Write-in candidates to have big impact on races in three area cities
By TONY FYFFE
BSN Editor
Write-in candidates traditionally do not fare well in elections, but they will make a big difference next Tuesday in city races in Paintsville, Prestonsburg and Allen.
That’s because city council or commission races in Paintsville, Prestonsburg and Allen failed to attract enough candidates to fill the number of seats up for election when the filing deadline ended in June.
Five people filed for the six-member council in Paintsville, six entered the race for the eight-member council in Prestonsburg, and only two candidates are on the ballot for the four-member commission in Allen.
Since then, longtime Paintsville City Council member Sara Hopson Blair resigned her seat and officially withdrew from the race Thursday, meaning votes she receives in next Tuesday’s election will not be counted, according to Johnson County Clerk Sallee Holbrook.
Two people, attorney Brandon May and former member Rick Roberts, filed as write-in candidates for the Paintsville council.
In Prestonsburg, four write-in candidates filed for the two open seats, including Josh Turner, Mike Lafferty, Donald J. Hall and John Shaver.
Michael Crace filed as a write-in candidate for the Allen City Commission.
That will leave one commission seat vacant in Allen when new members take office in January. Kentucky League of Cities Executive Director J.D. Chaney said in June that council or commission seats that are not determined by election would be filled by those bodies in January.
Last Friday was the deadline for people to file a declaration of intention to run as write-in candidates. The names of write-in candidates do not appear on the ballot and must be written in by voters to be counted.
The following candidates appear on the ballot for city council/commission and school board seats in Lawrence, Johnson, Floyd and Martin counties:
Lawrence County
• School Board, District 2: James M. See (incumbent).
• School Board, District 4: D. Heath Preston (incumbent).
• School Board, District 5: Barbara Lee Robinson (incumbent) and Angela (Holmes) Wright.
• Louisa City Council (six members): Randy Matthew Brown (incumbent), Gary Robertson (incumbent), Ashley Caudill (incumbent), Lisa M. Schaeffer (incumbent), Mitch Castle (incumbent), James Allen Pauley-Barker and Tom Parsons (incumbent).
Johnson County
• School Board, District 2: William R. Fraley (incumbent).
• School Board, District 3: Bob M. Hutchison (incumbent).
• School Board, District 5: Melvin Vanhoose (incumbent).
• Paintsville Independent School Board (two members): Kay Hall and Mike Short, both incumbents.
• Paintsville City Council (six members): Sara Hopson Blair (withdrew), Roger “Bo” Belcher, Tim Hall, David “Coach” Vanhoose and Rick Preston, all incumbents.
• Constable, District 2 (unexpired term): Bruce Ritz (Democrat).
Floyd County
• School Board, District 3: William Newsome Jr. (incumbent).
• School Board, District 4: Rhonda Meade (incumbent), Loretta C. Tackett and Keith Smallwood.
• Prestonsburg City Council (eight members): Rick Hughes (incumbent), Don Willis (incumbent), David A. Gearheart (incumbent), Lowell Thomas Samons III, Brittany Branham (incumbent) and C. “Shag” Branham (incumbent).
• Martin Mayor: James “Jim” Reynolds, Sam Howell (incumbent) and Clara Hughes Akers.
• Martin City Council (six members): Harold Case (incumbent), Charles Justice (incumbent), Gary Akers (incumbent), Bonita Compton, April Gayheart (incumbent) and Jeff Powell.
• Allen City Commission (four members): Elmer “Fudd” Parsons (incumbent) and Harrison Gibson Jr.
• Wheelwright City Commission (four members): Bobby Wayne Akers (incumbent), Andy Wayne Akers (incumbent), Sam Little (incumbent), Bill Newsome (incumbent), Dana McGown (incumbent) and Rodney Hall.
• Wayland City Commission (four members): Charles Bentley, Phillip Michael Caudill, Kathy E. Mills and Curtis B. Lee, all incumbents.
Martin County
• School Board, District 2: James “Bowie” Clark.
• School Board, District 3: Lorna Kirk Cassady and Mike Dingess.
• School Board, District 4: Steven Gauze (incumbent).
• School Board, District 5: Kathleen Price (incumbent).
• Inez City Commission (four members): Dennis Hall (incumbent), Lisa Wells, Richard Wells and Terry Fraley.
• Warfield City Commission (four members): Zane Speers (incumbent), John Sammons, Michael Hinkle (incumbent), William “Bill” Murphy, Crystal Bell (incumbent) and David Bell (incumbent).