3 MS Coast cities vote in new mayors. Here are the full 2021 general election results.

Three new mayors were elected in Tuesday’s municipal general election on the Mississippi Coast.

Voters in Gautier, Moss Point and Pass Christian each picked new mayors.

Also on Tuesday, Gulfport Mayor Billy Hewes retained his seat, beating challenger Howard Page.

The general elections are the conclusion of the 2021 municipal voting process.

The fields were relatively small on Tuesday, as dozens of city council and aldermen seats were already decided in the May party primaries and runoffs.

All results are unofficial until absentee ballots are counted and the results are certified.

Here’s a roundup of Tuesday’s races.

Bay St. Louis

Ward 2

• Gene Hoffman (D): 51% (188)
• Wendy McDonald (D): 49% (184)

Biloxi

Ward 1

• Incumbent George Lawrence (D): 51% (275)
• Keith Anderson (R): 49% (264)

Ward 2

• Incumbent Felix Gines (D): 78% (238)
• Tracey Smith (Ind.): 22%: (66)

Ward 5

• Incumbent Paul Tisdale (R): 80% (238)
• Sugar Stallings (D): 20% (61)

D’Iberville

Councilman At Large

• Incumbent Joey Bosarge (R): 77% (382)
• Quentin Lyles (D): 23% (113)

Ward 3

• Incumbent Craig “Boots” Diaz (R): 69% (216)
• Crystal Wingo (Ind.): 31% (97)

Diamondhead

Voters in Diamondhead turned down an effort by the city to take control of the local fire and water district.

Unofficial results excluding absentee ballots show:

• 72.4% voted “no” to consolidate the Diamondhead Water & Sewer District
• 77% voted “no” to consolidate the Fire District.

In other Diamondhead races, Gerard Maher won an at-large council seat over challenger James Hightower.

Maher got 1,541 votes while Hightower got 764.

Gautier

Independent Casey Vaughan won Tuesday’s election for Gautier mayor.

Vaughan, formerly a Gautier councilman, got 1,150 votes, or 53%, in unofficial returns.

Current Mayor Phil Torjusen received 1,005 votes, or 47%.

Torjusen, who served one term as mayor, said he wasn’t upset with the results.

“We’ve pretty much set the stage for a lot of good things to happen in Gautier,” he said Tuesday night. “I wish everyone in the next administration the best of luck.”

In other Gautier races, Charles Rusty Anderson won the Ward 4 seat on the Gautier City Council, getting 297 votes. His challenger, independent Wayne Golder, got 162 votes.

Gulfport

Gulfport residents elected Republican Billy Hewes to his third term as mayor, with Hewes receiving 2,628 votes, or 63.51%, to 1,478 votes, or 35.72%, for Democratic challenger Howard Page.

Hewes said he plans to work during his new term on the blue economy Gulfport is developing, particularly with high-tech jobs related to Gulf of Mexico exploration, relieving traffic congestion in the busy commercial area of Interstate 10 and U.S. 49, and promoting development of multi-use buildings for apartments and commerce.

During his previous administrations, the city financially supported and saw the opening of the Mississippi Aquarium on U.S. 90 downtown and Centennial Plaza, also on U.S. 90. The city also is working to attract development to its harbor, which would round out tourist attractions along the beach, where an overhead tram and pedestrian walkway is planned to link the harbor and downtown.

The city also has secured millions in grant funding to link roadways along Gulfport’s commercial corridor, U.S. 49, north and south of Interstate 10. Expansion of the city’s sportsplex under Hewes continues to draw visitors to area hotels and restaurants.

But opponent Page, a community organizer and political analyst, criticized the road construction plans along the highway as growth that will lead to flooding for historically Black communities along U.S. 49. Page campaigned against the project as planned, saying he would work to improve roads, flood-insurance rates and pay for police and firefighters.

City Council results

Ward 2

• Incumbent Ron Roland (R): 59.11% (662)
• Patrice Lombard (D): 40.71%(456)

Ward 5

• Incumbent Myles Sharp (R): 56.86% (199)
• BaJon Williams (D): 43.14% (151)

Ward 6

• Incumbent Robert “R. Lee” Flowers (R): 61.53% (355)
• Taylor Moran Godwin (D): 38.13% (220)

Moss Point

Billy Knight’s long quest to become mayor of Moss Point ended with victory. The Democratic nominee defeated Republican Richard McBride and Independent candidate Howard Bailey, winning 81% of the vote.

Knight, a longtime businessman and former school board president, has said he plans to focus on improving public safety by building relationships between police and the community. He also plans to emphasize economic development around the I-10 and MS-63 corridor north of downtown Moss Point.

Knight ran in 2017 but was narrowly defeated in the Democratic runoff by Mario King, who resigned in February after pleading guilty to a federal fraud charge.

Knight has pledged to inaugurate a new chapter for Moss Point, a city he sees as having lost trust in its leadership after years of negative headlines that distracted from issues like public safety and education.

“The right leadership can build that back,” he told the Sun Herald in March.

Board of Aldermen results:

At Large

• Incumbent David E. Chapman Sr. (D): 68.97% (1,500)
• Jason Jackson (I): 30.9% (672)

Ward 5

This race is too close to call and will be decided after affidavit and absentee ballots are counted. There are five more days for a handful of outstanding absentee ballots to come in.

• Willie Chestang: 50.90% (225)
• John Mosely Jr. 49.1% (217)

Ward 6

• Gerald Jackson Sr. (D): 33% (185)
• Incumbent Gary Wayne Lennep (I): 67% (375)

Ocean Springs

The following seats on the board of aldermen were decided in Tuesday’s election.

At Large

• Incumbent Robert “Bobby” Cox (R): 69.83% (1,669 votes)
• Matt Stebly (I): 30.13% (720)

Ward 1

• Jennifer Burgess (R): 62.56% (254)
• Brandon Riches (D): 5.67% (23)
• Greg Gipson (I): 31.53% (128)

Ward 4

• Incumbent Ken Papania (R): 58.77% (325)
• Elizabeth Feder-Hosey (I): 41.23% (228)

Pass Christian

There is a new Pass Christian mayor, and two incumbent members of the Board of Aldermen have been unseated.

Republican nominee Jimmy Rafferty was elected the new mayor with all precincts reporting on Tuesday, easily defeating a pair of opponents.

With 75% of the vote, Rafferty topped Democrat Peggy Norman Johnson and independent Zenas Cappie. In the unofficial results, Rafferty received 966 votes, Cappie had 220 and Norman Johnson earned 103.

Rafferty, whose grandfather served as Pass Christian mayor in 1936, is the third generation in his family to run for office. He is a retired businessman with a career in human resources and benefit management.

Rafferty took 63%t of the vote in the Republican primary in April, defeating challenger Adam Pace.

In Ward 1, incumbent Republican James “Buddy” Clarke was beaten by independent Betty Sparkman. In Tuesday night’s unofficial results, Sparkman received 259 votes to Clarke’s 192.

Ward 3 incumbent Democrat Anthony “Baba” Hall has been beaten by Republican Kirk Kimball, who received 222 votes to Hall’s 133.