The Republican primary run-off election for two seats on the Franklin County Commission takes place April 16. Candidates spoke at a candidate bean lunch Feb. 24 at Blue Springs Volunteer Fire Department in Phil Campbell ahead of the March 5 vote.

For District One, the choices are Curtis Baker and Michael Murray:

Curtis Baker explained his desire to be elected. “I’m a lifelong resident of Franklin County,” Baker said, in part, adding he and his wife, Tiffany, have three children. “I’ve worked at R Baker, Inc. for, it’ll be 24 years this June. My wife works at Phil Campbell Elementary School in the special education department, and we believe in Franklin County. It’s got to be a place where your kids don’t want to leave from or you’ll never get to see your grandkids,” he said. “That’s a goal for me. I don’t make empty promises. I’ll always tell you the truth. You can bet on that. If you call me, I’ll answer.”

Michael Murray said, in part, that he’s been a lifelong resident of Franklin County and has been married to his wife for 31 years, with whom he has two children, both in college. “The experience I bring is 31 years in automotive repair, 25 years as owner of a business and 16 years working with the Franklin County Board of Education as a bus mechanic. I’ve seen most of the roads due to the bus routings, and I’ll be willing to work and try to secure fundings to get better roads for Franklin County as a whole.”

TO NOTE: Charles Mitchell, Democrat, is running for the seat of commissioner for District One on the Franklin County Commission. He will face the Republican contender in the November election later this year. Chris Wallace, Republican, currently holds this position. Michael Eady and Kirk Sparks ran unsuccessfully for the role.

For District 2, the choices are Heath Ayers and Greg Hovater:

Heath Ayers spoke about his candidacy. “I’m from Colbert County originally,” Ayers said, in part. “My grandparents, my mother was raised here in Franklin County. My wife’s from Franklin County. My parents were the late James and Martha Ayers. My father-in-Law is Charles Sweeney. My mother-in-Law is the late Elise Sweeney. I married Amy Sweeney. We have two kids.”
Ayers said he works at “Reynolds, Wise, whatever you want to call it,” adding he’s been there for 32 years, having served 16 of those years as vice president of the local there, adding he knows the importance of bringing jobs to the county. “We represent 718 people plus their families over there,” he added, “so I know how it is to deal with folks, deal with contracts, try to help raise money for the county and keep families here.”

Greg Hovater is also running. He said, in part, “I lived in Franklin County all my life. I’ve been married to my wife, Kathy, for, this year will be 35 years. We’ve got three kids that live in Franklin County, four grandkids. I’m a contractor. I’ve had my own business for over 25 years. All I can promise anybody is I’ll do the right thing, and you won’t ever have to worry about whether something dishonest is going on or not, something not being right, because if I’ve got anything to do with it, it’ll be right.”

TO NOTE: Doug Aaron and David Cory Cummings ran unsuccessfully for the position. Jason Miller, Republican, currently holds the District 2 place on the Franklin County Commission. He unsuccessfully ran for the office of probate judge against incumbent Barry Moore.