November 6 was a day of upsets, close calls and required runoffs in the elections in south Fulton County’s four cities.

The day’s biggest upset was in Palmetto, where long-time Mayor Clark Boddie fell to former council member John Miller. Miller received 377 votes at 61.5 percent while Boddie took 236 votes, or 38.5 percent.

Retaining his council seat in the at-large election was incumbent Leon Sumlin, receiving 351 votes at 21 percent. Palmetto’s two other winners in the three-seat race were Lorraine Allen, who took the night with 402 votes, or 24 percent and Natalie Beavers-McFadden, receiving 334 votes at 20 percent.

Eleven provisional ballots were not included in the Palmetto vote count.

Upsets were also the order in the race for two council seats in Union City, where incumbent council members Helen Turner and Alisa King were defeated by Vince Williams and Brian Jones.

Williams took 443 votes, or 30 percent, while Jones garnered 386 votes, or 26 percent. Turner received 234 votes at 15.9 percent and King received 236 votes, or 16 percent.

Union City results did not include provisional ballots.

In Fairburn’s races for three council seats, incumbent Ron Alderman won handily, Marian Johnson won by three votes and challenger Elizabeth Hurst defeated incumbent Frankie Arnold.

Alderman received 422 votes at 20.7 percent, while Hurst received 396 votes at 19.4 percent and Johnson received 344 votes, or 16.9 percent. Challenger Jeff Couch received 341 votes at 16.8 percent.

Twenty-one provisional ballots remain to be counted in Fairburn which might affect the outcome given the close race between Johnson and Couch.

In the new city of Chattahoochee Hill Country, the race for mayor will be determined in a Dec. 4 runoff between Tom Reed, who received 350 votes, or 45 percent, and Don Hayes, who received 233 votes at 29.9 percent. Rocky Reeves took 195 votes at 25.1 percent.

In District 1, John Taylor won with 18 votes against Ruby Foster, who received 11 votes.

The District 2 race will also see a runoff in December between Julie Petty Wall, who received 57 votes, or 32.8 percent, and Carl Hattaway, who took 47 votes at 27 percent. The District 2 race featured five candidates.

Also destined for a runoff, District 3 candidate Laurie Searle received 82 votes at 38.1 percent and David Hanson received 55 votes, or 25.6 percent. District 3 had a field of four candidates.

The District 4 race, with only two candidates running, saw Faye Peek Godwin defeating Wayne Stradling 94 votes to 62.

And in the District 5 race, Ernie Henderson will face Rodney Peek in the Dec. 4 runoff. Peek received 75 votes at 40.3 percent while Henderson received 65 votes, or 34.9 percent. The District 5 race featured three candidates.

Yet to be counted in the Chatt Hills races are 34 provisional ballots, along with absentee ballots and advanced voting ballots. Those results will be available late Thursday, according to Fulton County Elections Division.

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