Columbus Council District 4 runoff still on after third place finisher stays in race
The Columbus Council District 4 special election runoff that was almost canceled is back on after the second-place finisher dropped out and the third-place candidate decided to stay in.
That means Toyia Tucker will face Elaine Gillespie in the Aug. 11 election involving voters in five of Columbus’ 25 neighborhood voting precincts.
The election will decide who serves the remaining 4½ months in the unexpired term of Councilor Evelyn Turner Pugh, who retired in October 2019 because of poor health.
Valerie Thompson was appointed to serve the district until a special election was held June 9, when Thompson was on the ballot with Tucker and Gillespie. Tucker got 2,534 votes to Thompson’s 2,030 and Gillespie’s 1,046, falling short of the 50% plus one vote needed to avoid a runoff.
But Thompson, pastor of the Revelation Missionary Baptist Church that Tucker attends, didn’t want to face Tucker in the runoff, so on Monday, she sent the county elections board a letter to say she was withdrawing.
Thompson later told the Ledger-Enquirer that serving in Pugh’s place was a “wonderful experience,” but she had not expected to face opposition when she qualified for the special election.
“I’ve always said I didn’t want to run for that office,” she said.
Her withdrawal propelled Gillespie into the runoff, as the candidate next in line.
On Monday, Gillespie told the Ledger-Enquirer that she also would withdraw, but later changed her mind, sending the elections board a letter Friday stating she would stay in.
“After much prayer and consultation with my family and supporters, I have made my decision,” it read. “This memorandum is to notify you that I will remain on the runoff ballot as a candidate for City Council District 4….”
The election is expected to cost the city around $50,000.
Tucker already is to take the seat in January, because the regularly scheduled election for District 4 also was on the June 9 ballot. Thompson didn’t qualify for that race, which pitted Tucker against Gillespie.
Tucker won that election outright, gaining 3,723 votes to Gillespie’s 1,785.
Thompson said another reason she dropped out of the runoff was to let Tucker start serving the district before January: “I want her to step into that seat.”
The five precincts with District 4 voters are Faith Tabernacle, 1603 Floyd Road; St. John AME Church, 3980 Steam Mill Road; Mt. Pilgrim Baptist Church, 4400 Old Cusseta Road; Holsey Monumental CME Church, 6028 Buena Vista Road; and Canaan Baptist Church, 2835 Branton Woods Drive.
The elections board will set the runoff’s early in-person voting schedule during its next meeting on July 2.