Toyia Tucker reelected to Columbus Council. Race to replace John House headed to run-off

Brittany McGee
·2 min read

Editor’s note: This story is part of ongoing election coverage from the Columbus Ledger-Enquirer. For additional up-to-date information on Tuesday’s races, visit ledger-enquirer.com.

The even numbered districts on the Columbus Council were up for election on Tuesday, but only two of them were competitive.

Four candidates are vying to fill former Columbus Councilor John House’s at-large seat for both the remaining months of the current term in a special election, and also for the next four years.

Both the special election and the regular election decision for the same seat were on the ballot for voters Tuesday: The special election decision determines who fills the position until January 2025, at which point the winner of the regular election would take office.

John Anker, Travis Chambers, Patrick Leonard and Rocky Marsh all ran for the seat in both races.

Anker is a former mayoral candidate and founder of the manufacturing and logistics company Ankerpak. A former small business owner, Chambers currently works in the nonprofit sector.

Leonard is the pastor of Faith Ministries of Columbus. Marsh, a veteran of the U.S. Army, currently works as the Department of Defense civilian Fort Moore budget analyst.

The race for the at-large district seat heads for a run-off election on June 18 as Travis Chambers leads with about 44.2% of the vote with all precincts reporting, according to unofficial results from the Georgia Secretary of State’s Office, which were missing fewer than 100 provisional and military ballots that could come in as late as Friday.

Anker is in second place with about 38.7%. Marsh and Leonard placed third and fourth, respectively.

Results for the special election were similar with Chambers leading Anker, Marsh and Leonard with about 43% of the vote.

District 4 incumbent Toyia Tucker, who was first elected in 2020, was challenged by Tyrone Thomas, a pastor who retired from his 30-year career with the Columbus Police Department.

Tucker will hold onto her seat with about 52.4% of the vote, according to the unofficial results.

Here are the incumbent candidates running unopposed for Columbus Council:

  • Glenn Davis in District 2

  • Gary Allen in District 6

  • Walker Garret in District 8