Eaton elected as mayor of Exeter
Eaton
April 3, 2019
Charlea Estes-Jones & Vinnie Roberts
In a highly contested election, the new mayor-elect of the City of Exeter is Lance Eaton. The race was a hot topic in the April General Municipal Election yesterday, April 2, but Eaton came out on top netting over 50 percent of the vote over the other three candidates.
Eaton faced opponents Michael Vasey, Troy Berry and Kenen Martinez in the election. The mayoral seat has been vacant since former mayor Rusty Reed passed away. Alderperson Rhonda Scott has been serving as mayor pro tem since.
Upon hearing of his win, Eaton said, "I'm ready to step up and be the voice of the community. I'd like to say 'thank you' for giving me this opportunity.”
When asked why he feels voters had confidence in his ability to lead, he said, "A lot of other candidates were pushing for change, but I just want to get in there and improve what we've got. I think the people [of Exeter] understood that we need to better what we have instead of trying to change it."
The other three candidates had similar messages. Martinez, former chief of police for the small town, said, "I'm very thankful. We ran a good, clean campaign. I'm proud of everyone that showed up to support [last night]."
Martinez said he does not plan to run for office in the future. He added, "I wish Lance Eaton the best. I hope he has a very successful term as mayor."
Vasey said that in the future, he would run for election again. He said, "I want to thank all of the supporters that were behind me. I wish Lance a very prosperous time with the city. I think he'll do well.
"I'm 100 percent behind Exeter."
Vasey added that he considered running for alderman before his bid for mayor and may consider it again in the future.
Berry said, "I'd like to say thanks for all the votes and good luck to Lance Eaton."
Berry added, "I might run again in the future. I just don't know yet."
Eaton will be sworn in at the April City Council meeting. He said, "I want to get in there and start learning.
"I'd really like to see about getting a second cop. I need to learn more about the city's finances to see what I can do about that."
According to unofficial results released by Barry County Clerk Jill LeCompte, Eaton took 50.97 percent with 79 votes, Vasey had 18.71 percent with 29 votes, Martinez had 17.42 percent with 27 votes, and Berry came in at 12.90 percent with 20 votes.
Only one other seat in the City of Exeter races drew a challenger. Rhonda Scott, current southward alderperson, retained her seat against newcomer Sean McNeill. Scott garnered 71.26 percent of the vote. McNeill announced earlier in the campaign season that he was going to pull out of the race due to moving to a new job, however, it was too late to be removed from the ballot.
The other race for north ward alderperson went to the only candidate on the ballot, Cotton “C.J.” Reed. Reed was already appointed to the board after a resignation in February. He was sworn in at the city council’s regular meeting on February 12.
Charlea Estes-Jones & Vinnie Roberts
In a highly contested election, the new mayor-elect of the City of Exeter is Lance Eaton. The race was a hot topic in the April General Municipal Election yesterday, April 2, but Eaton came out on top netting over 50 percent of the vote over the other three candidates.
Eaton faced opponents Michael Vasey, Troy Berry and Kenen Martinez in the election. The mayoral seat has been vacant since former mayor Rusty Reed passed away. Alderperson Rhonda Scott has been serving as mayor pro tem since.
Upon hearing of his win, Eaton said, "I'm ready to step up and be the voice of the community. I'd like to say 'thank you' for giving me this opportunity.”
When asked why he feels voters had confidence in his ability to lead, he said, "A lot of other candidates were pushing for change, but I just want to get in there and improve what we've got. I think the people [of Exeter] understood that we need to better what we have instead of trying to change it."
The other three candidates had similar messages. Martinez, former chief of police for the small town, said, "I'm very thankful. We ran a good, clean campaign. I'm proud of everyone that showed up to support [last night]."
Martinez said he does not plan to run for office in the future. He added, "I wish Lance Eaton the best. I hope he has a very successful term as mayor."
Vasey said that in the future, he would run for election again. He said, "I want to thank all of the supporters that were behind me. I wish Lance a very prosperous time with the city. I think he'll do well.
"I'm 100 percent behind Exeter."
Vasey added that he considered running for alderman before his bid for mayor and may consider it again in the future.
Berry said, "I'd like to say thanks for all the votes and good luck to Lance Eaton."
Berry added, "I might run again in the future. I just don't know yet."
Eaton will be sworn in at the April City Council meeting. He said, "I want to get in there and start learning.
"I'd really like to see about getting a second cop. I need to learn more about the city's finances to see what I can do about that."
According to unofficial results released by Barry County Clerk Jill LeCompte, Eaton took 50.97 percent with 79 votes, Vasey had 18.71 percent with 29 votes, Martinez had 17.42 percent with 27 votes, and Berry came in at 12.90 percent with 20 votes.
Only one other seat in the City of Exeter races drew a challenger. Rhonda Scott, current southward alderperson, retained her seat against newcomer Sean McNeill. Scott garnered 71.26 percent of the vote. McNeill announced earlier in the campaign season that he was going to pull out of the race due to moving to a new job, however, it was too late to be removed from the ballot.
The other race for north ward alderperson went to the only candidate on the ballot, Cotton “C.J.” Reed. Reed was already appointed to the board after a resignation in February. He was sworn in at the city council’s regular meeting on February 12.
