Six of Seven City Positions up for Election in Alexandria

Alexandria voters will have a chance to elect a mayor and as many as five aldermen in the town’s election on September 3.
Qualifying petitions are now available from the DeKalb County Election Commission. The deadline to get in the race is noon on June 18.
In this year’s Alexandria election, three aldermen are to be elected, each to serve a four year term. Meanwhile, a mayor and two other aldermen are to be elected to fill vacancies or the remaining two years of unexpired terms.
The sitting members are Mayor Tony Tarpley and Aldermen Pat Jackson, David Cripps, John Suggs, and Bennett Armstrong. All are serving as appointees except for Jackson, who was elected in 2013 and still has two years remaining in his term.
Dennis Stanley, Administrator of Elections, addressed the Mayor and Aldermen about this year’s election procedure during their regular monthly meeting Tuesday night. “Your charter states that you elect three aldermen at one time. Two years later you elect three aldermen and a mayor. In 2013 a mayor was elected and resigned later. Pat Jackson was elected aldermen. Two (Alderman) vacancies were filled by the board. According to your city charter, any vacancy filled is until the next municipal election. Your next election is September. What is on the ballot for September will automatically be the three aldermen seats in the regular four year cycle and now two vacancies and the mayor’s spot. You are electing six of your seven people come September. Two of those aldermen seats (and mayor) will be for two years because you’re filling vacancies,” said Stanley.
Candidates will have to let the election commission know if they are seeking a two year or four year position. According to the State (Election) Office, it’s a simple procedure. The ballot and the petitions that are being picked up will identify four year terms and two year terms. When someone picks up a petition, I’ll have to ask which seat are you running for, the four year or two year seat?. When it’s placed on the ballot, it will be described so you’ll know who is a candidate for what,” Stanley said.
Stanley advised city officials to send his office a letter calling for the September 3 election by May 28. “Although your city charter calls for the election and it’s our job to carry out that election, we would like to have a letter from the mayor on behalf of the board asking the election commission to conduct this election come September 3 and we would like to have that letter before May 28 because by law we have to do the first legal advertisement for you before May 28.”
If the election is uncontested, the city could choose to use paper ballots instead of the more expensive election machine voting process. “For small towns like you who have your own stand alone city election, if there is no opposition, you can use paper ballots on election day. If there is opposition we have to use the machine. But you have to make the request when you call the election,” said Stanley.