E-Mail
Print
tool name
close
tool goes here
Friday, Nov. 06, 2009
Bill Spriggs wins Merced mayor race by 75 votes
Count of mailed and provisional ballots reveal a narrow victory for councilman.
Bill Spriggs was declared Merced's mayor Thursday after tripling his narrow lead during the final vote tally.
Elections officials tallied the vote-by-mail and provisional ballots in the afternoon before releasing the results and posting them online. Tuesday night Spriggs had a 24-vote lead, which grew to 75 votes.
"People don't think it's important to get out there and vote," he said.
Story continues below video.
Merced Sun-Star - Bill Spriggs
Merced Sun-Star - PHOTO BY LISA JAMES
News cameras rush in as defeated mayoral candidate Michele Gabriault-Acosta calls to congratulate Bill Spriggs on his 75-vote win margin for Merced mayor as current Mayor Ellie Wooten looks on Thursday afternoon.
-
Final election tallies
Mayoral race Rick Osorio -- 1,551 votes, 24.89 percent
Michele Gabriault-Acosta -- 2,270, 36.42 percent
Bill Spriggs --2,345, 37.63 percentCouncil race (three open seats)
Richard Cervantes -- 2,459 votes, 17.83 percent
Carl Pollard -- 2,079, 15.08 percent
Josh Pedrozo --2,885, 20.92 percent
Mary-Michal Rawling -- 2,552, 18.51 percent
Bill Blake -- 3,752, 27.21 percent
Video: Spriggs named Merced's new mayor Spriggs finished with 2,345, while his opponent, Michele Gabriault-Acosta, ended with 2,270.
The results remain unofficial until they're certified by the Merced County Board of Supervisors next month. The winners will be sworn in at the following City Council meeting.
Mayor Ellie Wooten, Gabriault-Acosta and candidate Richard Cervantes were in the Elections Office as registrar of voters Karen Adams announced the returns.
Gabriault-Acosta called Spriggs to congratulate him. "We kept (the race) clean and on the issues," she said to him. "We're still there working for Merced."
Spriggs said later that he plans to work to stimulate more development and create jobs. The council will also have to decide what to do with the homeless population living near Black Rascal Creek. "It's probably something that won't make anyone happy," he said.
With eight years on the council, Spriggs said he thought his experience helped to nudge him ahead in the election.
Voters also elected Bill Blake, Josh Pedrozo and Mary-Michal Rawling to serve as council members.
Reporter Scott Jason can be reached at (209) 385-2453 or sjason@mercedsun-star.com.
A few rules are needed to help foster a feeling of community. We encourage a free, CIVIL and open exchange of ideas in a climate of mutual respect, but any post that violates someone's right to use and enjoy mercedsunstar.com is prohibited. Before you post, please read the terms of use and obey these simple guidelines. Here are the ground rules:
1. Be yourself. A nickname will be used for posts, but if an editor finds a user without a verifiable name , that user will be warned or banned.
2. Keep it clean. Foul language (defined by prime-time standards) will not be tolerated. Neither will the intentional misspelling of foul language or the use of non-English curse words.
3. Be truthful. Do not lie or link to sites that may be considered libelous, defamatory or false.
4. Be nice. Don't harass anyone. Don't threaten anyone. Don't use racial slurs. Don't post anything sexually explicit.
5. Be an individual. Do not advertise or solicit. Do not harvest any information for business use.
6. Be original. Do not post copyrighted material.
7. Follow the law. Don't do anything or post anything considered illegal by city, county, state or federal regulations and laws.
On most news stories, the commenting period is closed after three days. If you wish to continue a discussion, please use The Sunspot forum.
Quick Job Search
SITE MAP
News
Lifestyles
Entertainment
Forums
Obituaries
@Nyx.CommentBody@