Election confusion means no one on ballot for mayor in Wilson County town

Elections in many area towns are set for Nov. 5, but in the Wilson County town of Lucama, no one is on the ballot for mayor.

Confusion over when the mayor's term ended meant no one filed to run for the office in July.

Mayor Jed Simpson was elected two years ago after the former mayor resigned for health reasons. He campaigned hard believing he would be serving until 2021.

"They didn't tell us it was for two years, that he was finishing a term," Town Commissioner Patricia Uzzell said Friday.

Simpson resigned last week because he's moving outside the town limits, and Uzzell was named interim mayor.

Now, she has less than a month to build a write-in campaign.

"It put me in a pickle, most definitely, for me to have two weeks to launch a campaign," she said.

Early voting in the race starts Oct. 16.

So far, she has no challenger – aside from people misspelling her name when they fill in the blank on the ballot.

"My name is U-Z-Z – z as in zebra – E as in Earl, with two Ls," she said.

Her pledge to the 1,100 or so local residents is to keep the good vibes going. For decades, Lucama had to deal with foul water from too much iron, but finally, she said, it's clearing up.

"After two years on the board, we're moving forward. We're getting our water fixed. Our people are starting to smile again, coming together again," she said. "These are the greatest citizens in the world."

Eric Allen, who owns a barbershop in Lucama, said he thinks Uzzell will bring some buzz to town.

"We need people in here who see this town growing instead of staying stagnant like it is," Allen said.

Whoever gets the most write-in votes in the election will be mayor, with a term that lasts until 2023.