Robbinsville – The majority of candidates wishing to file for local races held out until the final stretch before submitting their paperwork.
When The Graham Star went to press last week, just five names had been tossed in the hat for both the Graham County boards of commissioners and education races. Three seats are up for grabs on each.
Filing closed at noon Friday and the list had grown significantly: 16 candidates will prepare for the March 5 primary.
Voters will have the following options on the Graham County Board of Elections’ new Printelect machines in the primary:
Board of Commissioners
* Democrat: Machelle Crisp.
* Republicans: Aaron Bradley, Lynn Cody (incumbent), Connie Orr (incumbent), Gina Shuler, Meggan Smith and Jeremy Wiggins.
* Unaffiliated: Thomas Blevins and Thomas Menard.
Board of Education
* Republicans: Jonathan Allison (incumbent), Eddie Howell, Pam Knott (incumbent), Rodney Nelson (incumbent) and Corey Snider.
* Unaffiliated: Robert Anderson and Coy Buchanan.
Of note, commissioner Keith Eller did not file for re-election, which guarantees at least one new commissioner after the general election.
Unaffiliated candidates in both races must collect enough signatures via petition to get on the ballot. The number of signatures vary by county population; in Graham, roughly 250 are required.
Dates to remember
* Friday, Jan. 19: Primary absentee ballots due out.
* Friday, Feb. 9: Voter registration deadline.
* Thursday, Feb. 15: One-stop voting begins.
* Saturday, March 2: One-stop concludes.
* Tuesday, March 5: Primary Election Day.
* Thursday, March 7: Hand-to-eye/sample audit
* Thursday, March 14: Provisional meeting.
* Friday, March 15: Canvassing.