Unofficial results: New Bern Ward 1 incumbent beaten, Royal wins Ward 2 in runoff election
Editor's Note: Results are not final until canvassing is completed on August 5.
New Bern's Ward 1 incumbent alderman was defeated Tuesday night during the city's runoff election, while the race for Ward 2 came down to less than 40 votes.
New Bern pastor Hazel Royal defeated local businesswoman Jennell Reddick during Tuesday's runoff election earning 377 votes to Reddick's 341 votes.
Royal took the lead early on leading with 247 votes with Reddick close behind holding 202 votes when early voting numbers came in around 7:10 p.m.
On May 17, Reddick won the Ward 2 race, ousting incumbent Alderwoman Jameesha Harris. Reddick finished with 267 votes, while Royal received 240. Harris came in third with 183 votes. With Reddick unable to obtain 50% of the vote, Royal was able to request a runoff.
Royal is a lifetime resident of Ward 2 and has served as a community pastor for 40 years. She has served as the executive director of Abundant Life Community Services, Inc., a local nonprofit, for 22 years.
Prill unseats Bengel
In the race for Ward 1 alderman, Rick Prill has unseated incumbent Alderman Sabrina Bengel earning 780 votes to Bengel's 602 votes.
Prill started the July 26 runoff election in first place. With five precincts reporting, Prill held the lead with 654 votes and Bengel behind with 526 votes.
During the May 17 election, incumbent Alderman Sabrina Bengel finished first with 548 votes while candidate Prill finished behind Bengel with 507 votes.
Bengel has represented Ward 1 for two non-consecutive terms.
Prill is a former city manager with more than 29 years of experience. He has also held the positions of municipal clerk, zoning officer, code enforcement official, emergency management director, recycling coordinator, acting chief of police during a transition between chiefs, chairman of lakes and streams committee and a community development representative.
Uncontested during the May 17 election, Ward 3 Alderman Bobby Aster, Ward 4 Alderman Johnnie Ray Kinsey, and Ward 5 Alderman Barbara Best were re-elected with each earning 90% of the vote.
The canvass to finalize the runoff election results will be held at 11 a.m. on Aug. 5, at the Craven County Board of Elections office. on August 5. During the canvass, mail-in, absentee, and preliminary ballots will be added to the final total for the runoff elections.
During the May 17 primary election, which held the first round of New Bern elections, the Craven County Board of Elections reported there were a total of 153 mail-in ballots left to be counted after the election night — 77 were for the city of New Bern races.
Royal finished 36 votes ahead of Reddick.
This article originally appeared on Sun Journal: Unofficial results: New Bern Ward 1 incumbent beaten, Royal wins Ward 2 in runoff election
