Constables determined, official election results certified
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By Christa Jennings
Senior Staff Writer
While the county’s eligible provisional ballots were reviewed and counted last Tuesday, it took extra time to finalize election results for this cycle because of the number of write-in votes for constables in multiple precincts.
Judge of Probate Richard Dean and the Canvassing Board; comprised of Dean, Sheriff Michael Howell and Circuit Clerk Anita Spivey; were finally able to certify the county’s official election results last Friday once all eligible votes were tallied and added to the county’s totals, including the write-in votes for constables.
There was one military ballot mailed in time, or a Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (UOCAVA) ballot. Additionally, 10 out of 22 provisional ballots were deemed eligible and reviewed to be added to the county’s ballot totals.
With the 11 provisional ballots added, the county had a total of 5,276 ballots cast for the general election. Of those 11 ballots, there were 10 straight-party ballots cast, including two for the Democratic Party and eight for the Republican Party.
The one non-straight party provisional ballot cast individual votes for Democratic Party candidates and added a number to the write-in votes where only Republican Party candidates were on the ballot.
Additionally, the provisional ballots added seven votes for David Stover for superintendent of education, with two provisional ballots having write-in votes for that office.
Regarding the offices of constable, the provisional ballots added one write-in vote to the number of votes for constable in Precinct 603 and eight write-in votes for constable of Precinct 614.
Only nine of the 11 provisional ballots included a vote on the proposed statewide amendment, with seven casting yes votes and one casting a no vote.
Regarding the offices of constable for multiple precincts, the county received 214 write-in votes. Many of those were cast in precincts where no one was on the ballot seeking that office.
As such, the Board of Registrars and other election officials had to spend extra time this election cycle reviewing all the write-in candidates, determining which ones were eligible, attempting to contact those eligible individuals, and finding out whether the individual written in would accept the position.
As reported previously, precincts that had a candidate for constable on the ballot did not require review of the write-in votes since the candidate received a majority of votes and the write-ins would not affect the outcome.
Those who were on the ballot and won their race for constable, all Republican candidates, were James Ward for Precinct 420, Noah Sanders for Precinct 603, John Pierce for Precinct 712, Lloyd “Cape” Caperton for Precinct 1117, John Hill for Precinct 1205, and Marion Brown for Precinct 1215.
Regarding the numerous write-in votes that determined winners in 10 precincts, two of the individuals who accepted the position of constable won by two votes, and four won with just one vote.
For Precinct 111 Sheldon Hutcherson won with eight votes and accepted the position, for Precinct 302 Neil Moseley won with eight votes, for Precinct 401 Elmore Unbehant won with two votes, for Precinct 404 Anthony W. McElrath won with one vote, for Precinct 614 James Reay Culp won with one vote, for Precinct 1216 Michael A. Brown won with 11 votes, for Precinct 1318 Tracey Wyatt won with five votes, for Precinct 1522 Richard Moseley won with two votes, for Precinct 1707 Wayne Brown won with one vote, and for Precinct 1909 Larry Shealey won with one vote.
Numerous individuals who received write-in votes did not respond when contact was attempted to determine their interest, were not eligible, or declined the position when contacted.
Precincts that did not have a candidate running for the office of constable and that did not have any write-in individuals who were eligible or who accepted the position were Precinct 306, Precinct 710 and Precinct 721.
Twenty-one of the write-in votes cast for constables were for eligible individuals who declined to serve in that office when contacted.
For more information on the write-in vote process, what it entails and how Coosa County’s election officials worked those results, see next week’s edition.
