Polk County Democrats

INTRODUCTION

Polk County has three municipalities (Columbus, Tryon, and Saluda), plus various townships, some of which overlie the towns and some of which do not. The three towns all have their own governments, and the elections for those officials take place in the odd-numbered years, the only elections that do. The Polk County Board of Elections runs these municipal elections as it does all others, but as a service to the towns, not a requirement of the county or state.

The voting procedures are similar to those for other elections, but there are a number of differences. Most importantly, only people living inside the boundaries of the towns themselves may vote. There are many people with Tryon mailing addresses and registered to vote in Tryon 123 but who don't live inside the town limits and so will not be on the voter rolls for these elections.

The polling places are also different, and, something that is important for polkdemocrats.com, the elections are non-partisan. Candidates run as individuals, and the political parties cannot participate beyond providing basic information such as we are doing here.

A great deal remains to be finalized about this year's municipal elections, and this page will be updated as new information reaches us.The towns typically request that there be absentee voting and one-stop (early) voting as there are for other elections, but they have not yet done so.

DATES

Candidate Filing Dates: Noon, July 1 through noon, July 15, 2011, at the Board of Elections at the Womack Building in Columbus. That window has now closed.

Requesting Absentee Ballots: October 7 through November 1, 2011. In practice, the start date is usually determined by the availability of the ballots, and the BOE will accept ballot requests at essentially any time and just hold them until the ballots arrive. For more information on absentee voting, click here.

Last Day to Register to Vote: 5:00 pm, October 14, but that's largely irrelevant because you can now register and vote on the same day during one-stop (early) voting. However, that option is not open on election day itself, so if you're going to vote on election day you must in fact register by October 14th.

One-Stop (Early) Voting: October 20 - November 5, 2011. For more information on early voting, click here.

Last Day for BOE to Receive Absentee Ballots: 5:00 pm, November 7, 2011.

Election Day: November 8, 2011

OFFICES UP FOR ELECTION

Columbus

The mayor and three council seats are up for election:

   Incumbent Mayor Eric McEntyre (U)

   Incumbent council member Ernie Kan (D)

   Incumbent council member Richard Hall (R)

   Incumbent council member Michael Gage (R)

The candidate filing window has closed, and there are no competitive races in Columbus. Eric McEntyre is running unopposed for mayor, and Ernie Kan and Richard Hall have filed for re-election to their council seats. Republican Michael Gage has declined to seek re-election to his Columbus seat, and former Republican councilman Ricky McAllister has filed for that seat. There are three council seats open and three candidates, so each will be elected.

The Columbus town website is here.

Tryon

The mayor and two council seats are up for election:

   Incumbent mayor Alan Peoples (R)

   Incumbent council member Roy Miller (D)

   Incumbent council member Austin Chapman (R)

The candidate filing window is now closed, and Alan Peoples is running unopposed for re-election as mayor. Roy Miller has filed for re-election, but Austin Chapman is retiring. Two challengers have filed as well: George B. Baker (registered Unaffiliated but usually votes in Republican primaries) and Republican Jim Scott.

The three candidates for council (incumbent Miller, and challengers Baker, and Scott) will contest for the two open seats, with the top two elected. 

The Tryon town website is here.

Saluda

Two city commissioners:

   Incumbent commissioner Leon Morgan (R)

   Incumbent commissioner John Morgan (U)

The candidate filing window has closed, and both Leon Morgan and John Morgan have filed for re-election. In addition, Democrat Lynn Cass has filed to challenge them. Those three will thus contest for the two open seats, with the top two vote-getters elected. 

The Saluda town website is here.

RESULTS

In Tryon, Alan Peoples ran unopposed and was elected Mayor, and incumbent Roy Miller and George Baker won the two council seats, with Miller the top vote-getter.

In Saluda, newcomer Lynn Cass (the top vote-getter) and incumbent Leon Morgan won the two council seats.

There were no contested races in Columbus, and only about 30 people bothered to vote. Mayor Eric McIntyre, incumbents Ernie Kan and Michael Gage and former council member Ricky McAllister were all elected.