Weakley County has a New Mayor

Dale Hutcherson of Dresden is now Weakley County’s new mayor after winning the election Thursday, August 1 with a massive 2,982 votes. This was a win over Republican nominee John Robert Freeman by 1,593 votes and independent candidate Danny powers by 2,751 votes. Freeman came in with a total of 1,593 votes and Powers totaled 231 votes.

Residents of the county were on the edge of their seats Thursday night as they waited for votes to come in during one of the most watched races in Weakley County this election.

Hutcherson was unable to run as a Republican due to not being considered “bona-fide” by the Weakley County Republican party, forcing him to take an independent tag, even though Hutcherson claims to have been a Republican his entire life.

The Republican Party stated that he wasn’t qualified to run as a Republican during the caucus due to not voting in at least two out of the past three elections. Hutcherson was in law school during one of the elections and did not vote.

However, once election results are certified by the Weakley County Election Commission, Hutcherson will be Weakley County’s new “bona-fide” mayor.

Hutcherson will have to abandon his seat as a Dresden City Alderman and a new Alderman will have to be appointed by the Dresden Board of Mayor and Alderman until the seat can be filled via election.

Hutcherson also stated that he would have to slow down on his attorney practice as the new mayor due to time constraints.

After learning of his win, Hutcherson came by the election office with his wife Samantha.

“It feels humbling. It's a little bit indescribable when you start seeing things play out that way. And I'm just thankful, and I'm so thankful to the people of Weakley County for putting your faith and your trust in me,” Hutcherson stated.

Hutcherson was raised in Weakley County and stated that was part of his reasoning for running.

“To me, it's a great place to work. Weakley County, Tennessee- I love it. I believe in serving the places you love, and serving the people you love. I believe in servant leadership. One of the things I hope I bring to the table is servant leadership. It's almost a lost art in politics as we see them today. We see a lot of division, a lot of divisive things that go on in politics. And it's unfortunate. And I do believe the people of not only this county, but the United States in general, need unification. So, one of the reasons I wanted to run for this is to serve. One is to unify. One is to make sure that our county knows that whoever is in this seat is going to be a legitimate resource. And as an advocate, because that's my job. I believe in the Constitution. And I believe in the Declaration. And the whole point of this great country was to serve at the consent of the governed. And that's a lost concept as well, I believe. And I hope to bring that back. Not that it was gone in the county per se, but I would love to see that at all levels of government. That each of us that are fortunate enough to serve in these offices, remember that we serve for the people. We serve at the will of the people. And that's why. That's the big reason why I wanted to do this,” Hutcherson stated.  

WEAKLEY COUNTY CANDIDATE WINNERS:

Assessor of Property: Lisa Odle-Uncontested.

School Board District 1: Gath Meeks Retained his seat

School Board District 3: Jeffrey Floyd retained his seat

School Board District 5: Wendell Cates was the winner over Margaret Lewis with 330 votes to her 135

School Board District 7: Doug Sims retained his seat

School Board District 9: Joshua Moore retained his seat with 674 votes to Shannon Taylor’s 75

Constable District 1: Phillip Russell won with 401 votes to Adam Ledezma’s 77

Constable District 4: Derek Coble with 619 votes

Constable District 6: No Candidate Qualified

Constable District 9: Austin Powell won with 419 votes over Keith Sumner’s 293