Mary Gouge fended off two challengers in her re-election bid to once again become the Republican Nominee for County Clerk.

When the early voting numbers came in, Gouge had a sizeable lead over challengers Patsy Lewis and Bruce Pierce.

Gouge captured 2,548 of the 4,087 votes cast in the race during early voting, giving her 62.34 percent. Lewis came in with 754 (18.45 percent) while Pierce garnered 785 (19.21 percent).

As the precincts began reporting in those percentages remained about the same throughout the night. Gouge captured first place in the voting for each precinct while Lewis and Pierce traded back-and-forth for second and third place.

When the final tally was released, Gouge garnered 5,917 of the 9,428 votes cast in the County Clerk race, giving her 62.76 percent of the total vote. Lewis took second place with 1,773 votes (18.81 percent), and Pierce came in third with 1,738 votes (18.43 percent).

Gouge will now move on as the Republican nominee for County Clerk in the August General Election. No candidates filed as either Democratic or Independent candidates, so Gouge will be unopposed in the General Election.