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Megan Horn/The Clayton Tribune. Several Rabun Countians showed up at the elections office Tuesday evening to find out the Nov. 7 race results. Pictured are City of Tiger Mayor Mike Carnes, left, outgoing Clayton council member John Bradshaw, incoming Clayton council member Stacy L. Fountain and Clayton City Council Member Amanda Harrold.
The Clayton City Council will be looking a little different at the beginning of the year as voters turned out for the Nov. 7 General Election.
Out of 1,358 people registered to vote in the City of Clayton, 29.01 percent, or 394 people, went out to the polls to cast their ballots.
Council Member Post 3
For Council Member Post 3, Tony Allen is the newly elected council member with 258 votes over candidate Andrew Green who received 122 votes.
Current Post 3 council member Woody Blalock chose not to seek re-election.
“The support is amazing,” Allen told The Clayton Tribune following Tuesday’s election.
“We’re going to get it done,” Allen said about his goal as a Clayton Council member.
“I feel privileged to be able to serve the community. It’s an honor,” Allen said.
Green commended how we in the United States have the freedom to vote in elections for whom we want to represent us and how that is a positive aspect.
“The citizens have been able to vote and that’s the Republic way to elect who we want to represent us,” Green told The Clayton Tribune Tuesday.
“Good luck to the new council. I hope they do well and they push us forward,” Green said. “We’ll pick up, move forward, and plan for the future on what needs to happen.
“I hope they do right by the citizens, businesses and employees,” Green added of how they govern their constituents.
Green emphasized that citizens, businesses and employees are “integral” groups in the city that should be taken care of. He said these groups should be the focus of council members.
Green said that the city “has a lot of catching up to do” and needs to be on the “cutting edge of things.” He looks forward to continuing working as long as he needs to in order to keep the focus on citizens, businesses and employees. He said the Green family has for generations and will continue to be an integral part of the community.
Council Member Post 4
For Council Member Post 4, candidate Sarah Beth Gillespie received 238 votes to be elected over incumbent David Cross who received 149 votes.
“I am very grateful to the citizens of the City of Clayton for putting their trust and faith in me to do what’s right for the city and I will represent them well,” Gillespie told The Clayton Tribune Tuesday. “And I will listen to their input about what they think is right for future growth of the city,” Gillespie said.
David Cross said God has a plan and he feels like a lot was accomplished during his time on city council.
“It’s been a lot of ups and downs,” Cross said about serving on the council, adding that they had a lot of great times together. “I look forward to seeing where they take us in the future.”
Cross posted on social media it was an honor serving the community the past four years.
“I have always fought for the best for our citizens,” Cross posted Wednesday. “It is now time to turn my spot over to Sarah Beth Gillespie and I hope she fights for you all as diligently as I have and I have a lot of confidence in her. And thank you again for this honor.”
Council Member Post 5
For Council Member Post 5, Stacy L. Fountain ran unopposed and received 307 votes.
“[I’m] just excited to get in office and work together to move the city forward,” Fountain told The Clayton Tribune Tuesday.
Current Post 5 council member John Bradshaw chose not to seek re-election. He said Tuesday he enjoyed serving as a Clayton City Council member.
“I’m proud of how we’ve been working with the county,” Bradshaw said.
Bradshaw said specifically he looks forward to Shadyside Drive being opened back up. It has been closed for a couple years as slopes that developed from a storm in 2021 need to be repaired.
Voter turnout
Out of 12,869 registered voters in Rabun County, a total of 1,626 or 12.64 percent showed out to the polls Tuesday, Nov. 7, according to the Election Summary report. Election Day yielded 868 voters, or 6.74 percent, and Advance Voting had 714 voters, or 5.55 percent.
The results according to the General Election Summary Report are unofficial and incomplete until the results are certified by the Rabun County Board of Elections.
Tammy Whitmire, director of elections and registration, thanked her crew for the great job they did during the election. She said there was no wait time and the poll workers acted professionally, which led to a good voting turnout.
“We’re a good team,” Whitmire said. “In spite of losing power twice today, twice, it didn’t slow voting down.”
“It was very good and went smoothly,” Chris Miller, election technician, said about the voting process on Tuesday. Polls were open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. with most casting their ballots at the Rabun County Board of Elections and Registration Office. Tallulah Falls residents voted at Tallulah Falls Town Hall.
Poll worker Amanda Burrell agreed the Election Day went well and the office did not run into any problems.
“I was pleasantly surprised at how busy we were,” said poll worker Kathy Allen, comparing Election Day to Advanced Voting but noting that it was a positive thing to see people turning out to vote.
There were 44 Absentee By Mail ballots returned and officials said that process was successful as well.
“We had 44 ballots returned and the voter review panel did not have to re-create ballots because they were all filled out perfectly,” said Roy Lovell, chair of the Rabun County Board of Elections.
Whitmire said her office chose to do a hand-count of the votes and that will begin Friday, Nov. 10, at 9 a.m. at the Rabun County Board of Elections and Registration Office, 184 South Main Street, Suite 102, Clayton. “We want to hand count everything again,” Whitmire said.
She said the public is invited to observe the ballot counting.