Filing ends Friday at noon 

 

POLK COUNTY—Only five people have filed for Polk County’s municipal election so far and the deadline to file is Friday at noon.  

As of late Monday, no one had filed for any of the open Saluda seats.  

In Columbus, Patrick McCool filed for mayor and incumbent Mark Phillips filed to retain his seat along with Ernie Kan filing for a council seat.  

In Tryon, incumbent mayor Alan Peoples filed to retain his seat along with incumbent commissioner Chrelle Booker filing to retain her seat.  

Filing for this year’s municipal election began on July 5.  

In Columbus, the seat of the mayor and three council seats are up for re-election.  

Mayor Eric McIntyre had not filed for reelection as of Monday. The council seats of Phillips, Margaret Metcalf and Richard Hall are also up for reelection, with Metcalf and Hall not yet filing as of Monday. Metcalf is finishing a four-year term, with Hall and Phillips finishing two-year terms.  

In Saluda, the council seats of Leon Morgan and Stanley Walker are up for re-election. Both the Saluda seats are four-year terms and none of the incumbents or challengers had filed as of Monday.  

In Tryon, Mayor Alan Peoples is up for re-election as well as the council seats of Crys Armbrust and Chrelle Booker. The mayor seat is a two-year term and both council seats are for four-year terms. Armbrust is the only incumbent who had not yet filed in Tryon as of Monday.  

The 2019 election will be held on Tuesday, Nov. 5. There are no primaries for municipal elections and candidates run non-partisan.  

Saluda will elect commissioners and have a special referendum this year regarding alcohol sales. The referendum will ask Saluda voters if they are for or against permitting the sale of mixed beverages in hotels, restaurants, private clubs, community theatres and convention centers.  

If the referendum passes, all establishments who qualify will be allowed to serve mixed alcoholic beverages if they so choose and acquire the necessary permits.  

Saluda residents located in Henderson County will have the same question as Polk County.  

To file for a municipal seat in Polk County, candidates must live within the city limits of the town/city they are running and pay a $5 filing fee.  

Anyone interested can file before noon Friday at the Polk County Board of Elections Office, located on the second floor of the Womack building in Columbus. The office is open from 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Friday.