Elections Tuesday

WINSTON COUNTY -  The future of municipal government in three locations in Winston County will be decided this Tuesday, Aug. 26, when voters head to the polls to cast their ballots for their choice of such vital offices as mayor and council.
The city of Haleyville and the towns of Double Springs and Lynn each will have races on their respective ballots for the elections next week, according to election officials in those areas.

Haleyville having largest mayoral election in several years

The city of Haleyville is facing its largest municipal election since at least 2008, said Clerk and Elections Manager Christy Harbin.
Those qualifying for mayor include incumbent Ken Sunseri, mayor of the city since 2008, as well as current council member Dr. Ray Boshell, who was mayor of the city back in 1996, Harbin stated.
Other  candidates for mayor include Valeria Mae Buchanan Taylor and Brandy Chrysler, Harbin added.
The two city council seats with opposition are places 2 and 3.
Place 2  candidates are Cade Lewis and Samantha Thomas. The incumbent for that seat, Drew Thrasher, chose not to seek reelection, Harbin stated.
Place 3 candidates are  Colton Corum and Lee Dobbs. Incumbent Blue Russell did not seek reelection.
Unopposed for council place 1 is Todd Barton. Julie “Boo” Brooks, who is the incumbent for that seat, is unopposed for the place 4 seat, which is currently being held by Boshell.
Incumbent Brian Berry is unopposed for council place 5, Harbin said.
“This is a very important election. A lot of people have a lot of opinions,” Harbin stressed. “If you want to make sure your opinion is heard, it’s your job to get out and vote.”
Polling sites at each of the polling sites within municipalities having elections, will be open on election day 7 a.m. until 7 p.m.
Voters arriving at their respective polling sites to vote on election day should have ready a form of picture identification or driver’s license, before they will be allowed to receive a ballot and vote, election officials emphasized.
 Polling sites for the city of Haleyville are Neighborhood Facilities Building and Senior Center, Harbin stated.

Municipal election polling sites differ from city school board election

Harbin explained the elections on Aug. 26 are only for municipalities or cities, meaning “you have to be inside the municipal city limits of Haleyville to either run for office or vote in this election,” Harbin stated. “It’s only for people who live inside the city limits.”
The other neighboring polling sites, such as Delmar, Pebble and Needmore, that vote in the city school board elections, will therefore not vote in the municipal or city election, Harbin further explained.
These polling sites vote in the city school board election, because they are not inside the Haleyville city limits, but are in the school district of Winston County, Harbin said. 
“The school district goes out farther than the city limits does,” she noted.

Races for Double Springs mayor, council seats

There will also be an election for the town of Double Springs, with incumbent for mayor Elmo Robinson not seeking reelection. This will be the largest mayoral race for that town in the last 18 to 20 years, town officials have said. 
Qualifying for mayor are former police chief Kim Miller, who is currently on the town’s water board. Miller will face opponent Neil Nielsen, making his first run for the office of mayor in Double Springs, noted Town Clerk Whitney Courington.
Three candidates are seeking the town council place 3 seat, with incumbent Hobby Walker not seeking reelection, Courington added. 
Place 3 candidates include Kathy Cole, Travis Fichtner and Mark Taylor, a former police officer.
Tim Cockell, incumbent for town council place 1, is unopposed, along with Brittney Tucker, incumbent for place 2, Andy McSpadden, incumbent  for place 4 and Adam Veal, incumbent for place 5, Courington said.
“If you are a registered voter in the town limits and live within the city limits of Double Springs, make sure they come out and vote,” Courington emphasized. “It’s an important race.”
The polling site for the town of Double Springs will be the municipal building on Highway 195, according to Courington.

Two council seats up for election in Lynn

The town of Lynn will also have an election due to people qualifying, stated clerk Marcia Manasco.
Although Earl Gilbert, incumbent for mayor, is running without opposition, the same is not true for two council seats, Manasco stated.
Town council place 1 candidates include incumbent Allen Barnett and Fred Easley, former mayor and former council member, Manasco stated.
Council place 2 qualifiers include incumbent Chris Little, who will face Sharon Bell, Manasco added.
The remainder of the council seats are incumbents without opposition, including Tommy Chambless for place 3, Brian Heck for place 4 and Daniel Dodd for place 5, according to Manasco.
Polling site for the town of Lynn is their new community center building off Highway 5.
“This is the first municipal election that has been held at the new community center,” Manasco stated.  “We have had one presidential election there, but this will be our first municipal election at the new community center.”
Manasco urged voters to turn out and support local candidates in the upcoming election.
“We need everyone to be more interested in what’s going on at the town,” Manasco stated. “We’d like a big turnout. We’d like for everyone to come and vote on August 26, and vote for who they think will do the best job for the town.”
Manasco recalled there was a low voter turnout for the town’s last election four years ago.
“This election, we would like to have more people come and vote,” Manasco added. 
“It’s a very important election. The council members make the decisions for the town, and it’s very important that the right people are elected and put in place,” Manasco pointed out.

Deadlines approaching on absentee voting

The last day a person can request an absentee ballot in person, or hand deliver an application, in order to vote in the Aug. 26 municipal elections, is  5 p.m. tomorrow, Thursday, Aug. 21, officials reminded.
Those voting absentee need to go to the town hall in their respective city or town where they are qualified to vote and request an absentee ballot and complete an application with the election manager, verifying that person is on that city or town’s polling list.
The elections manager can accept in hand an absentee ballot by mail until noon on election day, Tuesday, Aug. 26, election officials added.
The last day to request an absentee ballot by mail is Aug. 19, officials said. 
The following is the process of voting absentee for any municipality in the upcoming elections:
Beginning Aug. 18, anyone voting absentee in the municipal election  and producing a current form of ID shall be issued a provisional ballot, according to the 2025 Municipal Election Calendar.
Those voting absentee can request an application, or send someone to the town hall to receive it for them, but the absentee application must be hand delivered to the clerk or mailed to the respective town hall in the city or town where the election will be held, officials said.
Any absentee applicant  who has not included a copy of acceptable ID but is otherwise qualified to vote, shall be issued a provisional ballot beginning on Aug. 18.
Campaign, political sign restrictions
No campaign or political signs will be allowed within 30 feet of the entrance of a polling site, according to the election laws manual.
Candidate signs also cannot be placed on public right-of-ways or on private property, without the consent of the property owner, election officials noted.
Also, it is a Class A misdemeanor for one voter to take a photo of another voter’s ballot in a manner to expose its contents, emphasized election officials.