Zoch, A-Roc defeat BC incumbents

Two-term Orange City Councilman Patrick A. Pullen said Tuesday afternoon he hadn't decided if he would seek a recount after losing his seat by seven votes Saturday.

Final election results were announced Tuesday after the May 3 deadline for receiving mail-in votes postmarked by election day.

A total of six new votes were added to Saturday's total, one each in six races. None affected the outcome of any race.

David C. Bailey, a former Orange County Sheriff's Office Chief Deputy, defeated Pullen for the District 1 seat with 145 votes to 138 for Pullen.

Randy Branch will be Mayor of West Orange after capturing 68.7% of the vote against Jim Whittington in the election ending Saturday evening.

Misty Songe and Ronnie Herrera face a runoff for the position of Mayor in Vidor, after finishing 1-2 in a three-way race in which no candidate received 50% plus one of the total votes cast.

Branch, pastor of Wesley United Methodist Church, will take the place of longtime West Orange mayor Roy McDonald, who earlier this year announced his retirement after 26 years as his city's top elected official.

Incumbents Patty Collins of Bridge City ISD board, Carl Harbert of Bridge City City Council, Joey Vance of the Pinehurst City Council and Pullen lost their re-election bids, according to final results released by the Orange County Elections Administration.

Paul Zoch defeated Collins 533-501 for the BCISD board.

Aaron Roccaforte, son of longtime BC councilman and mayor Kirk Roccaforte, defeated Harbert 484-259 in his first run for office and Vance finished fifth in a five-way race for three at-large seats.

Around the county:

*Orange Mayor Larry Spears Jr. easily won re-election to a second three-year term, collecting 90.6% of the 1,612 votes cast in a race against Charles Thomas.

*Bridge City ISD incumbent Judy Cole doubled up challenger Caleb Hayes with 702 votes to 326.

* For City Council in Bridge City, incumbent Terri Gauthier defeated Kenneth Prosperie 427-315 for Place 5 and incumbent Tammi Fisette outpolled challenger John P. Nickum 440-304 for Place 3.

In West Orange, incumbent alderman Brent Dearing won re-election and former alderman Meritta Kennedy reclaimed a spot on city council in a three-person race for two at-large seats.

Dearing collected 190 votes, Kennedy 183 and the other candidate, Jay Odom, finished with 171.

* In Pinehurst, where the top three finishers were elected for three at-large alderman seats, incumbent Sarah McClendon earned 87 votes, followed by Johnny Asevedo (82), incumbent Michael Shahan (63), Troy Pierce (48) and Vance (43).

Incumbent Greg Willis defeated Kerri Donnaud Arrington 83-62 for a one-year term as Pinehurst alderman.

* Songe finished with 47.8% of the total votes for Vidor Mayor with 340. Herrera finished with 227 and Seth LaPray 145. In the only contested Vidor council race, former Mayor Kelly Carder turned around a seven-vote early voting deficit with a 116-106 edge in Saturday and Monday votes to win the race by three votes over Joseph Webb, 344-341.

CORRECTION: In a story about early filers for the 2022 Orange County elections last week, it was incorrectly reported that Precinct 3 Commissioner Kirk Roccaforte was up for re-election next year. Roccaforte was an interim replacement for his job near the end of a four-year term in 2020 and won re-election until 2024 last year.