New mayor in Trenton

TRENTON — Three new faces will be on the town board in Maysville alongside a fifth-term and popular mayor.

According to Tuesday’s unofficial vote tallies, Schumata Brown, Janet Baker and Dan Ryan will take their seats on the Maysville town board in December alongside incumbents Bobby Flowers and David Chapman.

“I just want to thank everyone that voted for me,” Ryan said. “I’m looking forward to our first meeting in December.”

Mayor James D. Harper defeated challenger Wayne Sayland for a fifth term in office with 65.5 percent of the vote.

“I’m humbled that the people would come out and support what we’ve done the previous terms and that’s what this vote is for, that they’re satisfied with the progress we’ve made and they anticipate more progress,” Harper said.

In Trenton, Darlene Oakes Spivey, who served as mayor from 2005 to 2007, reclaimed her seat from Mayor Gladys Mae Meadows with 54.6 percent of the vote.

“I’m excited that I won, and I’m excited that we had this many people to turn out to vote,” Spivey said of the 35.1 percent turnout.

Turnout in Maysville was 40.8 percent, while Pollocksville was 24.8 percent.

Spivey said she was looking forward to “getting some things done that’s never been done in Trenton before.”

Town commissioners Robert Horvath and Charles Jones, who ran unopposed, were re-elected. There were 94 votes cast for write-in candidates in the town board race — the highest number — to fill the seat of the late Commissioner Albert Riggs.

There were 13 ballots cast for Riggs.

The write-in vote was also a factor in Pollocksville’s town board race, in which candidates Doris Oliver and Ann Rudd ran unopposed. Oliver, the incumbent commissioner, picked up 44 votes, or 46.8 percent. Rudd picked up 25 votes, but there were also 25 votes cast for write-in candidates.

Incumbent Mayor Jay Bender, who has been in office since 1982, was running unopposed. He picked up 44, or 93.6 percent of the vote. There were three write-in ballots cast.

Jones County Elections Director Gail Lee said the write-in candidates will be known when the final votes are tallied next Tuesday.

David Anderson can be reached at 252-559-1077 or danderson@freedomenc.com.