By Greg Bassett

District 3 Wicomico County Council  incumbent Larry Dodd appeared to be headed for defeat late Thursday, following a tabulation of mail-in votes.

Challenger Shane Baker was leading Dodd with 928 votes to 681.

It is unlikely enough yet-to-arrive mail-in votes, provisional votes and absentee votes exist to change the outcome for the three-term council member.

A Willards resident, Baker is a former Wicomico Sheriff’s Deputy and current Deputy in the Worcester County Sheriff’s Office. He is a lifelong Wicomico resident with 25 years of law enforcement service in Wicomico.

Meanwhile, District 5 incumbent Joe Holloway held a commanding lead over Republican challenger AJ Angello.

Holloway remained far ahead of AJ Angello, 1,246 votes to 455.

Holloway is a lifelong resident of Wicomico County and small-business owner in Parsonsburg. He is currently the council’s longest-serving member, first winning election in 2006.

With no Democrats having filed in those districts, the primary winners have a straight shot to elected office in November.

Wicomico’s legislative branch is made up of seven council members, two who are elected at-large and five elected within districts. Voters in each party will be able to select three candidates – two at-large and one from a district – to advance to the November election.

At-Large

At-large council members represent the entire county. Two Democrats and four Republicans have filed as candidates.

Only two GOP members can advance. Among the Republicans, Cannon held a strong lead with 4,079 and was poised to advance to November.

A Salisbury native and owner of Cannon Management & Rentals, he has served on the council for 12 of the last 16 years and is the current County Council President.

James Winn, a Mardela Springs resident, will finish a solid second and join Cannon in the general election. Winn has 3,066 votes following the early-voting count.

Winn has lived in Wicomico for 18 years and graduated from Parkside High School in 2011. A small-businessman and craftsman, he and his father own and operate Acme Ceramic Tile Co.

In third place with 2,283 votes is Katherine Jones of Quantico, Executive Director of the Bay Area Center for Independent Living and a James M. Bennett High School graduate.

Dutch Schwemlein of Salisbury, owner of Bluewater Pool Services, remains in fourth place with 1,333 votes.

Bradley Gillis and Megan Outten, both of Salisbury, are the lone two Democratic filers, and automatically advance to the November ballot. On the Democratic slate, Gillis received 4,013 votes; Outten received 3,969.

District 1

Seeking a political comeback, former Salisbury City Councilwoman Shanie P. Shields has pulled ahead in the battle for the District 1 seat.

A Democrat, Shields holds a 22-vote lead over Monica Brooks of Salisbury, owner of Apostle Expert Exteriors Inc.

Shields has 480 votes to Brooks’ 458.

Shields was a longtime city elected official before being defeated in 2015.

Amber Green of Salisbury, who serves as Executive Director of Fennix Youth Project, remains in third place, with 240 votes.

Kyle E. Cole of Hebron is the sole Republican filer and automatically advances to the November ballot.

District 1 is Wicomico’s minority-majority district. Three Democrats and one Republican are competing in the district that includes north and west Salisbury. The district’s incumbent representative, Ernest Davis, is running instead for County Executive.

District 2

Talana D. Watson of Salisbury seems certain to advance to the November election, picking up even more votes over fellow Democrat Darrin L. Johnson Sr. of Quantico.

Johnson is a recently retired Wicomico Sheriff’s Deputy; Watson and her  husband operate Lewis N. Watson Funeral Home.

Watson now leads Johnson, 746 votes to 396.

Republican Jeff Merrit will advance to November, having defeated Jasmine Knorr and David Snyder, both of Salisbury.

Merritt of Salisbury is owner of Minuteman Press. He has

Merritt now has 1,243 votes, followed by Knorr with 459 votes and Snyder with 258.

Merritt is especially known for his work with Operation We Care, which supports active-duty military, veterans and first-responders. The group sends care packages to deployed troops – it sent more than 2,000 such packages last year alone.

Merritt also currently serves as Chairman of the Salisbury Area Chamber of Commerce.

Wicomico’s District 2 encompasses a huge swath of the county’s west side and crosses the Wicomico river to take in neighborhoods down Riverside Drive into Fruitland. Sharptown, Mardela Springs, Nanticoke and Whitehaven are all part of the district. The council incumbent, Nicole Acle, is leaving the seat to run for House of Delegates.