ELIZABETHTOWN — In canvassing completed Friday morning, all numbers for the Nov. 5 municipal elections in Bladen County were confirmed.
Chris Williams, director of the Board of Elections, also released at the request of the Bladen Journal the list of write-ins. As usually happens, there were a few — President Donald Trump for Elizabethtown Town Council — with little to no serious intent and a few others that were a passing curiosity.
But in Tar Heel, they were important because three commissioner seats needed to be filled and only one commissioner, Sam Allen, filed to retain his seat. Incumbents Freddie Underwood and Angie Hall had the most write-ins, with 10 and 6, respectively.
“Freddie has accepted,” Williams said. “I haven’t heard from Angie Hall.”
He said Roy Dew, who ran unopposed and kept his mayor’s seat, is reaching out to Hall to confirm if she’ll continue on the board of commissioners.
“We have done our hand-eye count, it turned out to be 100 percent perfect,” Williams said of the seven municipalities. “We have finalized all of our count numbers here, and the abstract to vote has been signed. We’ve notarized it.
“I’m going to the state office Monday and will take it with me. I will send a copy to the clerk of court, we’ll keep a copy, and we’ll send one to each municipality.”
In the Tar Heel race, Allen collected 13 votes. The only write-in other than Underwood and Hall was Howard Sessoms, who got one vote.
In addition to two write-ins for Trump to Elizabethtown’s Town Council, Ricky Leinwand and Howell Clark — each on the ballot for council — were write-ins for mayor. So was Dr. Renee Steele, the Elizabethtown Middle School seventh-grade teacher who has since been named a regional finalist for state Teacher of the Year, and Arthur Bullock, a county commissioner.
Not among the write-ins was Crystal Lewis Crumb, who originally filed to run for council but at the time was living outside of the legal town limits. Her name was subsequently not included on the ballot in a decision by the five member Board of Elections. An unconfirmed report indicated since filing but before the election, she had moved within the town limits.
The tally sheet showed Elizabethtown with 12 write-in entries for mayor and six for council. The state board website shows 26 write-ins for mayor, five for council.
Incumbents kept their seats in office, including Mayor Sylvia Campbell and councilmen Leinwand, Clark and Dicky Glenn.
In White Lake, incumbents keeping their seats included Mayor Goldston Womble and commissioners Tom Riel and Tim Clifton. Dean Hilton captured the other vacancy. The write-in list included two for commissioner and a mayoral vote for Hope Campbell, the driving force behind the 19-plus years quest for the new multi-use path.
Bladenboro had five write-ins for commissioner on the tally sheet, nine on the state website. Stephanie Thurman, incumbent Sarah Jane Benson and Mac Bowen were voted to the town commission.
Clarkton, on the tally sheet, had one write-in for mayor and three for commissioner, including Tim Tart. He was on the ballot for mayor, and unseated incumbent Arthur Whedbee. The state website had six write-ins for commissioner.
Dublin had five write-ins each for Lori Hursey as a commissioner and Horace Wyatt to be the mayor. Darryl Dowless ran unopposed for mayor and joined incumbent commissioners David Kirby and David Hursey as Election Day winners.
East Arcadia had no write-ins. Incumbents Perry Blanks, for mayor, and commissioners Horace Munn, Carlee Carter and Rhonda Blanks Hall all ran uncontested.