The Tyrrell County Board of Elections has announced that six Democrats, 17 Republicans, one Constitutionalist, and two Libertarians have filed for election to succeed the late Walter B. Jones Jr., U.S. Representative for the Third District, who died Feb. 10.

The party primaries will be held on April 30.

Democratic aspirants are: Ike Johnson of Jacksonville, Dana E. Outlaw of New Bern, Richard Bew of Newport, Ernest T. Reeves of Greenville, Gregory Humphrey of Beulaville, and Allen Thomas of Winterville.

Those seeking the Republican nomination are: Phil Law of Jacksonville, Michele Nix of Kinston, Michael Speciale of New Bern, Greg Murphy of Greenville, Gary Ceres of Greenville, Chimer Davis Clark Jr. of Morehead City, Graham Boyd of Wake Forest, Celeste Cairns of Emerald Isle, Phil Shepard of Jacksonville, Paul Beaumont of Shawboro, Jeff Moore of Raleigh, Joan Perry of Kinston, Kevin Baiko of Moyock, Francis W. De Luca of Cary, Eric Rouse of Kinston, Don Cox of Belhaven, and Mike Payment of Grandy.

Greg Holt of New Bern will be the Constitution Party candidate without primary opposition.

The two Libertarians in that party’s primary are: Shannon W. Bray of Apex and Tim Harris of New Bern.

Candidates wishing to run as “unaffiliated” (independent) have until April 30 to file petitions, according to Wikipedia.

The U.S. Constitution requires a Congressman to be a resident of the state from which he is elected but not necessarily a resident of the district he represents.

Debbie Swain, Tyrrell’s elections director, said Monday that absentee-by-mail requests can be made beginning Mar. 15, and one-stop early voting will be April 10-26 in the elections office in the Courthouse.

Deadline to register to vote in the special elections is April 5 at 5 PM.

The most recent special election in the Third Congressional District was in 1922 following the death of Rep. Samuel M. Brinson of New Bern, who was in office for 37 months.