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There’s a wise old adage that says the early bird gets the worm.

The same idea applies to early voting.

Riding a wave of popularity among the 10,876 ballots cast in Hertford County during the early voting period, incumbents Eddie Hall and J. Wendell Hall each earned another four-year term on the local non-partisan Board of Education.

According to the unofficial results of Tuesday’s General Election, Eddie Hall topped the voting in this eight-person race for two seats on the board. He received 3,262 votes while J. Wendell Hall was named on 3,045 ballots to earn the second seat.

The duo combined to receive 4,700 votes during the 13-day early voting period (2,354 for E. Hall and 2,363 for J. W. Hall). To show the impact of that preference of casting a ballot, J. Wendell Hall was clinging to a narrow 614-to-590 lead over third-place finisher Ray Faircloth Jr. prior to the early votes being added to the Election Day totals on Tuesday night. E. Hall had 856 votes by that same point.

Faircloth had 1,683 early votes to bring his overall total to 2,308.

The other candidates, in order of finish, were Caroline Eure (1,965), Rodney O. Tann (1,274), Tiffanty Stephens (1,105), Jerri Jones Duck (1,093), and Dorian Daniels (963).

The remaining votes for each candidate were absentee by mail ballots: E. Hall (52), J.W. Hall (68), Faircloth (35), Eure (51), Tann (33), Stephens (31), Duck (31), and Daniels (30).

There were other local candidates on the Hertford County ballot, but all ran unopposed.

Three incumbent county commissioners were reelected to new four-year terms: John D. Horton of District 1 (6,845 votes), Ronald J. Gatling of District 2 (6,603), and William “Bill” Mitchell of District 3 (7,032). All three are registered Democrats.

Hertford County elected a new Register of Deeds as La’Tia Lewter Wynn, registered as an Unaffiliated candidate, won that seat with 5,193 votes. Lewter, a Deputy Register, replaces the retiring Melanie H. Storey.

Pate Pierce, an incumbent, received 5,845 votes and was reelected to the Hertford County Soil and Water Conservation District Board of Supervisors.

Hertford County registered voters joined those from across the state in overwhelmingly approving a North Carolina Constitutional Amendment to provide that only a citizen of the United States who is 18 years of age and otherwise possessing the qualifications for voting shall be entitled to vote at any election in this state. County voters approved that measure 6,605-to-2,201.

Voter turnout in Hertford County for this election cycle was 69.31% (9,845 ballots were cast out of 14,205 registered voters).

The results from the General Election are unofficial until the Hertford County Board of Elections conducts its required canvass on Nov. 15.