Jones in a walk: Charges of corruption didn't seem to matter to county voters

Wayne County showed its conservative bent on Tuesday, giving a wide margin to Superior Court Judge Arnold Jones, who is under federal indictment for attempted bribery, and handing wins to the favorites in most other races at the local, state and national levels.

Jones, who faced strong challenges from former Judge Jerry Braswell and attorney Will Bland, picked up nearly half the votes cast, with Bland earning the second spot in the primary and setting up a contest with Jones in November.

The cloud that has hung over Jones' head since November didn't seem to matter to voters, who gave him nearly 45 percent of the total votes cast.

In other local races, incumbent county commissioner John Bell easily turned back a challenge by Constance Coram in the District 3 race to retain his seat, and Pat Burden and Trebor Jackson won in the District 3 school board race, setting up a November clash.

In the high profile primaries for president, Wayne voters gave Donald Trump a narrow edge over Ted Cruz in the Republican race and Hillary Clinton an expected big win over Bernie Sanders in the Democratic contest.

Published in Editorials on March 16, 2016 11:19 AM