Would-be candidates for the new Bristol Village Board had better get cracking.

The Wisconsin Secretary of State on Tuesday issued the certificate of incorporation for the newly formed Village of Bristol. That certification sets in motion the timeline for creating a village government to oversee the community.

The village plans to hold a special election Jan. 19 to elect six village trustees and a village president.

Residents who are interested in running for trustee or president will need to collect voter signatures on nominating petitions and turn them in to the Town Clerk Amy Klemko by Jan. 4 to be included on the ballot. Candidates need to collect at least 29 and no more than 56 signatures — representing 5 percent and 10 percent, respectively, of the total votes cast in the referendum creating the village.

Nomination papers are available from the town clerk.

To set up future staggered terms for trustees, this initial election will include terms of differing duration. The top three vote-getters will serve the two-year terms and the next three will serve one-year terms. In subsequent elections, all trustees will run for two-year terms. The village president will be elected for a two-year term.

Town Administrator Randy Kerkman said until the new village board is elected, the current town board will remain in place.

The board is scheduled to meet on Jan. 25, the week after the special election, with the new village board expected to be seated that night.

The three current town board members who live within the boundaries of the new village — Chairman Rich Gossling and supervisors Ruth Atwood and Carolyn Owens — have said they plan for running for positions on the village board.

The community will also need candidates to fill the subsequent vacancies on the town board left by the departure of Gossling, Atwood and Owens. The remaining town board members — supervisors John McCabe and Colleen Fisch —- will remain in their positions. However their seats are up for re-election in April.

Kerkman said there are several possible procedures for making the town board appointments, with the board expected to decide how to go about making those appointments at the Dec. 14 town board meeting.