Few voters expected in today’s balloting

Published 11:43 am Tuesday, November 27, 2012

Clearing skies weren’t expected to be enough to draw much of a turnout for today’s runoff election for the District 5 seat on the Warren County Election Commission, the last unresolved race from the Nov. 6 general election.

Four people showed up at the Plumbers and Pipefitters precinct in the first hour of voting, poll manager Henry Hunter said.

He didn’t have much hope for weather or interest driving many voters to cast ballots. Polls close at 7 tonight.

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“I think maybe 50,” Hunter said.

Mostly sunny skies were predicted by late afternoon, with a high of 54.

The race for the District 5 seat on the Warren County Election Commission ended without a majority for incumbent Lonnie Wooley or challengers Gordon Cordes and Robert Croisdale. Today’s runoff is between Cordes, who finished with 1,679 votes, and Wooley, who received 1,494. Croisdale had 678.

State law mandates runoffs in county election commission races when no majority winner emerges on Election Day. Terms on the five-member panel start Jan. 7.

The district’s precincts are Plumbers and Pipefitters, Beechwood, Moose Lodge, Tingleville and YMCA.

Two incumbents on the commission were ousted Nov. 6. Jan Whatley defeated District 1 Commissioner Petesy Smith by nearly 1,100 votes out of more than 3,000 cast. In District 4, Sara Carlson Dionne won 72 percent of the vote against incumbent John Rundell.

District 2 Commissioner Retha Summers and District 3 Commissioner Elva Smith-Tolliver were unopposed.

The commission enrolls voters, assigns polling places, certifies non-party candidates, conducts all general and special elections and certifies results to the Secretary of State’s Office. Members of the panel are elected every four years during the presidential election cycle.