Incumbent mayors in both Taylor and Waldo were ousted in Tuesday’s runoff elections, making way for a new city leader in each municipality.
In Waldo, challenger Kenneth Eugene Haupt defeated Mayor Patricia Doss Glover by a total vote of 155-121. Haupt also received a larger share of the Nov. 6 general election tally, when he received 138 votes to Glover’s 101.
In Taylor, new Mayor-Elect Clifford Page defeated incumbent Mayor Charles Matlock 105 votes to 90 votes. In November, Matlock received 93 votes, while Page netted 82 votes.
Early voting totals in Waldo saw Haupt receive 26 votes, while Glover had 25. There was also one provisional ballot cast for Haupt.
That left 128 ballots cast for the mayor-elect on Tuesday and 92 for Glover. The incumbent also received four absentee ballots.
Taylor’s early vote count totalled 22 votes, with Page receiving seven votes, while Matlock received 15. One absentee ballot was also cast in Taylor for the eventual winner. On Tuesday, 97 votes were cast for Page, while 75 voted for Matlock.
With the voters making a change in Waldo and Taylor, the 2018 elections have seen three towns in Columbia County elect new mayors. In Emerson, Joe Mullins defeated Janice Curtis in November by a total vote count of 77 to 14.
McNeil and Magnolia both retained their mayors when Teresa Triplet and Parnell Vann, respectively, ran unopposed in their races.
The new officeholders will begin their terms Jan. 1, 2019.