Qualifying ends for Talladega Elections

Qualifying has ended for this years Talladega City Elections and the candidates for municipal office in Talladega are now more or less set.

The only citywide race is the one for mayor, which will pit incumbent Larry Barton against Vann Caldwell and Jerry Cooper Sr.

For City Council Ward 1, incumbent Horace Patterson will face off against Katie Reynolds and Saundra Bellamy. For school board Ward 1, incumbent Shirley Simmons-Sims is running unopposed.

In City Council Ward 2, incumbent Jarvis Elston will be competing with Kenneth Dickerson. The BoE Ward 2 race will be a re-match from four years ago, with incumbent Juanita Curry McClellan facing former board member Mary McGhee.

The race for City Council Ward 3 may be the most competitive, with incumbent Donnie Miller facing challenges from Tom Lutchendorf, Tonta Draper and David Street.

Incumbent Ward 3 school board member Bonnie Miller is apparently not running again, leaving Martha Livingston, Jake Montgomery and Katrina Thomas vying to replace her.

Incumbent Ward 4 Councilman and current council President Ricky Simpson is unopposed, while incumbent board member Elizabeth Smith is being challenged by Chuck Roberts.

Lastly, in City Council Ward 5, incumbent Joe Ballow will face off against Gerald Cooper Sr., while incumbent board member and current Chairman James Braswell will be taken on by SOS subcommittee Chair Wanda Duncan Scales.

The deadline to register to vote in the municipal elections is Aug. 10. The general election will be Aug. 25.