Georgetown City Councilman Jack Scoville swept the competition in Tuesday’s election, and will be sworn in as the city’s new mayor in January.

Brendon Barber and Paige Sawyer were re-elected to their City Council seats but the top vote getter was newcomer Jeanette Ard, who will take Scoville’s old seat.

In the mayor’s race, Democrat Scoville received 821 votes while write-in candidate Ron Charlton finished in a distant  second with 358 votes.

Petition candidate Bob Sizemore received 205 votes followed by Republican Marty Tennant with 188 votes.

Petition candidate Kizzie Lawson received 181 votes.

The numbers are unofficial until they are certified Thursday.

It was the first time since the 1980s the name Lynn Wood Wilson has not appeared on a ballot.

Wilson served on city council for seven years before he took over as mayor in 1993 when Tom Rubillo stepped down from the position.

That, along with picture-perfect weather are believed to be big factors in the 35-percent turnout, which was somewhat higher than in many off-year elections.

“I am very appreciative,” Scoville said after the final results were posted. “I never thought it would be a slam dunk. I was never ready to say I was the winner until all the votes were counted.”

Scoville said he wants to sit down with council informally in January to decide which issues need to be addressed during his first year as mayor.

In the City Council race, Ard, a Front Street business owner, received 1,050 votes, followed by Sawyer with 866 votes.

Barber picked up 846 votes to finish in third place. The top three vote getters were elected.

Dedric Bonds received 704 votes followed by Jim Moody with 566.

Republican Bruce Yablin got  212 votes.

“I felt pretty confident because I had a cross section of support,” Ard said.

She said she her first priority will be to try to find ways to bring jobs to Georgetown and “streamline city hall.”

Barber said the next four years will be “interesting” as council works to try to “get an infusion going in the economy.”

He said that must involve making the Port of Georgetown more viable.

Sawyer said he will continue to be the “lone conservative on council” and will speak out against taxing and spending.

The issues

With what could possibly be the permanent shut down of ArcelorMittal Steel in Georgetown, as well as the closing of other businesses around the city, money was the main issue of the campaign season.

Whether it was the amount of taxes collected, or how the city has been spending those funds, the newcomers zeroed in on the message that change is needed.

Tennant, late in the campaign season, raised concerns about the amount of money — $14 million  – the city has in reserves.

Another dominating issue was the city’s decision to spend $1.07 million to purchase 18 acres of land on Highway 17 in Maryville for a new fire station.

The public, in letters to the editor, urged support for the various candidates for a smorgasbord of reasons.

Mary Ann Wannamaker said she was backing Sizemore because he was  “instrumental in the formation of a New York Stock Exchange company (PSMC) and served as its Executive Vice President until his retirement in 1991.”

James Jerow was backing Sawyer because he is a “conservative voice on Council.”

Natasha Dones said she cast a vote for Scoville because “he took the time to knock on my door, introduce himself and share his economic plan for the city.”

Tennant received a letter of support from Carolyne Rogerson who said he is “an honest man, a man with integrity, whom we believe will be a valuable asset to the city.”

Long campaign season

The outcome is the culmination of several months of campaigning that began in earnest when the field of candidate was partially set as a result of the June party primaries.

That’s when Scoville came out on top defeating Wilson and then upsetting fellow council member Rudolph Bradley in a runoff two weeks later.

By August, the two petition candidates  — Bob Sizemore and Kizzie Lawson — joined the race.

Charlton announced in September he was seeking the seat as a write-in, causing local political pundits to scratch their heads wondering how having three non-party candidates would impact the election.

For the most part, the campaign season was quiet with two major forums held for all the candidates to share their views.

In September, the GOP Patriot's Club invited all the candidates for mayor and city council to address the voters.

The second forum, organized by former Georgetown County Democratic Party Chairman Jamie Sanderson, was held in October.

The winners will be sworn into office in early January.