County, city races shape up

Several incumbent council members and mayors will be unopposed in the November election, but four candidates qualified for the District 3 commission seat and two candidates will battle for the Council 3 seat in Williamson. Concord voters will decide whether or not to allow liquor by the drink in the city as the following referendum question will be placed on Nov. 5 ballots:  ‘Shall the governing authority of the City of Concord, Georgia, be authorized to issue licenses to sell distilled spirits for beverage purposes by the drink, such sales to be for consumption only on the premises?’ MOLENAThe city of Molena was the last of Pike’s municipalities to hold qualifying and although all three seats are unopposed, there will be a new mayor in town. Joyce Corley qualified for mayor, Damon Riggins qualified for the Post 2 seat he currently holds and Jennifer Riggins qualified for the Post 1 seat that was vacant. COMMISSIONOne candidate dropped out, leaving four candidates to battle for the District 3 commission seat formerly held by Tommy Powers, including Jason Proctor and Robby Kendrick, both of Meansville, and Misty Meeks and Jerome Finley, both of Zebulon. Bobby Wilkerson withdrew his name from the race.CONCORDIn Concord, the three council members up for re-election qualified unopposed, including Josh Caldwell for Post 3, Subrenna Weathers for Post 4 and Ric Calhoun for Post 5. WILLIAMSONIn Williamson, the mayor and three council members will run unopposed, including mayor Steve Fry, Council 1 member Stephen Levin, Council 4 member Carol Berry and Council 5 member Brenda Bennett. Two candidates are running for the vacant Council 3 seat, including Bunny Scoggins and John Brown.ZEBULON In Zebulon, Joe Walter will be unopposed as the mayoral candidate after the retirement of Bobby Blalock. Dewey Yarbrough qualified unopposed for the District 2, Post 1 seat. The city will have two contested seats however, with former mayor Mike Beres and Anthony Nalls running for the District 2, Post 2 seat. Longtime and incumbent District 1, Post 2 council member David Woods will face Claude Hollis in the Nov. 5 election. Voters in Zebulon met at 4 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 27 in the commissioner’s conference room to discuss the possibility of a differnt polling place. The meeting happened after press time but an update will be included in the Sept. 4 edition of the Pike County Journal Reporter. Residents from the city of Zebulon were encouraged to give their input on possibly moving the polling place from Zebulon City Hall to the Pike County courthouse. Upcoming municipal elections will be handled by the Board of Elections and Registrations and all early voting for the county will be offered at Pike County Office of Elections and Registration. Each precinct will still be open for voters on Election Day from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Early voting will be offered Oct. 14 through Nov. 1 at the Office of Elections and Registration at 81 Jackson Street in Zebulon, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day. Monday, Oct. 7 is the last day for local voters to register to vote and be eligible to vote in the November election. Voters can cast their ballots on Election Day from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. at precincts across the county.For more about elections in the county and the new board of elections and registration, call Lynn Vickers, election supervisor at 770-567-2003 or stop by the Office of Elections and Registration on Jackson Street.