Fayette County Elections Superintendent Margaret Malone died unexpectedly Sunday morning, on the eve of the 8 a.m. start to the early voting period.

Noted as a hard worker never too busy to drop her work to help a candidate or the public when needed, Malone’s staff responded to her death in a testament to the way she led them with what workers called a “roll up her sleeves” mentality. Staffers met in the office Sunday to figure out how they will handle the election without their beloved leader.

Monday morning, they had to put aside their grief as best they could, but elections worker Brenda Mann said, the citizens of Fayette County shouldn’t worry: the staff will make sure the election is handled appropriately.

Former Elections Superintendent Carolyn Combs, who had been working part time in the office, has agreed to serve as the interim superintendent through the November elections. She retired last year, and noted that she felt very comfortable about turning over the reins to Malone.

“We are just truly heartbroken over her loss as a friend, really, and a co-worker,” Combs said. She recalled Malone as being very conscientious, and “was just an outstanding person who had good character.”

County Commission Chairman Greg Dunn noted that the county office got a number of positive remarks from citizens about how pleasant Malone was when helping them.