BENTONVILLE -- Election officials say they are ready for the Nov. 29 runoffs in Benton County, but they don't expect a large turnout.
Voters in Rogers, Bella Vista, Garfield and Springdale will decide races for positions on their city councils, with one race in Rogers, Bella Vista and Garfield and two contests in Springdale.
Early voting
Early voting for the Nov. 29 municipal runoffs will be available in the three locations of the County Clerk’s Office in Rogers, Bentonville and Siloam Springs on Tuesday, Wednesday and Nov. 28. Thanksgiving is Thursday and county offices are closed on Friday.
Source: Benton County Clerk’s Office
"I think it will be about normal for a runoff," Russ Anzalone, chairman of the Election Commission, said of his expectations for the runoff. "I would expect Bella Vista to have the heaviest turnout. I would hope we would get 15 percent there. People in Bella Vista vote."
According to the County Clerk's Office, the most recent runoff election for municipal races was in 2014, when voters in Bella Vista chose a new mayor and an alderman. Voters in Rogers, Bentonville, Cave Springs and Lowell also had runoff elections, with 6,657 votes being cast countywide -- a turnout of about 8.7 percent. All registered voters are eligible to vote in the runoff election provided they registered before the deadline, which was Oct. 31 for the runoff.
Anzalone said he expects the overall turnout in the runoff to reach the 8 percent to 10 percent range. John Brown, the Democratic party representative on the commission, said the commission is prepared for a larger turnout but said the tight schedule for early voting and the holiday weekend make that unlikely.
Early voting will be available in the three locations of the County Clerk's Office on Tuesday, Wednesday and Nov. 28. Thanksgiving is Thursday, and county offices are closed Friday.
In Rogers, Jerry Carmichael faces Keith Jackson in the race for the Ward 3, Position 2 seat on the City Council. Carmichael garnered about 42 percent of the vote in the Nov. 8 general election, while Jackson drew 33 percent. Danny Kolman received 25 percent of the vote. A municipal candidate must get 50 percent plus one vote to win a race with more than two candidates.
Carmichael said his task has been to educate voters who may think the election was settled Nov 8.
"A lot of folks haven't really dialed in that there's a runoff," he said. "My job is to educate, to let people know there is a runoff. I'm doing a lot on my website, on Facebook and with emails. For me, it's just getting people to come back out. For most people, the election is over."
In Bella Vista, Linda Lloyd faces Jerry Snow for the Ward 1, Position 1 seat on the City Council. Lloyd received about 46 percent of the votes, while Snow placed second with about 38 percent.
In Garfield, Jim Teeselink faces Leonard Matthew Jr. for the Ward 3, Position 2 seat on the City Council. Teeselink received about 41 percent of the vote in a four-way race Nov. 8, while Matthew received about 22 percent.
In Springdale, Colby Fulfer faces incumbent Eric Ford for the Ward 1, Position 2 seat. Ford received about 42 percent of the vote Nov. 8, and Fulfer had about 41 percent. Incumbent Jeff Watson faces Kathryn Birkhead for the Ward 3, Position 2 seat. Watson received about 40 percent of the vote Nov. 8, while Birkhead received about 25 percent. A portion of Springdale is in Benton County.
NW News on 11/21/2016