Ascension Parish voters decide runoff elections

Ascension Parish voters went to the polls Dec. 5 to decide runoff elections from Election Day on Nov. 3.

In the City of Gonzales Division C Council Member race, incumbent Harold Stewart defeated Terri Lynn Lambert with 67 percent of the vote. The unofficial results showed Stewart garnered 915 votes to Lambert’s 449.

On the west side, incumbent Raymond Aucoin won re-election to the City of Donaldsonville District 2 Council seat with 66 percent of the votes. Aucoin received 262 votes, while opponent Kurt Mitchell had 137.

In the Justice of the Peace First Justice Court race, Tamiko Francis Garrison defeated Andrew Falcon with 65 percent of the vote. Garrison tallied 1,075 votes to Falcon's 584.

Eighty percent of Ascension Parish voters rejected the amendment allowing an out-of-state resident to serve on the public postsecondary education board of supervisors.

In the Donaldsonville District 2 race, Mitchell was one of four challengers endorsed by a group called the Donaldsonville Community Care Committee, which formed over the summer and organized a march and rally in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement.

Ultimately, three of the candidates lost to incumbent council members, and a fourth was disqualified prior to the election due to a judgment finding the candidate was registered at an address outside of the city limits. 

The DCCC also endorsed Glenn Price, who challenged Mayor Leroy Sullivan. In securing a fifth term, Sullivan received 2,046 votes (61 percent) to Price’s 995 votes. Travis London had 292 votes.

In the Gonzales race, Stewart won for a third time. He was originally in a special election in 2015 to fill the vacancy left after the recall of Timothy Vessel Sr.