“I had a lot of coaches and got a lot of help,” Mayes said. “I really enjoyed getting out and talking to the people of Boyle County. I tried to go door to door and meet everyone I could, and I wish I could have gotten to even more people. I’m looking forward to the future now.”
Mayes said comments he made during the election about providing needed representation for the agricultural community had been misconstrued by some. Although he is a working farmer, Mayes said he wants to take on the concerns of all of the people in his district and the county.
“I am a farmer and that is a big interest of mine, but I want to be there for people in agriculture, the widows, all the citizens,” Mayes said.
Elliott is not accustomed to defeat, having won three consecutive terms representing the Parksville area on the Boyle County Board of Eduction. She offered her congratulations to Mayes for winning the race.
“I’m obviously disappointed in the outcome, but I just want to thank everyone who supported me and voted for me,” Elliott said. “I’m going to continue my work on the school board and keep doing the best I can.”
Elliott acknowledged the short timeframe between the August filing deadline and the election made things more difficult as a candidate, but said she was happy with the campaign she ran. She currently has no plans to seek another office in the future.
Voting in Tuesday’s magisterial race was complicated at one of the five precincts when the ballots received didn’t include the two candidates. Two people voted at the Bluegrass Road precinct before poll workers noticed the problem and ballots were brought in from Parksville.
The voting in the Bluegrass precinct ended up being the closest, with Mayes receiving 70 votes to 60 for Elliott.
In state races, Boyle Countians voted heavily for the ticket of incumbent Gov. Steve Beshear and lieutenant governor candidate Jerry Abramson. Beshear received 3,476 total votes to 1,839 for Republican Senate President David Williams and running mate Richie Farmer, while Independent Gatewood Galbraith and Dea Riley received 1012 votes.
Most of the voting in the county tacked fairly closely to statewide results, with all of the winners prevailing accept for state Treasurer Todd Hollenbach, who got 7 fewer votes than Republican K.C. Crosbie in Boyle. Hollenbach, the incumbent, won re-election narrowly at the state level, garnering 48.7 percent of the vote to Crosbie’s 46.6.
Despite several uncompetitive races, the 32 percent voter turnout in Boyle was slightly higher than expected and just above the 28 percent participation statewide.
The Secretary of State’s office had predicted about 25 percent, and Boyle Clerk Trille Bottom said the total would likely be closer to 20 percent based on only 200 absentee ballots cast ahead of the election.
Boyle County
This is how the voting for the rest of the state offices went in Boyle County:
Commissioner of Agriculture: Democrat Bob Farmer, 2,141; Republican James Comer 4,028.
Attorney General: Democrat Jack Conway, 3,569; Republican Todd P’Poole, 2,548.
Auditor of Public Accounts: Democrat Adam Edelen, 3,762; Republican John Kemper, 2,225.
Secretary of State: Democrat Alison Lundergan Grimes, 4,041; Republican Bill Johnson, 2,161.
Treasurer, Democrat Todd Hollenbach, 2,907; Republican K.C. Crosbie, 2,914; Independent Kenneth Moellman, 267.
