Nellie Hubbard Archibald and J. Gary Johnson emerged victorious in the tight race for two seats on the Wilkesboro town council Tuesday. Only 30 votes separated the three candidates as Mrs. Archibald finished with 310 votes, Johnson got 298, and Andy Soots was close behind in third with 280. 

The final numbers are down slightly from those announced Tuesday night because votes from transfer ballots were inadvertently added into the original vote count twice. There were a total of 19 transfer ballots in the county. In Wilkesboro, 516 of 1,986 eligible registered voters cast ballots, for a 25.98 percent turnout. 

Mrs. Archibald, making her first run for office, is the advertising manager at the Wilkes Journal-Patriot, and Johnson is a manager at Tyson Foods. Johnson was appointed to the board two years ago to fill the unexpired council term of Mike Inscore when Inscore was elected as mayor. 

Mrs. Archibald and Mr. Johnson will be sworn in at the next town council meeting on Monday, December 7, 2009.

Winners comment 

Mrs. Archibald, after the vote totals were announced, said, "I look forward to serving the citizens of Wilkesboro and working with the town council and mayor. I sincerely appreciate the vote of confidence and will do my best to do what's right for the town. Although I've been attending the council meetings for a while, I've got a lot to learn. I feel fortunate, however, to have the leadership and experience of our town manager, mayor and current council members to help me along. We've got a great town with great employees, and I'm proud to be associated with them all." 

Johnson, after accepting congratulations from others at the Wilkesboro Civic Center when the vote totals were announced, said "I'm exhausted. I've been here all day. Congratulations to Nellie for receiving the most votes in a closely contested race. I also want to thank Andy Soots for running an honorable campaign. Andy is and has always been a friend. I have no doubt he will continue to support Wilkesboro in the many ways he has done so in the past". Johnson added, "I also want to thank the citizens of Wilkesboro for the many votes I received which allowed me to continue serving our town. I'm very proud of the number of voters who turned out, especially in an off-year election. It is my honor to serve with the current elected team of councilmen and mayor, as well as the town staff. We continue to weather the economic storm through good management practices. I look forward to the next four years and being a part of the leadership which will further develop our town and maintain the necessary services at the highest possible level," Johnson concluded. 

Soots, who finished third, said, "I'm very appreciative of the people who came out and supported me. My love for Wilkesboro is the same as it has ever been, and I wish the winners the best. Sure, I'm disappointed," he said. "I've worked very hard on this. It's hard for me to put into words the emotions that I feel. But I have no regrets, and I'd do it all again." Soots, who has lost by narrow margins in previous elections, added, "if I wasn't committed to the town, it would be easy to walk away. I think this was the fifth time I've lost, and each time the margin is very slim. It's hard to take after I've worked so hard. But I'll probably run again. I'm that committed, and I thank everyone for the support that I received." Soots said he had spoken with county elections officials but it is not within the 3 percent margin needed to call for a recount for the second seat.