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AHOSKIE – Hertford County registered voters will have a long list of individuals to choose among as a diverse field of seven candidates has emerged in a battle for two seats on the Hertford County Board of Education.

At the close of filing on Aug. 7, four men and three women had filled out all the proper paperwork and will have their names placed on the Nov. 3 General Election ballot.

David Shields of Ahoskie and J. Wendell Hall of Winton, both incumbents on the Hertford County Board of Education whose seats are contested in the 2020 election cycle, each filed for another four-year term. Shields is the board’s current chairman while Hall, a veteran educator, also holds an appointed seat on the North Carolina State Board of Education.

Five challengers – four of which are political newcomers – are seeking to unseat one or both of the incumbents. They are, listed in order of their filing date, Kim A. Saunders of Ahoskie, Eddie Hall of Ahoskie, Devere Beard of Ahoskie, Ashley Askew of Winton, and Cheryl Tyler of Murfreesboro.

Saunders sought a seat on the Hertford County Board of Education during the 2018 election, placing sixth in a nine-candidate field. Three seats were up for grabs during that election cycle and were captured by current School Board members Dennis M. Deloatch, Shelia J. Porter, and Rev. James W. Shearn.

Early voting begins Oct. 15 for the 2020 election.