
Once they get past the presidential, state and federal offices on the ballot, voters in most of Southeast Tennessee's rural counties will pick city and county leaders, and some will decide whether to allow consumption and sales of alcohol.
Folks in Bledsoe, Franklin, Grundy, Marion, McMinn, Polk and Rhea counties will see contested races for government posts while local ballots in Bradley, Meigs and Sequatchie have no opposed races or no local races at all, election records show.
Contested county commission seats are up for grabs in Franklin and Marion, and an unexpired Bledsoe County Board of Education seat is on the ballot there.
There will be contested municipal elections in Monteagle for mayor and two alderman seats that will appear on ballots in Franklin, Grundy and Marion, the counties that split the mountaintop town three ways.
Other city elections will be held in Marion County for Jasper mayor and two alderman seats; South Pittsburg mayor and two alderman seats, and three Whitwell City Commission seats. In McMinn County, voters will pick two Athens City Council seats. And in Rhea County, voters will pick the Graysville mayor and four commissioners.
NO CANDIDATES
Several municipal races in Southeast Tennessee lack candidates.
Grundy County, one of the smallest counties in the region, has city races on the ballot in Coalmont and Palmer that didn't draw enough candidates to fill open seats.
In Coalmont, just one candidate is seeking two open alderman seats, and Palmer drew no candidates for two alderman seats or for the unexpired term of another alderman seat, records show.
Grundy County Administrator of Elections Donna Basham said the situation has come up before in Grundy, but not in two towns in the same election.
Basham said write-in candidates are vying for the open slots.
The lack of candidates hasn't hampered voter interest, she said.
"We've had over 2,200 early vote, and that doesn't sound like a lot, but we only have 7,700 registered voters," Basham said. "In 2008, we had a lot to vote early and there was about 1,650 voted then. We've surpassed that already."
In Marion County, no one is seeking an unexpired alderman seat in New Hope, and in the McMinn County town of Niota, only two candidates are seeking three open City Commission seats, records show.
A similar situation exists in the Polk County town of Copperhill, where there are just two candidates for three open City Commission seats.
Municipalities' governing rules — called a charter — offer solutions for empty posts, according to Adam Ghassemi, spokesman for the Tennessee Secretary of State's office.
"For municipal elections, if no one is running (assuming there are no certified write-ins who received a vote) a vacancy would exist and the vacancy would be filled according to the local charter," Ghassemi said via email. Most charters allow appointments by the governing body.
WINE AND SPIRITS
Also on the ballot, retail wine sales referendums go before voters in Dayton, Jasper and Kimball. Residents of those towns will decide whether to allow the sale of wine in food stores.
Elsewhere, Polk County voters will weigh in on countywide, on-premises alcohol consumption and package stores, and Tracy City voters in Grundy County will decide whether they want to allow on-premises consumption of alcohol, records show.
Contact staff writer Ben Benton at bbenton@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6569.
RURAL REGION BALLOT ROUNDUP
Listed below are contested local government races and referendums across Southeast Tennessee's rural counties. Uncontested races are not shown.
Bledsoe County
School Board, 1st District, Part B (unexpired independent seat)
Vote for one
Kay Cooke
Jacob Frady
Robbie Taylor
Jamie Wyatt
Franklin County
County Commission, District 8, Seat B (unexpired seat)
Vote for one
Republican
Sam Hiles
Democrat
Dale Amacher
Monteagle Mayor
Vote for one (independent seat)
Marilyn Campbell-Rodman
Alexander "Lex" Orr
David Sampley
Monteagle Alderman
Vote for two (independent seats)
Jessica D. Blalock
Kenneth Wayne Gipson
Harry Parmley
Alvin Powell Jr.
Grundy County
Monteagle Mayor
Vote for one (independent seats)
Marilyn Campbell-Rodman
Alexander "Lex" Orr
David Sampley
Monteagle Alderman
Vote for two (independent seats)
Jessica D. Blalock
Kenneth Wayne Gipson
Harry Parmley
Alvin Powell Jr.
Referendums
Tracy City
Sale of alcohol for on-premises consumption
Yes
No
Marion County
County Commission, 5th District, Seat B
Vote for one (unexpired seat)
Democrat Ralph Pickett
Independent Ken (Penny) Skiles
Jasper Mayor
Vote for one (independent seat)
Paul Wayne Evans
Billy Simpson
Jasper Alderman
Vote for two (independent seats)
Josh Jennings
Jason Turner
Paul West
Jasper Referendum
Wine sales in retail food stores
Yes
No
Kimball Referendum
Wine sales in retail food stores
Yes
No
Monteagle Mayor
Vote for one (independent seat)
Marilyn Campbell-Rodman
Alexander "Lex" Orr
David Sampley
Monteagle Alderman
Vote for two (independent seats)
Jessica D. Blalock
Kenneth Wayne Gipson
Harry Parmley
Alvin Powell Jr.
South Pittsburg Mayor
Vote for one (independent seat)
Jane W. Dawkins
Virgil Holder
Bill Stuart
South Pittsburg City Commission, 1st District
Vote for one (independent seat)
Jimmy Paul Haley Jr.
Jimmy Wigfall
South Pittsburg City Commission, 2nd District
Vote for one (independent seat)
Ray Powers
Samantha B. Rector
Whitwell City Commission
Vote for three (independent seats)
Steve Atterton
Herman Wade Brown
Polly Copeland
Sandra Powell Crabtree
Mike Dillon
Marilyn Tate Frazier
Chris L. Morrison
Jimmy W. Nunley
Terry (Fuzz) Parker
McMinn County
Athens City Council (independent seats)
Vote for two
Chuck Burris
Whitney Kimball Coe
John Coker
Jordan Curtis
Tim Hughes
Polk County
Referendum (county-wide)
Sale of alcohol for on-premises consumption
Yes
No
Retail package stores
Yes
No
Benton City Commission
Vote or two (independent seats)
Joe Jenkins
Gary McDonald
Gene Pack
Copperhill Mayor (independent seat)
Billy Brackett
Jerry Gilliam
Kathy A. Stewart
Rhea County
Referendum
Dayton
Wine sales at retail food stores
Yes
No
Graysville Mayor
Vote for one (independent seat)
Robbie Davenport
Ted Doss
Graysville Commission
Vote for four (independent seats)
Robert (Bobby) Baldwin
Andy Beene
Jimmy Lee Massengill
Michael May
DeNesa Reel
Ron Scott
David Sulcer
Source: Tennessee Secretary of State, local election commissions
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