Tim Riley is Mayor-Elect for the City of Gonzales after winning 54% of the runoff vote as more than half of the November 5 Primary Election voters opted out. He succeeds Interim Mayor Ryland Percy whose steady hand stabilized City Hall and effectuated certain necessary changes left too long in place. Four-term incumbent Chief of Police Sherman Jackson won a fifth term with 59% of the vote after dominating the three-candidate primary.
Riley’s 21-percentage point advantage last month dwindled to nil as Early Voting numbers were reported by the Secretary of State moments after the polls closed. Kemlyn Bailey Lomas had an 8-vote lead, and a palpable pall descended over Riley’s watch party, all nervous excitement and celebratory anticipation mere moments before. 30 or so excruciating minutes elapsed before two voting precincts reported, catapulting Riley into a lead he would only extend with each new precinct report.
“We campaigned hard all the way through 8:00 o’clock when the polls closed,” Tim Riley credited his “hardworking team of volunteers who deserve much of the credit for this win. I also want to commend my worthy opponent, Kemlyn Bailey Lomas. It was a hard-fought campaign, but she kept it clean and professional the whole way. I appreciate all she’s done for the city and welcome Kemlyn’s contributions to a better Gonzales in the future.”
Riley went on to laud two more mayoral aspirants, “Terance Irvin and Harold Stewart who have long served the city and also have much more to contribute.” He was not so gracious toward “certain of Lomas’ supporters who commissioned cowardly, third party hit pieces through a sham non-profit.”
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“These unfortunate political tactics represent all that I have fought against,” Riley explained. “While I am not surprised by any of it, my family was no less upset. My supporters rallied around us, and I believe their actions helped spur our campaign to victory on Saturday.”
In a wildly different race, Sherman Jackson’s dominant primary position lasted through Saturday’s runoff.
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