GRANITE QUARRY — Although Granite Quarry’s Board of Aldermen will be receiving some new members, the majority of the town’s government will remain the same after incumbents Brittany Barnhardt and Doug Shelton were reelected.

Both Barnhardt and Shelton will be serving their second terms. Barnhardt ran unopposed in her second mayoral election after winning in a landslide in the 2021 election. Shelton was the leading vote getter in the alderman election for the second straight time after coming in first in 2019.

The mayor position is currently a two-year term and aldermen serve for four years.

Shelton said that the town faces the same challenges it did when he first ran, and he said that he appreciates voters giving him the opportunity to continue to address those issues.

“It feels very reassuring, and it’s very rewarding that people sent me back up there for another term. We’ve got the same challenges we had previously with managing the growth coming to the town, making sure that we have effective town management and finding funding for the projects we have coming. But each of those are also opportunities,” said Shelton.

Barnhardt went unopposed in this election two years after defeating former aldermen Mike Brinkley in what turned out to be a landslide. Barnhardt won that election with 70.5 percent of the vote. Although this year’s election did not feature the same race, Barnhardt said she was still grateful that voters and residents believed in her.

“It was an honor to serve them and for the citizens to trust in a young newcomer to the board at the time,” said Barnhardt.

Barnhardt noted that the board has already begun to set aside funding for future long-term projects that could come during her next term. She also pointed to a few actions the board took during her first term that she was proud of. One of the big ones was the town’s completely rewritten development ordinances, which were put into effect in July.

Shelton made sure to thank the voters who showed up despite the fact that this year was solely a municipal election, which typically leads to much lower turnouts.

“I just want to say thanks for showing out. There’s not a lot of hype around these elections but they’re still important. Those voters, they’re the backbone of our government,” said Shelton.

Barnhardt received 220 votes in the uncontested mayoral race. Shelton received 159 votes in the aldermen race, which placed him as the top vote getter above challenger Rich Luhrs, who received 143, and fellow incumbent Jim Constantino, who received 95. The results of the election are still unofficial until the Rowan County Board of Election’s finishes canvassing in the upcoming week.