A primary victory by Ben Adams seems likely to tilt the balance of power on the Cherokee County Board of Commissioners.
While incumbents Dan Eichenbaum (District 4) and Cal Stiles (District 1) are both in line to win re-election in the fall after defeating their Republican primary challengers, Adams’ victory in the District 3 Republican primary appears set to shift more influence to Stiles after the swearing-in ceremony in December.
Adams has said he aligns more closely with Stiles and District 5 Commissioner Jan Griggs. That duo often find themselves on the lesser end of a 3-2 voting split with Eichenbaum, District 2 Commissioner Randy Phillips and current District 3 Commissioner Gary “Hippie” Westmoreland, who did not seek re-election.
“It’s going to give a fresh look with a new commissioner,” Stiles said. “I’ve talked to Ben several times about different issues, and we don’t agree about everything, but we seem to align on a lot of thoughts.
“He’s a very sharp individual, has got a great sense of humor and is concerned about Cherokee County. I think from my conversations with him, his perspective and what he would like to do and see happen in Cherokee County will align a lot with Commissioner Griggs and myself.”
Adams gained 2,164 votes (37.96 percent), defeating Mark Kephart (1,445, 25.35 percent), J.R. Carroll (1,404, 24.63 percent) and John Worden (687, 12.05 percent) in the May 17 primary. While Adams acknowledged the power dynamic inevitably will look somewhat different, he said he aims for his vote to reflect the voices of county citizens. He also disputed rumors that Stiles and Griggs ever donated any money to his campaign.
“It’s time we put some of the public’s input to some of these decisions rather than just three people,” Adams said. “Kind of like I told someone today, ‘I’m not going to be anyone’s puppet.’
“I’m going to be working for the people, so it depends on the topic that’s going to be brought up, and whether the constituents agree with it or not will be how I vote. I’m sure with some topics there will be a shift, and on some there may not be – it just depends.”
Meanwhile, Eichenbaum received 2,369 votes (41.7 percent) to hold off first-time candidates John Midkiff (1,746, 30.57 percent) and Joe Simonds (1,597, 27.96 percent). Stiles gained 2,651 votes (45.61 percent) to defeat a own pair of experienced challengers, Cherokee County Board of Education member Jeff Tatham (1,993, 34.29 percent) and Andrews Alderman Steve Jordan (1,168, 20.1 percent).
Stiles faced a variety of heated attack ads and online critiques during the campaign, including a digital illustration that branded him a “can kicker” along with an entire website that depicted him as local mafia boss. He described the campaign as being like a daily trip to the dentist in which he received a root canal without the aid of novocaine, and said he was disappointed to see the attacks become so personal.
“I think they went so far over the top with some of their crazy accusations, some of them were just lies more or less, but I think it went so far over the top that the citizens were able to see through that and see what the reason was,” Stiles said. “That airport special interest group was out to get me at any and all cost, so I think the citizens just read through that very well.”
None of the winners are scheduled to face a Democrat opponent in the fall, although it’s still possible for an independent candidate to get on the ballot for the general election Tuesday, Nov. 8.
An email seeking comment from Eichenbaum was not returned before press time Tuesday.