Cornelia Ward 1 voters have chosen the commissioner to succeed the late Wesley Dodd on the Cornelia City Commission: Mark Reed.
Reed will replace Jeff Wilson, who was appointed to the Ward 1 seat about a month after former Commissioner Wesley Dodd’s passing in September of 2021.
RELATED: Remembering Cornelia Commissioner Wesley Dodd
Mark Reed, who previously ran for the Ward 1 seat and sought to be appointed following Dodd’s death, will now take a seat on the commission.
Poll workers say it was a slow day at the Habersham Community House, where voters cast their ballots. Just three hours before the polls closed, poll worker Izac Martin says 73 people had voted in the election. By the end of the day, 127 people had cast their ballots. But he says that’s a decent number for a single-ward municipal election.
A total of 151 people voted in the election, with 17 voting early, 7 voting by absentee ballots and 127 people voting at the polls. Just 22 percent of the ward’s registered voters cast ballots in the election.
“We’ve seen a lot of people showing up to do their civic duty,” Cornelia Poll Manager Derick LaPerriere said. “Locals … are trying to make sure the citizenry’s voice is heard.”
