Jackson Mayor-Elect Daniel J. Mahoney being congratulated by outgoing Mayor Derek Dobies at Bella Notte Ristorante Tuesday night. Photo by Jeff Steers, JTV News.
(November 2, 2021 10:48 PM) The City of Jackson has elected its next mayor. Daniel J. Mahoney defeated John Wilson, 2,077 votes to 1,745 votes in Tuesday’s election.
Mahoney, a Jackson native, currently serves as Jackson County District 7 Commissioner. Mahoney will resign that seat when he assumes the Jackson mayor position on December 1. Current mayor Derek Dobies did not seek reelection. The term is for two years.
At a victory party, Mahoney said Jackson made history tonight by choosing its first Black mayor. Mahoney said, “not just the first Black mayor for names sake, but someone who’s actually qualified to do the job,” Mahoney said. “This is a prime example of the reason my campaign model was successful. When people come together to stand for what they believe in, anything is possible.”
John Wilson was encouraged by the close race. “I knew it was going to be difficult to win in Ward 1, but I was hoping to get a few more votes…to make it a little closer. Up until Ward 1 results were in, it was a very, very close race. ”
Mahoney’s strongest showing was in the 1st Ward with 438 votes to Wilson’s 84 votes.
In City Council races, voters chose council representatives for four-year terms in wards 1, 3, and 5.
Ward 1 voters reelected Arlene Robinson with 285 votes, defeating challenger Dena Morgan with 226 votes. Robinson was first elected as the First Ward City Councilmember in 2013
In Ward 3, Angelita Gunn was elected with 311 votes to challenger Caleb Blondke’s 236 votes. Gunn will take the seat of Jeromy Alexander who did not seek reelection.
In Ward 5, Incumbent Karen Bunnell, running on the ballot unopposed, was elected with 176 votes. Write-in candidate Peter Bormuth received 63 votes. Bunnell was appointed by City Council to fill the seat in May 2020 following the resignation of Kelsey Heck.
Voter turnout in Jackson was 16.26%, less than previous mayoral contests. Typically there is a 20% voter turnout for Mayoral/City Council elections. According to Aaron Dimick, City of Jackson Public Information Officer, the city has seen a 76% increase in requests for absentee ballots in the November, 2021 election compared to the Nov. 2019 election. Dimick attributes this to more voters using absentee ballots due to the pandemic, but also because access to the absentee ballots was made easier by the State in 2018.
Elsewhere in Jackson County, Waterloo Township passed a millage increase for police protection services, 227 to 211.
Columbia School District voters approved a sinking fund millage by a vote of 951 to 815.
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