Well, that's over. The vote is in, the people have spoken, and most of the individuals who will be governing our city for the next four years have been chosen. Since I was running for one of those seats, I suppose I had greater interest than most, and that I have in the past. If you're interested, here's my take on how it played out:
MAYOR- Incumbent Mayor John Gayle vs. former Fire Chief J.D. Rice
Valdosta had an historic chance to elect it's first African-American mayor, as former Fire Chief, J.D. Rice was well known, and well liked in the community. He ran on a message of public transportation and "out of the box" thinking in bringing jobs to the city. The Mayor ran on his doing a good job in his first term, and that he'd continue to do a good job if reelected, and he'd like to see public transportation, too.
Gayle and Rice blanketed the city with campaign signs. They appeared at all the forums, and who knows how many meet-and-greets. It looked to me that J.D. had a formidable campaign, and had a great ground crew of volunteers, who were attending numerous events, and I assumed were canvasing neighborhoods like locusts on a corn field. I think Mayor Gayle was concerned, because in the later days of the campaign, I saw his billboards go up and him appear in TV ads. It is said he outspent J.D. nine to one.
While all that is important in a campaign, in the end, it's all about getting your voters to the polls. And in the end, Mayor Gayle prevailed with 2828 votes, to J.D.'s 2414, a margin of 414 votes.
First, seriously, only 5242 people in our city voted?! That's under 25% of registered voter in the city, i.e., not even one in four citizens turned out to vote for the people to govern them in the closest government that affects them. Secondly, from my viewpoint, I thought J.D. was going to get around four thousand votes. That didn't happen, and Mayor Gayle won with 52.4% of the vote.
Congratulations, Mayor Gayle. Do us proud.
City Council
District 5- Incumbent Tim Carroll vs. Dallas Bennett
Dallas was quick to blanket his district with his yard signs, but was slow to appear at the forums. Tim was at every one that came along. Most importantly, Tim is well known, and well liked. Not sure if it appeared on TV, but I saw an ad for Tim via YouTube.
Tim Carroll won with 85% of the vote, 1431 to 234.
Congratulations, Tim. Do us proud.
District 3- Incumbent Sonny Vickers vs. Marion Ricco Ramsey.
It's not easy to run against an institution like Sonny Vickers, and when the campaign got in full swing, Sonny had his signs everywhere. Mr. Ramsey got his out in the district, and on election day, all around the polling place. The interesting thing was, Sonny seemed to get a respect for him, and even offered, if reelected, to make him his "liaison to the community." Sonny won reelection 337 to 213, with 61% of the vote.
That leaves Ramsey with 39%, which I think very respectable running against Sonny Vickers. I hope Marion takes Sonny up on his offer, and that Sonny does it. Marion Ricco Ramsey didn't make it this time, but could very well be District 3's councilman when Sonny decides to call it quits, perhaps nect time around. He may very well be Valdosta's future.
Congratulations, Sonny! Do us proud.
District 1- Incumbent James Wright vs. Vivian Miller-Cody and Bishop Wade McCrae
This was a hard fought battle. There were yard signs everywhere, mostly for James Wright, but Vivian and Wade were also prevalent. Vivian is a fireball, and one has to admire her passion. She had a great ground game, and came out on top: Vivian Miller-Cody 417, Wade McCrae 247, James Wright 226. Since she didn't get 50% of the vote, Vivian will go to a runoff election December 1 against Wade McCrae. Yep, that means incumbent James Wright was voted out after three terms.
Congratulations, Vivian for placing on top. Unfortunately, you got another round to go. Just keep doing what you've been doing, and I think you'll win. I'm sorry, Wade. You're a good man, but there's just something about TWO African-American women on the City Council that just appeals to me.
City Council At-Large- Incumbent Ben Norton versus Linda Jurczak and Ronnie Pierce and Jim Parker and Gregory Williams, Jr.
This was my race. Five candidates is unusual for a race. It was basically four opponents to the incumbent Ben Norton. We, opponents, had to realize we split any vote against Ben Norton, and we had to hope to keep Ben to under fifty percent, come in second, and go to a runoff. I saw a TV ad for Ben the Friday before Election Day. In the end, Ben Norton won reelection, 2843, Ronnie Pierce 1098, Gregory Williams, Jr. 446, Linda Jurczak 378, Jim Parker 274 (ouch!). Ben Norton won reelection with fifty six percent of the vote.
Congratulations, Ben. Do us proud.
Conclusion
Five city government seats were up for reelection. If Valdosta citizens had so chosen, they could have changed their governance. Four were reelected, which suggests more of the same. One change may occur. If Vivian prevails against Bishop McCrae, we will have two African-American women on the City Council. Something about that thought makes me feel good.
I'll be honest, I was hoping to be second, but began to think Ronnie Pierce was running a good campaign, and that he could make into second (which he did). I give my congratulations to Gregory Williams, Jr for coming in third, besting me by 172 votes. You might also be the future of Valdosta with Marion Ricco Ramsey. I encourage you to tie into the community. Get to know intimately the various neighborhoods throughout the city. Imho, you're a good, intelligent young man, with a heart toward his community. That's my definition of a city elected official. And Kudos to Linda Jurczak. You bested me by over a hundred votes
To my immediate opponents: Congratulations, you kicked my butt. But I think I made you work harder for it. :) I ask you all to keep at it. Keep your eyes on the city and its government, and continue to bring what you each has to offer to the table, and together we can make Valdosta a Strong Town.
