Columbus Council District 9 citywide race heads to runoff. Complete election results

Columbus Councilor John Anker and dentist Cathy Cook will compete in a runoff June 16 after no candidate received a majority of the vote during Tuesday’s election.

With a 6-3 vote in March 2025, the council appointed John Anker to the seat the same day former Councilor Judy Thomas resigned for health reasons.

Tuesday night’s results show Cook topping the four-person field with about 37% of the vote. Anker was in second place with about 35% of the vote. Rocky Marsh and John Van Doorn finished third and fourth, respectively.

The Muscogee County Board of Elections and Registration will meet to certify the results next Tuesday.

Emphasizing that she was not a “career politician,” Cook campaigned on supporting incentives for grocery store development in underserved areas, expanding affordable housing and prioritizing small-business growth.

Cook was “excited and optimistic and hopeful and proud” after the results of Tuesday’s election came in, she told the Ledger-enquirer.

“I’m hopeful about winning this seat,” she said. “I’m excited, and we’re celebrating all the work that we’ve done, all the doors we’ve knocked on, all the calls, all the texts and all the connections that we’ve built. . . We’ve heard from people — appeals that they’ve made and problems that we want to solve.”

Anker, founder and president of Ankerpak, is now running as an incumbent for the seat, campaigning on fiscal responsibility and lowering the millage rate.

While he knew there was a chance the election could head to a runoff, Anker told the Ledger-Enquirer, he didn’t set his expectations for it.

“It’s up to the people,” he said. “I think it’s a healthy process for people to get out and vote. That matters a lot. There is a lot on the line: people’s cost of living. That has everything to do with the way we spend money, the way we tax people and the way we serve people.”

U.S. Army veteran Rocky Marsh promised to strengthen communication and trust between the local government and the community, campaigning on greater transparency with regular updates and accessible forums.

John Van Doorn, a Valdosta State University visiting political science professor, also campaigned on rebuilding trust in the local government, promising neighborhood meetings and more accountability for public servants.

All four candidates ran in the special election and the regular election for the District 9 seat. The city charter requires a special election to fill the vacancy because Anker was appointed until a special election could be held and certified.

So the winner of the special election will be sworn in after the result is certified, and the winner of the regular election will be sworn in after the four-year term expires in January.

Complete results

10:09 p.m. (Complete reporting, according to the Muscogee County Elections and Registration Office)

Regular election:

1. Cook - 13,308 (37.36%)
2. Anker - 12,476 (35.03%)
3. Marsh - 6,605
4. Van Doorn - 3,231

Special election:

1. Cook - 13,389 (37.57%)
2. Anker - 12,316 (34.46%)
3. Marsh - 6,715
4. Van Doorn -3,215

9:18 p.m. (with 13 of 25 precincts reporting, according to the Muscogee County Elections and Registration Office)

Regular election:

1. Cook - 10,888
2. Anker - 8,527
3. Marsh - 5,230
4. Van Doorn - 2,314

Special election:

1. Cook - 10,919
2. Anker - 8,436
3. Marsh - 5,347
4. Van Doorn - 2,295

7:20 p.m. (Advanced and absentee vote totals from the Muscogee County Elections and Registration office)

Regular election:

1. Cook - 8,902
2. Anker - 6,059
3. Marsh - 4,172
4. Van Doorn - 1,680

Special election:

1. Cook - 8,950
2. Anker - 5,981
3. Marsh - 4,236
4. Van Doorn - 1,647

This story was originally published May 19, 2026 at 7:58 PM.

Brittany McGee

Columbus Ledger-Enquirer

Brittany McGee is the community issues reporter for the Ledger-Enquirer. She is a 2021 graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she earned her bachelor’s degree in Media and Journalism with a second degree in Economics. She began at the Ledger-Enquirer as a Report for America corps member covering the COVID-19 recovery in Columbus. Brittany also covered business for the Ledger-Enquirer.