FC re-elects Miller, Hester to county commission

There will only be one new face added to the Franklin County Commission this year, as incumbents Jason Miller and David “Opie” Hester clenched victory in Tuesday’s election.

Miller, Hester and District 1 Commissioner Chris Wallace will remain on the county commission, with Joseph Baldwin taking the spot for District 3 over incumbent Rayburn Massey after a victory in the primaries.

“I am looking forward to continuing the projects we currently have going,” Hester said. “I think we have a lot of great things going on.”

Miller and Hester both faced opposition in Tuesday’s election, but Wallace and Baldwin were on the ballot uncontested after winning the Republican primary in March.

Hester defeated Judy Bullen with 9,342 votes to 2,844, and Miller defeater Mitchell Hamilton with 9,905 to 2,228. This will be Miller and Hester’s second term.

“I was overwhelmed by the percent of people that showed up to support me,” Hester said. “I want to thank the people for putting their trust in me.”

Miller said he also appreciates the people of Franklin County for putting their trust in him to do the job of county commissioner.

“This is not a job I take lightly,” Miller said. “I will do my best to represent the people in this county.”

Franklin County Probate Judge Barry Moore said there was a 64 percent turnout of registered voters in Franklin County, which was slightly higher than the 2016 presidential election.

Out of the 12,627 votes cast in Franklin County, 6,288 voted straight Republican, and 1,358 voted straight Democrat.

Approximately 82.5 percent of Franklin County voted for Donald Trump in the presidential election, and 16.6 percent voted for Joe Biden.

A total 79 percent of the vote in Franklin County went to Tommy Tuberville for the U.S. Senate race, and 21 percent voted for Doug Jones.