Beaufort News

Why the results of the upcoming Port Royal council election are unlikely to surprise anyone

By Stephen Fastenau
Soon, the largest group of voters in North Carolina won’t belong to a political party. Unaffiliated voters are nearly 2.49 million strong and growing. They’re gaining on Democrats, who outnumber them by just 6,000 registered voters, and have already passed Republicans, who make up 2.19 million of the state’s 7.2 million total voters.
Soon, the largest group of voters in North Carolina won’t belong to a political party. Unaffiliated voters are nearly 2.49 million strong and growing. They’re gaining on Democrats, who outnumber them by just 6,000 registered voters, and have already passed Republicans, who make up 2.19 million of the state’s 7.2 million total voters.

Three Port Royal Town Council candidates are unopposed ahead of a general election in November.

Incumbents Mary Beth Gray Heyward and Darryl Owens were the only candidates to file for their open seats by the Sept. 8 deadline. Robert Landrum, a USC Beaufort history professor and Port Royal resident, filed for the two-year term vacated by the resignation of Tom Klein last month.

The Town Council election will go ahead as planned on Nov. 7 with the possibility of write-in candidates, Beaufort County election specialist Kristina Weitz said.

Owens won a special election in May to serve the remaining term of Councilman Vernon DeLoach, who died in February. Longtime Port Royal resident Gray Heyward was first elected to the office in 1992.

Stephen Fastenau: 843-706-8182, @IPBG_Stephen

This story was originally published September 14, 2017 at 12:31 PM with the headline "Why the results of the upcoming Port Royal council election are unlikely to surprise anyone."

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