Races for local city elections on the ballot in November will see some competition as a number of candidates qualified before the deadline on Thursday.
In addition to the state and federal races that will appear on the ballot in November, residents of the City of Elizabethton and City of Watauga will be selecting leaders in a variety of positions.
Elections for the City of Elizabethton and City of Watauga are not divided into representative districts the way the Carter County Commission is. Candidates in the city races run “at large” according to Carter County Administrator of Elections Tracy Harris. What that means for voters is they can vote for as many candidates as there are seats available in that particular race.
Three seats on the Elizabethton City Council will be up for election in November. Those seats are currently held by City Mayor Curt Alexander, Robert “Bob” Cable and Jeff Treadway.
When the deadline passed on Thursday, a total of five candidates had qualified for the election.
Alexander, Cable and Treadway all filed paperwork to seek re-election. They will be joined on the ballot by Jenett Morgan and Kim Birchfield.
The three candidates out of the five receiving the most votes will be awarded the seats on the City Council.
Three seats are also up for election on the Elizabethton City School Board. Currently, those seats are held by Board Chairwoman Rita Booher and Board members Phil Isaacs and Dr. Grover May.
Booher, Isaacs and May all filed paperwork to seek re-election. They will be joined on the ballot by Jeannette G. Clark. The three candidates garnering the most votes out of the four will take up seats on the School Board.
Also on the ballot for Elizabethton will be the City Judge position, which is currently held by Judge T.J. Little Jr.
Little qualified as a candidate for re-election to the post. He will bejoined on the ballot by John W. Walton, who previously served as the judge for Carter County General Sessions Court.
In Watauga, three seats are on the ballot for the Watauga City Commission. Those positions are currently held by Dennis Hicks, Edith Smalling and Timothy Peer.
Both Hicks and Peer qualified as candidates for re-election while Smalling decided not to seek another term on the Commission.
Hicks and Peer will be joined on the ballot by R. Dale McCracken. Because there are three open seats and only three candidates, Hicks, McCracken and Peer will all be seated on the Commission unless one of them withdraws from the race.
Any candidate that has qualified for the November election has until noon on August 25 to formally withdraw from the race, Harris said, adding after that time their name will still appear on the ballot whether or not they are actively campaigning or have announced a decision to withdraw from the race.
The voter registration deadline for voters to be eligible to participate in the Tuesday, Nov. 8, election is Oct. 11. Voters must register in person at the Election Commission by that date or if they are mailing in their registration form the form must be postmarked on or before Oct. 11.
The Carter County Election Commission is located at 116 Holston Ave. The office is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. The office can be reached by telephone at 423-542-1822 or by email at elections@cartercountytn.gov.