Sanford: There will be no room for divisiveness

SHEFFIELD - When the boxes from Sheffield's five polling places were counted early in the evening Tuesday in the run-off election, former Mayor Ian Sanford held a 44-vote lead over incumbent Mayor Billy Don Anderson.

It took almost two hours for the absentee ballots to be counted, and in the end, Sanford, who was mayor from 1996-2004, was declared the winner by a margin of 1,132 to 1,065.

"I'm relived," Sanford said after the totals were announced.

"It's been trying. I just hope when this is done we can put this all behind us."

Sanford said it will make a concerted effort to take Sheffield into the future.

"There will be no room for divisiveness," Sanford said in between congratulations from supporters.

Sanford said he had not had a chance to determine which districts he carried.

"I haven't had a chance to analyze it, and I don't know that I will," he said.

One thing he will do when he takes office Nov. 3 is delve into the city's finances and determine if the city can continue with the projects that are on the table.

Anderson took the defeat in stride.

"I'm OK with this," he said after learning the results in a crowded city clerk's office lobby. "I don't know of anything I could have done differently. I feel like we ran a good campaign.

"There were a lot of unique things that happened during this campaign that I wasn't familiar with in previous campaigns," the mayor said.

While he did not pinpoint exactly where the election was lost, Anderson said it appears there were people who voted for him in the general election that evidently didn't vote for him in the runoff.

"We just didn't have the turnout for our position," he said. "We ran strictly on the record we had and we're proud of our accomplishments."

Anderson credited his council for much of the accomplishments that took place during his four years in office.

"The council was the key to what we got done," Anderson said.

Looking at the bright side, Anderson said he will now be able to spend more time with his grandchildren.

In the District 3 council runoff, incumbent Commissioner Ronnie McLeary defeated challenger Steve Wiggins 264 to 164. The win ensures McLeary a fourth term on the council.

McLeary said he believes it was his experience that helped him retain his seat.

"We've done a pretty good job," McLeary said, referring to the accomplishments of the past four years and the projects the council has in place, which includes the streetscape improvement being done along Third Street and its intersection with Montgomery Avenue.

McLeary said he would like to see the city do more paving and repair some of the city's aging sidewalks.

"But we have to have the money to do it," he said.

The new council will include incumbents McLeary, Waylon Huguley Jr. and Gary Scales, who was unopposed in his bid for re-election. Newcomers to the council, Mary Stevens, wife of longtime Councilman Frank Stevens, will represent District 4, while Steve Stanley, chairman of the Sheffield Redevelopment Authority, will represent District 5.

Russ Corey can be reached at 740-5738 or russ.corey@TimesDaily.com.