A small percentage of voters turned out on Tuesday, Aug. 25, for the Bessemer municipal election.
Of Bessemer’s 17,547 registered voters, only 22 percent deemed it important enough to go vote. The result was that only 3,800 citizens voted.
In the race for Bessemer mayor, incumbent Mayor Kenneth E. Gulley earned 1,809 votes and Louise Alexander received 1,642. They will meet in a runoff election on Tuesday, Sept. 22.
Incumbent District 1 City Councilman Jarvis Collier was re-elected, receiving 252 votes to Michael Knight’s 250.
Incumbent District 3 City Councilwoman Sarah Bell Person was defeated by Cynthia Donald, 416 votes to 222.
In District 4, incumbent City Councilwoman Donna Thigpen defeated challenger Rhonda Brantley, 283 votes to 153.
In District 5, Kelvin Eades defeated incumbent City Councilman Teco Stephens, 303 votes to 223.
In District 6, City Councilwoman Carla Jackson, who received 180 votes, is in a runoff with Valerie Williams, who received 217.
Incumbent District 7 City Councilman Cleo King, who received 266 votes, is in a runoff with Silas Baldwin, who received 191.
In the Bessemer school board election, District 1 candidate Elaine Holifield received 283 votes to David Vance’s 215.
Incumbent District 2 member Terry Dawson lost his school board seat to Remeka Little, 395 votes to 353.
In District 5, incumbent Margie Varner, who received 142 votes, is in a runoff with Omar Chapman, who received 107.
In District 6, there is a runoff between Grover Dunn, who received 230 votes, and Darryl Aikerson, who received 217.
In District 7, Lee Jones defeated Carolyn Hudson Wilson, 310 votes to 219.
These are unofficial results.
