The Oglethorpe Echo
Arnoldsville city councilman Nick Sanders died the night before Tuesday's election, meaning the other five candidates will fill the five council seats.
Sanders, 64, who joined the city council last year, received 49 votes, the most among the six candidates, said Dana Player, the city clerk who doubled as the election supervisor.
Poll officers were not notified until the evening of Election Day.
“It’s been really sad,” she said.
City attorney Danny Love said since Arnoldsville is “at large,” meaning the city council seats are not tied to districts, the five seats will be filled by the other five candidates. No runoff or special election will occur.
“I think it would be a different story if we had seven or eight people running,” he said. The incoming city council will include Blake Arnold, Norma Craddock, Jack Norman, Joel Kriner and Joyce Sniff.
Craddock, an incumbent, received 38 votes. Norman, also an incumbent, received 40 votes. Arnold received 40 votes, Kriner received 35 and Sniff received 27.
They will serve four-year terms, starting in January.
According to the Official Code of Georgia Annotated 21-2-43, Section G, “In the event of the death of a candidate on the ballot in a nonpartisan election prior to such nonpartisan election, such candidate’s name shall remain on the ballot and all votes cast for such candidate shall be counted.”
Danny Morcom was elected as the next mayor of Arnoldsville, defeating city councilman Danny Sniff 27-22.
Sniff won the special election for interim mayor and will finish the year in office. Morcom will take over as mayor in January.
Only 52 of Arnoldsville’s 297 qualified voters (17.5%) participated in the election, Player said.
Poll officers for early voting and Election Day included Player’s daughter, Haley Player, Pam Aaron, John and Lena Parker, Adam Hill, Kim Bradford, Love and Valery Gillespie.
Love said he believed it has been at least 23 years since Arnoldsville’s last contested general election.