Eatonton city elections for mayor and three council seats will be held this fall, with candidate qualifying dates coming up Aug. 21-23.
Mayor John Reid is ending his fourth four-year term as mayor and is expected to qualify for another term. The three council seats up for election include the city-wide “at-large” position currently held by long-time incumbent Chip Walker, who also serves in the appointed role of mayor pro tem.
The other two council seats due for election this year involve the so-called “combined wards” seats currently held by Marie Rainey (Wards 1 and 4) and Alvin Butts (Wards 2 and 3).
Although reapportionment of the wards caused some minor adjustments to ward boundaries, the basic dividing line between the two combined wards remains the east-west Georgia 16 highway, with Wards 1 and 4 on the north side and Wards 2 and 3 on the south side of the city.
Qualifying fees for the mayor’s race are set at $360; for council seats it’s $198.
The mayor’s position is paid $1,000 a month; the council seats, $550. Both figures follow a pay scale set up “decades ago,” according to City Administrator Gary Sanders.