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BILL STUDENC PHOTO
Outgoing Marshall Alderman Joha Dodson and newly
elected Alderman Iverson Bradley check early election
results Tuesday night.
Marshall Selects W ard,
Niles, 2 New Aldermen
By BILL 8TUDENC
Editor
Anita Ramsey Ward won her se
cond term as mayor of Marshall,
defeating challenger Raymond
"Eugene" Moore by 84 votes during
municipal balloting Tuesday.
Ed "Doc" Niles was the only one of
three incumbent aldermen to win re
election, as Marshall voters selected
Iverson Bradley and Jackie Davis to
the seats held by Paye Reid and John
Dodson.
According to unofficial results an
nounced shortly after 10 p.m. Tues
day, Ward collected 251 votes to
Moore's 167.
Bradley, district manager of
French Broad Electric Membership
Corp. in his first attempt at running
for public office, surprised even
himself by emerging as the election's
top vote-getter.
Bradley collected 277 votes, while
Davis grabbed 225 to easily take the
second seat on the Board of
Aldermen. Niles, with 173 votes, edg
ed out fellow incumbent Reid, who
finished with 167, by a mere six votes.
Dodson finished farther off the pace
with 148 votes.
Former Marshall Mayor Betty
Wild gathered 116 votes in her bid to
win an alderman's position, while
former alderman and longtime town
employee James "Booth" Marler
finished with 98 votes.
A large crowd gathered outside
Town Hall for two-and-a-half hours
while election officials handcounted
the ballots cast Tuesday.
Bradley and Davis quickly emerg
ed as the front-runners in the
aldermen's race, while Niles and
Reid were neck-and-neck throughout
the evening for the third alderman's
seat.
The counting continued until about
10 p.m., followed by the computation
of the final tally by election officials.
A very happy Ward hugged Mar
shall Town Clerk Linda Dodson after
she learned that she had won re
election.
"I've got a lot of friends, that's all I
can say," Ward said. "I've got a lot of
friends."
Unless a canvass of election results
later this week changes the outcome,
the Marshall Board of Aldermen will
have two new members.
"I think they both (Bradley and
Davis) want to work on problems we
now have, plus try to bring industy
in," Ward said. "In the coming years,
we need to work on recreation and try
to make this town grow."
-Continued on Page t
Anita Ward
...wins second term
Lasher Wins Re-Election In Weaverville
By MICHELLE WYATT
Newt Record Correspondent
WeavervilJe voters returned in
cumbent Mayor Reese Lasher to of
fice for a second term by a surpris
ingly large margin over challenger
David "Bud" Bell.
Lasher, an accountant with the
firm Gregg & Lasher, outdistanced
Bell, an incumbent WeavervilJe coun
cilman, 448 votes to 140, according to
unofficial results Tuesday night.
Voters also returned incumbent
councilmen Harold Payne and Ber
nard Koesters to office, but failed to
re-elect incumbent Kathleen Young.
Newcomers Ann Williams,
Franklin D. Spears and Ronnie
"Butch" Davis will join Payne and
Koesters on the Weaverville Town
Council for the next two years.
In the councilman's race, Payne
was the top vote-getter with 444 votes
to win his third consecutive term
Williams, president and manager of
Williams Construction Co., finished in
second place in her first bid for public
office, grabbing 420 votes.
Spears, a retired wildlife officer,
finished a close third in his first elec
tion bid, with 417 votes. Davis, a
salesman for Phil Mechanic Con
struction Co. , also Involved in hig.fjcst
campaign, finished with JWfoter
Koesters collected 376 votes to takr
the fifth Town Council seat atfid his se
cond consecutive term. ^
Young finished with 276 votes, ac
cording to unofficial results - 100 shy
of a third term on the council.
Bonnie Capps, co-owner of Brown's
Floral and Gift Shop, received 269
votes in her first bid for public office.
After the votes were tallied Tues
day night, Lasher said he was
pleasantly surprised with the way
things went.
"The election was pretty satisfy
ing, not only to win, but the margin
that I won by," Lasher said. "People
see our progress as something that
everyone can share. I hope I can live
4JO.to the margin of victory and the
voters" confidence '
Lasher said he was more pleased
with this year's victory than when he
first won election.
"To be elected in 1985 was exciting.
To be re-elected is much more grati
fying," he said. "Thanks to all the
people for their confidence in me."
Lasher said the next two years
should be busy ones.
"I don't plan to rest on my laurels,"
he said. "The projects that I have in
itiated will continue. I look forward to
working with my new council."
Bell, after learning of his defeat,
expressed congratulations to Lasher.
"I see that the people want him in
office," said Bdl, who retired from
the town's water, sewer and streets
departments with nearly 27 years of
experience
Among the councilmen, Payne said
he will be concentrating on water pro
blems and the town police depart
ment during the coming yean.
"But most of all, I feel we need to
be more responsive to the taxpayers
and the citizens," he said.
Spears and Davis agreed that the
police department will require im
mediate attention of the council,
while Williams said she wants to help
Weaverville obtain its own perma
nent water supply.
Koesters, who in 1985 was aligned
with Lasher's campaign, said he was
pleased that he won re-election.
"I'm excited about the turnout," he
said. "Personally, I was running on
my own. It (re-election) reflects sup
port for me as an individual."
Election results are unofficial until
certified by the Buncombe County
Board of Elections.
Reese Lasher
...re-elected in Weaverville
Godwin Is Mars Hill Mayor;
Slagle, Willis Join Board
By ROBERT T. KOEN1G
Special to The New* Record
Retired college professor Dr.
Joseph Godwin scored an overwhelm
ing victory Tuesday in the Mara Hill
mayoral election.
Godwin outpolled William E.
Powell III 289-48 in the unofficial
count held in Town Hall following the
close of the polls.
Godwin will succeed Mara Hill
Mayor Owen Tilson in December.
Tilson, who served four non
consecutive terms as mayor, did not
seek re-election
Joining Godwin on the Board of
Aldermen will be Clayton Slagle,
Clayton Willis and incumbent alder
man John L. Chandler.
According to the unofficial returns,
Chandler led field of four candidates
with 272 votes. Slagle and Willis won
seats on the three-member board
with 222 and 219 votes, respectively.
Eddie Pox, Madison County
Emergency Medical Service direc
tor, finished fourth in the balloting
with 186.
Good weather contributed to a
heavy turnout for a town election. Of
ficials estimated that 76 percent of
the town's eligible voters cast ballots
Tuesday.
Godwin's overwhelming victory
was apparent early to the 30 spec
tators who attended the vote count
Municipal election chairman Walter
Smith called out the individual paper
ballots. Godwin received the first 11
votes Smith read and compiled a 9-1
margin through the first 100 ballots
Complete unofficial returns show the
former psychology professor receiv
ed nearly 86 percent of the vote.
The mayor-elect did not attend the
countout at town hall. Contacted at
his home Tuesday night, Godwin said
the town's sewer system would be his
first priority. Saying, "There's no
reason in the world for our sewer
rates to be as high as they are," God
win said the system would receive his
immediate attention.
Godwin said he would push to have
31 homes in the trailer park operated
by C.N. Willis added to the town's
sewer system.
Godwin was an unsuccessful can
didate for the Madison County Board
of Education in 1986. Tuesday's
municipal election was his second
campaign for public office.
Godwin is a professor of psychology
emeritus with Mars Hill College,
where he taught for more than 18
years prior to his retirement in 1983
For the past nine years he has served
as the pastor of the Pleasant Gap
Baptist Church in Yancey County
Joseph Godwin
...Mara Hill's m mayor
Commenting on his election, God
win said "I personally went to every
home in town and carried my pro
gram t<^ the people."
Godwin and the aldermen will be
sworn into office in December.
Pre-Election Letter Criticizes&urrent
Mars Hill Mayor Tilson , Alderman
By EMMA
News Rec?
An expected
WAMBLE8
UK"
con
_ Mars
Mayor Owen TUaon and the man
who formerly held that position (ailed
to Materialise at Moaday night's
meeting of the Mars Hill Board of
? ? r~? r -
sos&ssu
Former Mayor William PoweU had
helped obtain information contained
In letters circulated in Mars Hill
ling several expenditures
r the board duriqf TUsons ad
i in the town.
to
t c
streets directly serving eight houses.
None of the streets were discussed or
paving projects approved at open
meetings, the letter states.
Tilson. directing his remarks to
Powell at Monday's meeting said
that the board had authorised him to
supervise beautificatton projects
throughout the town - including the
grading and paving of designated
streets.
1}laon cited the minutes of a Jan. M
meeting, at which the beard made
Chandler denied that he has any
connection to Fox's campaign, and
said that whoever has accused him of
politicking for Pox was lying.
Chandler said he enjoys living in
Mars Hill and feels it is time for
hottilities to cease <
Powell had sent similar letters,
distributed to residents with
Asheville Citixen newspaper boxes, in
April criticizing the Tilson ad
turned in
to *1 sen Tilson
talked with engineer
In other action, the Man Hili Board
of Aldermen heard a report from
Boone on the town's on-going spillway
and sewer Una projects.
Boone told the board that he had
??Gary McGUl,
verbal approval for
U* town to proceed with the letting of
bids on botk projects.
The town has agreed to a >173,150
project to replace leaking sewer lines
on the Mars full College a, pus.R*
from gutters
be*get
and has
of operating the
?lent plant, town of
Hot Springs
Re-Elects Ramsey
By Wide Margin
By EMMA LOU WAMBLES
News Record Correspondent
Voters in Hot Springs went to the
polls Tuesday and chose to reseat
their incumbent mayor, Kenny
Ramsey, by a wide margin.
Ramsey, owner of the Trail Cafe
and an emergency medical techni
cian with Madison County, received
187 votes to win his second term as
Hot Springs mayor
Write-in candidate Gerald Cioli
polled 75 votes, according to unof
ficial returns Tuesday night.
Cioli had originally filed as a can
didate in the mayoral race, but
withdrew, only to later re-enter as a
write-in candidate.
Jerry Shelton also received two
write-in votes in the mayor's race.
In the race for aldermen. Hot Spr
ings postmaster Bill Whitten was the
front-runner, taking 162 votes. Ruth
Smith, the only female in the race,
ran a close second to Whitten, with
159 votes.
Wesley Staude, the only incumbent
aldermen running in this year's
municipal election, finished third
with 136 votes The? victory gives
Kenny Ramsey
...snrvives write-in campaign
" \
Cioli said that although he didn't
win, he is still willing to serve the
town of Hot Springs.
"I lost. It's the will of the people,'
Cioli said "I wish the best to Kenny
Ramsey I want to thank the people
for the statement of welcome to an
newcomer If I can be of service to
the town in any way, Fd be happy to
Beat of luck to Ruth Smith."
Election results will not be official
until a canvass later this week.
t> III Its
ftom \1 ,wn* I
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