Kaleb Allen will keep his seat as Jackson County Assessor of Property after Thursday’s county general election. Allen earned 948 votes, claiming 57.18 percent of 1,658 ballots cast for assessor of property. His challenger, Glenda Mayberry, garnered 709 votes (42.76%). Results from the Aug. 1 election are unofficial until they are certified by the Jackson County Election Commission office.
Of Jackson County’s 8,723 registered voters, there was a turnout of 19.26 percent when 1,680 ballots were cast for the county general election, Gainesboro municipal election, and state and federal primaries.
In local races, Gainesboro residents were tasked with electing members of the city’s board of aldermen. Four candidates vied for three available seats and candidates were within two percent of one another in votes cast.
There were 295 votes among the slate of Gainesboro aldermen candidates. Here is a breakdown, with the top three vote-getters listed first:
Deborah Whitaker - 81 (27.46%)
Tom Goetz - 76 (25.76%)
Beth Young - 72 (24.41%)
Nancy Pruett - 66 (22.37%)
Current Gainesboro Mayor Lloyd Williams faced no opposition and garnered 83 votes (98.81%).
The following are results from the other local, uncontested races:
School Board District 2
Ron Eldridge - 173 (98.3%)
School Board District 3
Mark Allen - 222 (100%)
School Board District 5
Mark K. Brown - 247 (97.24%)
State Executive Committeeman District 15: Democratic Party
Troy Smith - 240 (99.17%)
In state primary races, the top vote-getters on the Republican and Democratic tickets will move onto the November election.
Current State Rep. Michael Hale (R-40) faced no Republican opposition in the primary. He garnered 990 votes (99.7%). He will face Democratic challenger Daniel T. Hawthorne in November. Hawthorne saw 237 votes (99.16%) in his primary.
Incumbent U.S. Rep. John Rose (TN-6) faced no Republican challengers Thursday. There were three Democratic candidates for the Congressional seat. Lore Bergman was the top vote-getter at 119 votes (46.48%). Clay Faircloth saw 103 votes (40.23%) and Cyril Focht had 33 votes (12.89%).
Rose and Bergman will be on the November ballot.
Current U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) faced a challenger on the Republican ticket. She garnered 999 votes (93.01%) against Tres Wittum, who saw 73 votes (6.8%). There were four candidates on the Democratic ticket vying for the U.S. Senate seat. State Rep. Gloria Johnson was the top vote-getter with 207 ballots (70.89%) cast in her favor. Marquita Bradshaw saw 53 votes (18.15%) from Jackson County residents. Lola Denise Brown had 28 votes (9.59%) and Civil Miller-Watkins had 4 votes (1.37%).
Tennessee Supreme Court Justice Dwight Tarwater of Knoxville was retained for the Eastern section. He drew favor in Jackson County with 855 votes (71.43%) to retain him. There were 335 votes (28.57%) cast to replace him in Jackson County.
Western district court of criminal appeals judge Matt Wilson of Jackson will retain his seat. In Jackson County, 863 ballots (72.04%) were cast in his favor. There were 335 votes (27.96%) to replace him from Jackson County.
There were 957 Jackson Countians who turned out to vote during Thursday’s election. There were 668 ballots cast during the early-voting period and 55 absentee votes.
The next election in Tennessee includes the state representative and senate seats, U.S. Senate and House of Representatives seats, and the Presidential election. Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 5. Early voting will run from Wednesday, Oct. 16 through Thursday, Oct. 31.
The last day to register to be able to vote in the November election is Monday, Oct. 7.
Those who will not be in their registered voting districts during the November election period, including college students and those serving the country, can apply for an absentee ballot from their local county election office. The deadline to request an absentee ballot for the November election is Tuesday, Oct. 29.
Tennessee voters do not declare a political party affiliation when registering to vote.
Contact the Jackson County Election Commission office at 931-268-9284 or visit 238 N. Grundy Quarles Hwy., Suite A, Gainesboro.
Sabrina Bates, sabrina@richardsonmediagroup.net