Early voting ended on Friday for the 2023 run-off between incumbent Sherman Ross and challenger James Payne for the Mayor’s seat in Rockmart.

The Board of Elections reported that 175 voters cast ballots early ahead of the election, and 15 people sought out an absentee ballot. 6 were returned and accepted, one returned and was rejected. Additionally, two provisional ballots were counted during early voting.

Ross and Payne are seeking the Mayor’s seat for the City of Rockmart in this year’s local race. They were the two out of the three candidates in November’s vote to end the night on Nov. 7, but since none of the three that included Cooley Austin in the race got 50% + one vote, it went into a run-off.

City voters will be able to go to the polls on Tuesday to cast ballots in the race. Anyone registered within the city limits can participate in the run-off whether or not they participated in the November vote.

The 175 votes in the run-off early voting was down from the three weeks of early voting that took place prior to November’s vote. 265 voters cast a ballot in Rockmart prior to the Nov. 7 election.

Polls will open at 7 a.m. on Tuesday, December 5 for the single item on the ballot for the run-off. Voters can take part at the Nathan Dean Community Center at 604 Goodyear Avenue, Rockmart until 7 p.m. when the polls close.