Qualified citizens will be back in the voting booth in less than two weeks for runoffs following results in last week’s General Primary Election.
Ware County voters will have no local races to consider, but seven for national and statewide seats when early voting begins Monday, June 8 for the June 16 runoffs. Voting for the runoffs will be from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. through Friday, June 12 at the Ware County Board of Elections and Registration office, 408 Tebeau Street.
Voting will be from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. at 13 county locations the day of the runoffs. You did not have to vote in the primary to be eligible to vote in the runoffs.
In the voting May 19, the two contested county races were won by Jonathan R. Daniell for District 3 on the Ware County Commission and Brandi Waters for District 6 on the Ware County Board of Education.
Daniell, former Ware County Emergency Management Director, collected 462 votes to outdistance Raylan V. Guy (140) for the commission seat. Waters, the incumbent, defeated Dee Meadows, 676-419.
Daniell
Waters
In the race for the Georgia House of Representatives in District 176, which includes Ware County, incumbent Republican James Burchett defeated Michael R. Dockery, 2,636-471 in county voting and 4,554-972 for the fivecounty district.
In a non-binding advisory referendum question, Ware voters rejected a proposal for a perimeter highway around the southern portion of Waycross 2,752-2,398.
The Ware County Board of Elections certified the vote Friday, May 22.
A total of 5,252 votes were cast in Ware for the primary. Of that figure, 2,189 were early, 2,937 on Election Day and 126 by absentee ballot. That total represented 25.38 percent of the county’s 20,697 registered voters.
Ware County Supervisor of Elections Carlos Nelson said voting was “steady” at most locations last week with any lines coming mostly because of the lengthy ballot.
“A lot of people waited to the last minute to make up their minds on a long ballot,” Nelson said. “That made any (waiting) a little longer. It should be much easier for the runoff.”
Daniell will succeed Timmy Lucas when the latter’s term expires December 31. Lucas filed qualifying papers to retain the seat, but had his candidacy voided by the elections board following a hearing April 16 on his qualifying fee.
Lucas was disqualified when the $144 check for his registration fee failed to clear his bank. He could have appealed the ruling to Ware Superior Court, but bypassed the chance.
Topping the list of runoffs is the Republican nomination for governor between Burt Jones and Rick Jackson. Jones, the current Lt. Governor, led the primary voting 357,881-303,402 statewide and 2,174-1,027 in Ware.
