Key voter dates
* April 2: Last day voters can register to vote * April 13: First day of early voting * April 25: Last day to request an absentee ballot * April 27: Last day of early voting * May 2: Election day; polls are open from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. CDT Source: Sequatchie County Election Commission
Voters in Dunlap will have to decide whether to raise the sales tax and if grocery stores should be able to sell wine, as well as elect a city commissioner when they cast their ballots in the May 2 municipal election.
"I would usually think it would be kind of a quiet election, but with the wine-in-grocery stores referendum and the sales tax referendum, I think we'll have a bigger turnout than we normally do," Administrator of Elections Jerrie Hickey said.
One of the ballot questions asks whether voters are for or against the sale of wine in grocery stores within the city limits.
Voters also will be asked whether to raise the city's local option sales tax from the current 2.25 percent to 2.75 percent.
Two City Commission seats are on the May ballot under a new protocol for municipal elections.
Rather than at-large elections, Dunlap voters will see the commission broken down into individual seats, designated A through D. In May, seats A and B will be on the ballot. Seats C and D and the mayor's post will go on the ballot in 2017.
Incumbent Vice Mayor Jeff B. Johnson faces no opposition for seat B but seat A, vacated by longtime commissioner and once-vice mayor Dan Barker, has drawn six hopefuls: Terry Hatfield, William "Bill" Hatfield Jr., Allen Jones, Andy Long, Jeff Maxwell and Frank Silver.
Hickey said the Valley Fest festival in downtown Dunlap on May 2-3 forced officials to move the polling place from City Hall to the Dunlap Justice Center's municipal courtroom on Church Street.
The ballot is available on the Tennessee Secretary of State website and can be seen in the Dunlap Tribune this week.
The courtroom is accessible to disabled voters and there is parking adjacent to the building, Hickey said. She reminded voters to bring a state or federal photo ID with them.
Contact staff writer Ben Benton at bbenton@timesfreepress.com or twitter.com/BenBenton or www.facebook.com/ben.benton1 or 423-757-6569.