Mayor Leigh Dollar will serve a fourth term leading the city of Guntersville, winning Tuesday’s runoff election against challenger Jeff McLaughlin and closing out one of the closest mayoral races in the city’s history.
Unofficial results show Dollar receiving more than 58% of the vote to McLaughlin’s nearly 42%, with a total of 2,931 ballots cast. The decisive outcome came two weeks after the Aug. 26 municipal election ended in a rare tie, when both candidates received 1,065 votes.
Dollar, first elected in 2012, said she is grateful for the support and ready to continue the work of uniting the city.
“Unity benefits all citizens. It does not help when we are a divided city,” Dollar said in a previous interview. “This would be my fourth election, so I have had to unite the city in years past.”
McLaughlin, an attorney and former state representative, focused his campaign on education, public safety, and fiscal caution, while Dollar emphasized infrastructure upgrades and long-term planning for growth.
The tie vote drew intense attention to the runoff and highlighted Guntersville’s engaged electorate. Though municipal races in Alabama are officially nonpartisan, the contest drew unusual attention to partisan politics.
In recent weeks, McLaughlin was described on social media as the “second most liberal lawmaker in Alabama” during his time in the Legislature.
With the victory, Dollar plans to continue infrastructure improvements, facility upgrades, and promote economic growth over the next four years. Provisional ballots will be certified in the coming days, but Tuesday’s results confirm Dollar’s re-election.
Courtesy of 256 Today.
