WINTON – The results from the Nov. 5 municipal election are now official, verifying that write-in candidates fared well.

In Hertford County, six write-in candidates earned enough support to win seats within their respective municipal governments.

Winton had three such candidates to be voted in by their citizens as write-ins. Incumbent Mayor Tiffany Lewis did not file for re-election, but still was the top choice to fill that seat as she was named on 38 write-in ballots, an increase of six votes from election night. Another write-in, Whitney L. Farmer, was named on 29 ballots for mayor, an increase of five votes.

Five seats were available on the Winton Town Council, but only three filed – incumbents McCoy Pierce (82 votes), Will Liverman (68) and Wesley Liverman (60). Of the 135 write-in votes for Winton Town Council, Emily Winstead, a current council member who did not file for re-election, topped that list with 50 votes (an increase of three votes from Nov. 5). Blake Blythe was next with 33 votes (+1 from election night). Winstead and Blythe will fill the remaining two Council seats.

In Cofield, a write-in candidate, Dacia Sutton-Morales, has officially earned a seat on the Town Council. Sutton-Morales received 37 votes, just barely edging incumbent Nettie (Teen) Combo Brickers with 33 votes.

IncumbentCofieldTown Council members Anthony Archer (57 votes), Stephen Lassiter (55 votes) and June S. Wynn (52) will return to office. Meanwhile, incumbent Councilman Darrell Partlow opted not to seek another term, but was the top vote-getter on the write-in ballots with 44.

IncumbentCofield Mayor Hermea Pugh Jr. was unopposed on the ballot and received 51 votes. However, there were 22 write-in votes for Mayor, with 18 cast for Kirk Taylor.

The remaining write-in candidate to earn a municipal seat was Marcus Pond on the Harrellsville Town Council. He received six of the 12 write-in votes cast there, thusly gaining the fifth and final seat on the board.

The other four Harrellsville Council seats were earned by incumbent Deborah Baker, the leading vote getter with 15 and will return to office. There she will be joined by incumbents Mary Thompson (14 votes) and Roy Worrells, Jr. (13). One newcomer on the ballot was Lisa Ann Hunnicutt, who collected 13 votes.

Harrellsville Mayor Robert Dantz was also returned to office with 14 votes.

All five incumbents on the Murfreesboro Town Council will return to office, as well as the Mayor, as none faced opposition on the ballot. Mayor John Hinton garnered the most votes as he was named on 234 ballots. Topping the vote for Town Council was incumbent Mayor Pro-Tem Sarah Whitley Wallace with 198 votes. Incumbents Hal Thomas (195 votes) Gloria C. Odum (194), Randy Roberts (178) and Craig L. Dennis (174) were elected to another term.

There were 96 write-in votes for Murfreesboro Council – led by former Councilman Billy Theodorakis (43) and former Mayor Lynn Johnson (32).

The four incumbent commissioners in Como were all returned to office. There, Susan Kennington led the ballot with 11 votes, followed by Stephen Frank Pearce with 10 and nine votes each for Lorie A. Higbee, and Ann E. Spruill. Incumbent Mayor Irvin Lee Stephens, Sr. returns to office with 10 votes.

The most competitive town council race in the county came in Ahoskie. There, as earlier reported, Charles W. Freeman easily won the Ward A seat by defeating James Futrell, 288-89. That seat was up for grabs after three-term Councilman Malcolm Copeland announced his retirement.

In Ward B, C. David Stackhouse ousted incumbent Winfred Hardy Jr., 179-100. Donald Kim Kirkland placed third in that race with 17 votes.

Current Councilwoman and former Mayor Linda Blackburn earned a four-year term by defeating Charles Reynolds, 364-292 in the race for the council’s At-Large member. Blackburn was appointed last year to fill the remaining year of O.S. “Buck” Suiter’s term.