Hobgood Wins Second Mayoral Term

With no one to challenge his bid for a second term, Mayor Gene Hobgood appeared to coast to victory tonight.

According to unofficial results from the , 1,602 of Canton's 11,746 registered voters cast a ballot.

Of the 1,333 people who voted in the mayoral race, Hobgood garnered 80.12 percent of the vote, or 1,068 votes.

"I'm extremely pleased with the voter turnout," he said tonight from The Fork & Tavern in Downtown Canton, where he monitored returns with Council members-elect Hooky Huffman and Glen Cummins. "I think it's a historical turnout. To my knowledge, it's the most voters that have ever cast ballots in a city of Canton election."

During the last municipal election in 2009, Canton had 11,046 registered voters. Less than 10 percent of that number voted.

What was the difference this time?

"I think this is attributable to the fact that we had some really good candidates out there running, both incumbents and challengers, and I think that drew people out to vote," Hobgood said.

But while Hobgood revels in tonight's victory, he has a tough road ahead of him. The last weeks of the election magnified the division between the mayor and the council. And Linda Flory, Hobgood's campaign manager, severed ties with him.

Flory, who also served as the campaign manager for Ward II council member Jack Goodwin, told the Cherokee Ledger-News that she was tired of Hobgood's antics.

In , Hobgood blasted current council members for their "lack of leadership" and urged residents to put "in place a council that believes as I do."

Sitting council members, three of whom were up for re-election tonight, responded with disappointment. Council member Bob Rush offered a sharp critique of Hobgood.

"Since our (self) esteemed mayor is questioning leadership perhaps we should look at what has occurred under his," Rush wrote in a letter sent to Canton-Sixes Patch and other Cherokee County media outlets. "In the past four years, Canton has lost two city managers, two chief financial officers, two city clerks, two city engineers and a reservoir manager. This turnover rate speaks volumes as to leadership style and the corporate culture created by this mayor."

The letter also ignited a Facebook campaign to put Rush on the ballot as a write-in candidate. As of today, the Facebook page had 275 likes.

Even if Rush had received a majority of the votes tonight, he wouldn't have become mayor. He didn't qualify as a write-in candidate by the end of the qualifying period as Georgia law requires.

Still, write-in votes accounted for 19.88 percent of votes cast in this year's mayoral race.

"I think it was certainly there prerogative to do so," Hobgood said. "It was a waste of their time and efforts.

"I think if Mr. Rush had put as much effort in dealing with the issues of the city as he did in trying to get people to write in his name for mayor, that the city would be much better off."

For Rush's supporters, the Facebook campaign put Hobgood on notice.

"We are watching him," the administrator of the Facebook page wrote on Nov. 4.

Hobgood said with the election behind him, "it's certainly my intention to work with all council members the best way we can.

"The election is over. The people have spoken. It is our responsibility to work together for the betterment of the city. That's our charge from now on. We have to work together."