LAWTON – District Attorney Kyle Cabelka has declared Lawton City Council candidate George Gill as the councilman-elect for Ward 4.
A real estate developer and construction manager, Gill finished first in a three-way race in the Aug. 23 primary election for the Ward 4 seat on the Lawton City Council. Community leader Barbara Curry came in second, and University Church of Christ Pastor Eric Sharum was in third place.
Neither Gill nor Curry captured a simple majority of the vote – defined as 50% plus one vote – in the primary election. Normally, both candidates would have advanced to the Nov. 8 general-election ballot.
But Curry died early Wednesday morning, raising the question of what happens in such circumstances.
State law says candidates must capture at least a simple majority of the vote to avoid a runoff. But Lawton’s city charter disagrees on that point.
The city charter says if one or two candidates in a primary election dies or withdraws from the race before the general election, the remaining candidate will be elected, Cabelka said in a written statement. That candidate’s name does not need to appear on the general election ballot.
The city charter prevails in this case, making Gill the winner once election results are finalized, Cabelka said.
“Although state statutes with concern to this issue are different than the city charter, the law is clear that the municipal charter will supersede and is superior to state statute when dealing with issues such as a city council race,” he said. “Therefore, I have advised the Comanche County Election Board that once the election results are certified, George Gill would be the Council member-elect for Ward 4 and there is no reason to put Mr. Gill’s name on the November ballot.”
No challenges to the election had been filed as of late Friday afternoon, said Comanche County Election Board Secretary Amy Sims. She said if no challenges were filed by the 5 p.m. deadline, the election results would be certified and Gill would become the councilman-elect.
In other election-related news, Lawton City Councilwoman Linda Chapman fended off a challenge Tuesday from her opponent, Cartessa Smith.
Chapman cruised to victory with 410 votes, or 71.93% of the total, according to unofficial election results. Smith finished with 160 votes, or 28.07% of the total.
The two were the only candidates in the race, meaning Chapman will retain her seat on the council.