Former Johnston County Commissioner Tony Braswell of Pine Level will return to the District 6 seat he held for 12 years.
Voters rejected Commissioner Lee Jackson’s bid to hold onto the seat he was appointed to in November 2017 following the resignation of Commissioner Keith Branch less than a year into his term. Braswell did not run for re-election to the seat in 2016.
Jackson, a 53 year-old owner of a Smithfield CPA firm, may have hurt his chances for re-election by a controversial campaign flyer he mailed to Johnston County voters last week.
The flyer showed Commissioner Jackson speaking in front of an American flag with the caption: Everyday people stand united, ready to replace decades of broken, dirty politics with a new leader that is not a part of the old system, Lee Jackson.
Braswell carried 63.6 percent of the vote total in the Republican Primary to Jackson’s 36.4 percent. In unofficial returns, Braswell received 5,362 votes to 3,073 votes for Jackson.
There is no Democratic opposition for the seat in November.
Jackson will likely serve out his appointed term through December 2018 at which time Braswell will take his oath.
Braswell’s top issue during his campaign is a property tax rate cut in 2019. Braswell’s other priorities include education budgeting, working with stakeholders in the towns across Johnston County in land use, and eliminating the trash decal system. As a Vietnam Veteran, Braswell said he will also be committed to a strong Veteran’s support system.
