The Valdosta Daily Times
VALDOSTA —
Think your vote doesn’t matter? Did you have a candidate you liked but didn’t vote because you thought, well, what’s one vote?
As Tuesday’s Lowndes County primary proved, one vote can mean the difference between win, lose or front-runner. One vote not cast can even mean a tie.
In the GOP primary race for Lowndes County Commission District 3, one vote placed Randall McClellan ahead of fellow candidate Crawford Powell. McClellan received 43.2 percent, or 747 votes, with Powell receiving 43.15 percent, or 746 votes. Both men will face each other in the Aug. 10 runoff race.
Meanwhile, one vote could turn the tide of who will face candidate Richard Raines in the runoff race for Lowndes County Commission District 2. Both John Page and John Huff tied with 612 votes each, for a statistical dead heat of 23.55 percent each. Provisional and military ballots may decide whether Huff or Page will face Raines by the end of this week. But an extra vote cast Tuesday, or during the weeks of early voting, could have helped decide who will continue to the runoff.
Granted, with no one in these races acquiring the necessary 51 percent to win, one vote arguably makes little difference. Still, just ask John Huff or John Page what one more vote can mean. Or as McClellan mentioned to a Times staff member late Tuesday night, he worked hard to get that one extra vote.
Still, come Aug. 10 and the runoff election, one vote could well make the difference on who will or won’t lead Lowndes County. Make sure your vote helps make that difference.
