WINDSOR – Even with a holiday and a hurricane bearing down on the area, the Bertie County Board of Education race is starting to get hotter than July.

All three seats up for election this November will be contested, and all three incumbents will be seeking to return to their posts. A flurry of late filing took place this past week as four candidates – including one incumbent – filed in just the past four days; and there are still remains a little more than 48 hours as of this (Saturday) morning before the Monday noon filing deadline.

Incumbent Ricky Freeman, who had hinted that he might not seek another term on the school board, filed on Tuesday to run again in November as the board’s representative for District 2.

Freeman, who resides on Cooper Hill Road, will be opposed for the District 2 seat by Carolyn “Jo” Davis Johnson, a former educator from Merry Hill.  Johnson filed to run one day prior to Freeman’s filing.

Then, before the Board of Elections office closed Thursday for the holiday weekend, Niki Ruffin of Hexlena filed to run for the seat representing District 3.  That seat is currently held by the school board chairwoman, Emma Johnson of Aulander.  Johnson had earlier filed seeking a third term.

Earlier in June, three candidates filed for the school board seat for District 4, including incumbent Alton Parker.  The other two candidates who will oppose him are former Bertie High School football coach Clarence B. “Barry” McGlone and Bryan Akeem Ruffin.  Both the opposition candidates hail from Lewiston-Woodville while Parker is from Kelford.

Also filing were the current occupants of the two seats on the Bertie County Soil and Water Conservation District Board of Supervisors. Those seats are currently held by Robert Hoggard and James Pugh; and both have filed for re-election.

Filing ends at 12 noon on Monday, July 7.