Magnolia Ushers in a New Mayor as a Result of the Primary Elections

On Tuesday, April 1st, Magnolia held municipal primary elections for the mayor’s office and four aldermen positions. The fifth alderman position (Ward 4) only had one unopposed candidate.

A total of 371 inperson, 18 absentee, and 3 affidavit votes were recorded - a very light turn-out based on the city’s registered voters total. Although the votes were provided on Tuesday evening, they are not official until certified, and the affidavit votes are counted.

The Magnolia mayor’s race was comprised of two Democrat candidates: Incumbent Tammy Witherspoon and challenger Marvin Brumfield.

Mr. Brumfield acquired a commanding majority of the votes with him unofficially receiving over 263 to Witherspoon’s 118 votes.

Mr. Brumfield ran on a platform of bringing Magnolia citizens together in unity, fixing the city’s infrastructure, being totally transparent in the city’s business and operations, and making sure qualified people were selected for the city’s department leadership and workers.

For Ward 1, “Preacher” Chad Williams defeated Incumbent Becky Magee and challenger Charles White. Unofficial tallies for each candidate were Williams - 50, Magee 41, and White - 3. Ms. Magee congratulated Mr. Williams on his win and committed to work with him to make the transition smooth and provide any needed support going forward.

For Ward 2, Dorothy Dillon defeated Incumbent Clarence Burton by a slim margin of 54 to 52. The win was decided by 2 absentee votes that went to Ms. Dillon to make her the winner.

For Ward 3, there will be a run-off election on April 22 between Cheryl Grady and Theresa Weatherspoon. Neither candidate received greater than 50% of the vote. Unofficial tallies for the candidates were Grady42, Martin - 22, Weatherspoon - 45.

For Ward 4, there was no primary because the incumbent Joseph Cornacchione (Republican) was unopposed.

For Alderman at Large, incumbent Darrell Pounds defeated Jennifer Knox by a total of 282 to 89.

Please note that these totals are unofficial with a final valida- tion check being conducted and also the inclusion of any affidavit votes.

In summary, the voters of Magnolia issued a clear mandate that they want change for the city in the mayor’s office and the City’s Board with 3 of the 5 aldermen being replaced. The residents have indicated that they are looking for better administration of the city’s current management and future. An original sketch by Magnolia artist James Middleton of the voters on Tuesday.