ELECTIONS: Mitchell to face Willis in runoff

Published 8:54 pm Saturday, March 26, 2022

{child_kicker}ELECTION{/child_kicker}

{child_flags:top_story}{child_flags:featured}Mitchell to face Willis in runoff election for Mayor of St. Martinville

{child_byline}By COREY VAUGHN

THE DAILY IBERIAN{/child_byline}

St. Martinville Mayor Melinda Mitchell is set to face candidate Jason Willis in a runoff following Saturday night’s election results.

Willis, a local business owner and former St. Martin Parish councilman, garnered the most votes out of the five candidates vying for St. Martinville’s mayoral seat. The final results showed Willis garnering 44% of the vote, or 835 residents who voted for the candidate.

Mitchell, who is seeking a second term in office, came in second with 33% of the vote, or 624 voters casting a ballot in her favor. Unofficial voter turnout was 45.2%.

For the four seats up for grabs on the St. Martinville City Council, two council seats will be facing a runoff election while the other two had winners decided Saturday night.

Carol Frederick handily won the District 2 seat election while facing opponents Lance Laviolette and Marty Theriot. By the end of the night, Frederick had garnered 52% of the vote, or 124 voters.

Jonas Fontenette will be the new District 2 City Councilman after winning against Ryan Denise Williams with 58% of the vote, or 242 voters.

In District 4, Janise Anthony and James “Lil Jimmy” Charles are set to go into a runoff election after neither had garnered more than 50% of the vote. Anthony finished with 33% of the vote, while Charles finished with 29%.

In District 5, Florita “Flo” Chapman and Leander “Cush” Williams are also set to head into a runoff. By the end of the night, Chapman had garnered 41% of the vote, while Williams came in second with 29%.

Saturday night’s election spells an almost entirely new St. Martinville City Council, with the sole exception of District 1 Councilman Mike Fuselier, who ran without opposition this year.

The runoff election date is April 30.