Roswell Special Election: 10 Percent of Registered Voters Cast Ballots

ROSWELL, GA -- Only a sliver of Roswell's registered voters made the trip to the polls on March 21 to cast ballots in the special election to fill the vacant Post 4 seat on the City Council.

That's according to the Fulton County Department of Registration and Election, which said out of 56,465 registered voters in the city, only 5,852 showed up to the polls.

"Turnout was pretty much (the) trend with historical turnout numbers for a standalone special municipal district election," the agency added.

Tuesday's race produced a runoff, which will be held April 18.

Unofficial results from the Georgia Secretary of State's Office show Lori Henry received 41.43 percent, or 2,421 votes. A 20-vote difference was the only thing that separated Henry from Marie Willsey, who received 41.09 percent of the votes.

Fellow candidates Shawn Wright and Shelley Sears followed, respectively. Wright finished third at 14.43 percent, or 843 votes, and Sears clocked in at 3.05 percent, or 178 votes.

Henry praised the voters who turned out on Tuesday to help her make it to the runoff.

"I am excited to be able to continue meeting with you to discuss the issues that are important to you and your families," she said Wednesday on her Facebook page.

For his part, Wright also thanked voters, and encouraged his supporters to continue the fight to elect Willsey to the Post 4 seat. While he said he was disappointed in the results, Wright added he is proud of his campaign, his family and his team of supporters.

"There is nothing I would change," he said, adding he will take a few days to "ruminate over lessons learned and then be back in full force" to support Willsey.

Willsey also thanked her supporters for their support, energy and encouragement. While she made the runoff, she reminded her followers on Facebook that the race is not over yet.

"Let's win this for Roswell," she said, adding she admires Wright and fellow candidates Shelley Sears for "well-run positive campaigns. "I'm so happy to have met you."

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