With qualifying for municipal elections officially ending Tuesday at 5 p.m., area mayoral and city council candidates will have a little more than a month to campaign before election day on Aug. 28.
Two area cities — Dora and Carbon Hill — are sure to have new mayors after the upcoming election because the incumbents decided not to seek re-election.
Chris Hart, current mayor of Carbon Hill, said recent professional changes were the main reason he will not be running.
“For the most part, I’ve enjoyed being mayor,” Hart said. “I’ve enjoyed working for the people of Carbon Hill, and I’ve tried to make a difference here. I feel like we have done a lot in four years.
“I just wouldn’t be doing the citizens justice if I get it and I can’t be here like I need to because of my job,” Hart added. “Maybe later on, I might do it again, but I just can’t do it now. I hope whoever is elected keeps Carbon Hill moving forward.”
In Carbon Hill, no one qualified for District 6 on the city council. City Clerk Kim Sides said the new council will have to appoint a member for District 6 once they take office in November.
Dora Mayor Chris Edwards said demands with his business was one of his reasons for stepping down as well.
“The past four years I have not only been the mayor, but I have continued working in the fire department, kept up a full-time insurance business and had a daughter diagnosed with diabetes,” he said. “My business is how I support my family, so that has to be a priority.”
Edwards said he would continue to volunteer with the city through the fire department and helping the new mayor and council.
“I want to be available to the new mayor and council and hopefully give them the best start possible,” he said. “I just think this is a good time to step away.”
In Jasper, questions about a candidate’s residency has led the Jasper City Council to call a special meeting for 10 a.m. Friday. Specifics of which candidate were not known as of press time. The Daily Mountain Eagle received an email Tuesday evening from Laura Frazier, the city’s executive secretary, announcing the special called meeting.
The candidates for local offices, according to city clerks at the qualification deadline Tuesday, are:
Jasper
Mayor: Donnie Naramore, V.L. “Sonny” Posey and John M “Johnny” Rollins.
Council District 1: Bill J. Cleghorn, Jed Daniel and G. Morris Studdard.
Council District 2: John Randall Dutton, Larry Elliott, D.J. “Danny” Gambrell and Brent E. McCarver.
Council District 3: G. “Gary” Cowen.
Council District 4: Andrew Archie, Jerry Lee Boyd, Allan Brown, Joel G. “Joe” Cooke, Jennifer Williams Smith and Cary “Wes” Wade.
Council District 5: Janelle Hankins, Larry Stewart and Sandra P. “Sandi” Sudduth.
Sumiton
Mayor: Petey Ellis, Ricky Thomas and Dois Cordell
Council District 1: Brian Sides
Council District 2: Kenneth Russell
Council District 3: Joan Yow, Doug Ragsdale and Floyd Burton
Council District 4: Bill Fowler
Council District 5: Valorie Tucker and Diane Martin
Dora
Mayor: John B. Jackson Jr., Henry C. Morgan and Randall “Randy” Stephens.
City Council: Robert Busby, Phillip B. Jones, Richard Lovelady, Clyde Nix, David Ross, Betty Sanders, George Sides Jr., Gary Thomas, Hezikiah Walker and Mason Wallace.
Sipsey
Mayor: Anita Sanders, Helen Henson and Belinda McCain.
Council District 1: Melissa Pearson and Freda Walker Vann.
Council District 2: Latronda Hagler.
Council District 3: Mike Harris.
Council District 4: Stephanie Sanders.
Council District 5: Chris Lollar and Willie Wiley.
Cordova
Mayor: Jack Scott, Drew Gilbert and Randy Fielding.
Council District 1: Theodore Warren Branch and Emily Pinegar Ezelle.
Council District 2: Bradley Grace.
Council District 3: Bobby Busby and Greg Reed.
Council District 4: Ed Earp.
Council District 5: Paul Lawson, Steven Tidwell and Jimmy Kelly.
Council District 6: Sandra Vickery Stricklen and James J.J. Johnson.
Council District 7: Lauren Gilbert Vance.
Parrish
Mayor: Wayne Gross and James Smith Jr.
Council District 1: William Smith
Council District 2: William Banks, Jared “Bubba” Cagle and Alice J. McBee.
Council District 3: John Ivan Poe.
Council District 4: Eric “Dooley” Ollie, Jackie Shanklin and Willie Woods.
Council District 5: Charles Dean and Cedrick Ramsey.
Carbon Hill
Mayor: James “Pee Wee” Richardson, Jacque Roberson Allred and Dorothy L. Stoit.
Council District 1: William F. “Billy” Wright, Joe Killingsworth and Todd Vick.
Council District 2: Anthony L. Hammond, Willie “BB” Clayton and Clarence Colbert.
Council District 3: Terry Mason.
Council District 4: Ken “Sarge” Blakensopp and Scott Wright.
Council District 5: Chris Pschirer.
Council District 6: Vacant.