when coming to a meeting or even talking to any council member. I am willing to learn and work with anyone on issues within our great little town. Let’s get this town back to what it used to be on all levels.
Pruitt: Great question. I submitted my petition thinking that no one else was running in Ward 2. It turns out Torrey Jones submitted a petition as well. I tried to remove my name from the ballot but was told it was too late. While I would appreciate the opportunity to serve the community, I think Torrey would make a great councilman.
Cease: With my years of experience with the city I feel I can be an asset to the city council and to the town. Thank you and please go out and vote.
Lang: I think that all individuals currently running for Britton City Council are excellent candidates and will work together for the betterment of our community. I sincerely hope people give me a chance to bring new ideas to the city council.
