By By MIKE VOSS
Contributing Editor
Candidates for municipal elections this fall in Beaufort County’s seven municipalities have until noon Friday to file to run for office.
The Beaufort County Board of Elections expects a rush of candidates to file today and Friday, said Anita Bullock Branch, the board’s deputy director.
“We haven’t heard from anyone in Chocowinity,” she said Wednesday.
Filing activity picked up Wednesday as candidates for the Pantego Board of Commissioners and the Belhaven Board of Aldermen submitted the required documents.
The filing period began July 6. As of 5 p.m. Wednesday, 26 candidates had filed to run for office, with some of them vying for the same seat.
Councilman Archie Jennings is seeking the Washington mayor’s seat currently held by Judy Meier Jennette, as is Rick Gagliano, a member of the city’s Human Relations Council.
Bobby Roberson, a former planning and development director for the city, is seeking a seat on the City Council. The Rev. Edward Moultrie is seeking a seat on the council. Mayor Pro Tempore Doug Mercer is seeking re-election to the council, as are incumbents Darwin Woolard and Gil Davis.
In Washington, the mayor’s seat and the five seats on the City Council will be contested. The top five vote-getters in the council election will win seats on the new council, which will take office in December. The mayor and council members serve two-year terms.
Belhaven Mayor Adam O’Neal is seeking re-election. He faces a challenge from former Mayor Charles O. Boyette. Incumbents Steve Carawan and Howard D. Moore are seeking seats on the Belhaven Board of Aldermen. Chad Bond and Jay Wilkins filed to run for the board.
In Belhaven, voters will mark ballots to elect a mayor and two aldermen. The mayor serves a two-year term. The town’s five aldermen serve four-year staggered terms. The mayor’s seat and two aldermen’s seats, held by Carawan (East End) and Moore (West End), are up for election this year.
Washington Park Mayor Tom Richter is seeking re-election. Incumbents Horace B. Cowell, Jeff Peacock and Don Wilkinson are seeking re-election to the town’s Board of Commissioners.
The mayor’s seat and each of the five seats on the Washington Park Board of Commissioners are up for grabs, too, this fall, as are the mayor’s seat in Pantego and each of the five seats on the Pantego Board of Commissioners. Mayors and commissioners in Pantego and Washington Park serve two-year terms.
Pantego Mayor Glenda A. Jackson is seeking re-election. Incumbent commissioners Mart Benson, Richard Craig, Robert Edwards and Frances Foreman have filed for re-election.
Clif Williams, an Aurora commissioner, is running to become Aurora’s next mayor, the position now held by Winnie Douglas.
Incumbent Patricia Bragg and John Weeks are running for seats on the Aurora Board of Commissioners.
This year, Aurora voters will pick a mayor to serve a four-year term and two commissioners. Currently, Bragg and Williams occupy the two seats on the four-member Board of Commissioners up for grabs this year. The town’s commissioners serve four-year staggered terms.
Incumbent Jay Hardin is running for a seat on the Bath Board of Commissioners.
This year, Bath voters will elect two commissioners to serve four-year terms on the town’s Board of Commissioners. Currently, those two seats are held by Marty Fulton and Hardin, commissioners serving two-year terms. They were elected to two-year terms instead of four-year terms in 2007 to provide for staggered terms on the board. Bath voters will choose three commissioners and a mayor in 2011 to serve four-year terms.
So far, no candidates have filed for the races in Chocowinity.
Chocowinity voters will mark ballots for a mayor and two commissioners to serve four-year terms on the town’s four-member Board of Commissioners. The mayor’s seat is held by Jimmy Mobley. The seats on the board now held by Louise S. Furman and Billy Albritton are up for grabs. The town’s commissioners serve four-year staggered terms.