By Greg Bassett

Wicomico’s seven-member legislative branch will have at least four new council members beginning in December, based on results from Wednesday's latest vote counts.

District 3 incumbent Larry Dodd was defeated by political newcomer Shane Baker, 968 votes to 707.

Some mail-in and provisional ballots have yet to be counted, but there are not enough remaining votes to change the outcome.

Incumbents Bill McCain, Ernie Davis and Nicole Acle were already set to depart the council, with McCain retiring, and Acle and Davis leaving to pursue other elected offices. Acle lost a bid for state delegate; Davis is the Democratic nominee for the November County Executive contest.

Dodd’s ouster will mean entirely new voting matrixes when the new council is seated in December.  

Two of Wicomico’s council members are elected at-large, while five are elected within districts. Four Republicans squared off in last week’s party primary, with two advancing to November.

John Cannon of Salisbury led the ticket with 4,277 votes, followed by political newcomer James Winn of Mardela Springs, who had 3,177 votes.

Katherine Jones of Quantico finished third with 2,401 votes, with Dutch Schwemlein trailing in fourth with 1,397 votes.

A council veteran who has served on the body for 12 of the last 16 years, Cannon is owner of Cannon Management & Rentals. Winn has lived in Wicomico for 18 years and is an owner of Acme Ceramic Tile Co.

Democrats Bradley Gillis and Megan Outten, both of Salisbury, automatically advance to the November ballot. Gillis received 4,268 votes; Outten received 4,220.

In the Nov. 8 election, the top two vote-getters from among Cannon, Gillis, Outten and Winn will attain seats on the council.

District 1

The race among District 1 Democratic contenders remained close even after more votes were tabulated Wednesday, but political veteran Shanie P. Shields had the upper hand as some mail-in and provisional ballots could yet be counted.

Shields, a former Salisbury City Councilwoman, was holding a 22-vote lead over Monica Brooks of Salisbury. Shields has 508 votes to Brooks’ 486 votes.

Amber Green of Salisbury was trailing with 259 votes.

Shields was a longtime city elected official before being defeated in 2015 by the current seat holder, April Jackson.

Kyle E. Cole of Hebron is the sole Republican candidate in the district. He received 375 votes and automatically advances to the November ballot.

District 1 is Wicomico’s minority-majority district and includes portions of north and west Salisbury.

District 2

On the Democratic ballot, Talana D. Watson of Salisbury easily defeated Darrin L. Johnson Sr. of Quantico, 787 votes to 426.

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

Among the Republicans, Salisbury Area Chamber of Commerce Jeff Merritt scored a big victory with 1,287 votes, 813 votes more than his nearest competitor.

Jasmine Knorr of Salisbury had 474 votes, while David Snyder of Salisbury was in third place with 273 votes.

Watson and Merritt will square off in November.

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.

District 4

District 4 is made up of the neighborhoods of central and south Salisbury, off Riverside Drive and around Salisbury University, and south of Snow Hill Road.

A candidate from each party has filed for the seat, Republican Kyle Lemonte Brown and Democratic incumbent Josh Hastings.

Brown received 523 votes from fellow GOP members; Hastings received 790 votes.

The two candidates will face-off in the November general election.

District 5

Incumbent Holloway of Parsonsburg was decidedly turning back a challenge from AJ Angello, an Exercise Science and Business major at Salisbury University.

Holloway captured 73 percent of the vote with 1,290 votes. Angello has 470 votes.

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.

District 5 includes east-northeast Wicomico County above Route 50, and includes Delmar, Powellville, Willards. The district dips south of Route 50 to take in Wor-Wic Community College.