A group of around 30 interested citizens and candidates gathered at the election office on Short Street Tuesday night to view results after polls closed on the May 21 General Primary.
At close to 9 p.m. the combined advance voting and election day totals, excluding absentee and provisional ballots, showed that it was a stellar night for incumbent office-holders running for re-election.
In a race that garnered significant local interest, incumbent Sheriff Stacy Jarrard handily defeated challenger Matt Cook for the Republican nomination by a margin of 85 percent to 15 percent
Jarrard garnered 4,156 total votes, while Cook received 730.
In another contested primary race, incumbent County Commission Chairman Chris Dockery held off competitor Steve Shaw, winning the Republican nomination by 76 percent to Shaw’s 24 percent, with Dockery receiving 3,544 votes and Shaw receiving 1,097.
Finally, incumbent County Commissioner Dr. Bobby Mayfield fended off two challengers to secure the Republican nomination for District 2 with 3,202 votes, or 69 percent. The next highest vote-getter was Jeramy Nye with 842 votes, or 18 percent. Rounding out the list was Matthew Cootware, who garnered 13 percent with 589 votes.
Voters also approved the renewal of Lumpkin County’s optional 1 percent SPLOST sales tax by a margin of 71 percent, or 3,758 votes, to 29 percent, or 1,517 votes. The tax will be used to fund a list of specific capital outlay projects for the City and County totaling $33,325,560.
WINNING MESSAGES
The Nugget caught up with Jarrard after the results were announced to get his take on the outcome. He said he is thankful to have the opportunity to serve Lumpkin County for another four years.
“What I would like to say is I know there was a lot of vocal comments on social media, but I just want people to realize that I don’t take that personal. If they need anything, feel free to call. I’m here to help any way I can. I’m just thankful for the opportunity in life, and thankful to be here and be Sheriff,” Jarrard said.
He reiterated his intent to put any negativity from the campaign behind him.
“I just hope we can move on and keep in a positive direction. We have a great Sheriff’s Office here, and a lot of great men and women that work here. I'm also looking forward to continuing to work with the commissioners to get as much as I can through for the public,” Jarrard said.
Dockery indicated he is looking forward to serving another four year term as well, even though there is plenty of work involved.
“To me it’s certainly a labor of love. I’m very encouraged by the future of our community. I think it’s important that we have capable and competent leadership in place to take us forward as we continue to grow. We’re not going to stop growth. We just need to grow in a smart way, and I think we have a board in place that understands that, that can balance property rights so we’ll all know how to grow in a smart way. And I’m excited to do it for another four years,” Dockery said.
Mayfield also told The Nugget it was “an honor and a privilege” to be selected again by the voters.
“I am very grateful to the citizens of Lumpkin County for giving me the chance to serve them again. It is very humbling to win by such a large margin against two worthy opponents. Now it is time to focus on the future and to remember, as our beloved Indians say, ‘Hard Work Pays Off!’ Thank you, Lumpkin County,” Mayfield said.
CRUNCHING NUMBERS
After the unofficial results were posted on Tuesday night, Interim Elections Manager Brittani Conner explained the timeline for releasing the complete totals.
“We have absentee still left. We don’t know what we’re counting yet on that. Some of them we’re waiting on ID’s to come back for that and stuff like that. So absentee is going to go up tonight and the provisional will be certified by next week, which will be next Tuesday,” Conner explained.
Conner said election day voting “went very smoothly,” with no significant problems to report.
Results for all contests, including unopposed races and partisan survey questions, can be found by visiting sos.ga.gov/page/georgia-election-results and selecting Lumpkin County.