Post primary reflection Oconee edition - Hale vs. Wilkes speculative edition

Maria Caudill came in 3rd in Post 3 results Tuesday evening

Congratulations to first time candidate Maria Caudill, who ran a very good campaign for the Oconee County Board of Commissioners Post 3 (but came up a little short with 892 votes, a solid 20% of the electorate),

OC Commission, Post 3

Margaret S. Hale — 1,787 (41.61%)

W.E. "Bubber" Wilkes — 1,616 (37.63%)

Maria Caudill — 892 (20.77%)

13 of 13 precincts reporting

and now Margaret Hale needs to make her and Peggy Holcomb her new best friends for at least the next two months. Margaret is a very nice person, open to discussion on any ideas, and always willing to explain her point of view even if you do not agree with her.

I do not know if there will be any formal endorsements, but I am sure there will be lots of conversations and considerations of which candidate is worthy of your support in two long hot months from now. Bubber led the results early, with Margaret taking over the race later in the evening, which provided some drama in the Board of Elections office (thanks for the chairs this time!).

Peggy Holcomb

The primary run off is Tuesday, July 20, 2014 and the results will hinge on turn out. Both Bubber Wilkes and Margaret Hale can almost automatically subtract their 1,500+ vote totals by a third and concentrate on getting their core supporters to return to the polls again.

The recruitment of the Caudill vote will be a tricky task for both Bubber and Margaret with the perception, however unfair, that Caudill was running as the "anti-Margaret" with a return to the more Chairman oriented Board of Commissioner style of government pre-2010 style, which could help Bubber since he was last elected back before then.

Bubber was first elected to the Board of Commissioners in 1984 and lost to Chuck Horton by 63 votes in 2004.

Margaret Hale and members of her family outside of the Board of Elections office Tuesday night

Bubber also ran and lost for the Board of Commissioners Post 4 in 2012, a seat that Mark Saxon eventually won.

William E. "Bubber" Wilkes

The very ultra-conservative Wilkes could be perceived as one of those perpetual candidates this time around, or could conversely seen as having paid his dues and due a seat (again) or someone whose time has come and past.

Will the forthcoming Run Off be a referendum on which style of governing you prefer better?

Will it swing on old school Oconee Couny (Wilkes) versus relative new school (Hale)?

Will the volunteer fire fighter mother and wife network of Hale out-mobilize and organize the good old boy connections of Wilkes?

Will Oconee County voters ignore this run off race even more than they did in the Primary?

I hope local voters will take full advantage of the early voting period and at least 1,500 voters will cast early and absentee ballots.

I certainly hope bigotry and sexism and the good old boy network will not be the determining factors in this race, but then again, I am a realist about where I live. If you do not vote, you have no reasons to complain, so get out there and be a part of our representative democracy.

You may vote in the run off if you did not vote in the primary, and you have active registered voter status in Oconee County.