Woodby takes Republican Primary with 1,100 vote win over Ensor

Published 12:37 am Wednesday, May 4, 2022

Incumbent Mayor Patty Woodby won the Tuesday Republican primary, defeating challenger Mike Ensor by 1,100 votes.

With the Primary win, Woodby will now face off with Leon Humphrey Jr. and Devon Buck who both are running as independents in the August 4 general election.

“I am overwhelmed and so excited,” Woodby said late Tuesday evening after the votes were counted. “I look forward to serving four more years for Carter County and look forward to bringing more opportunities to Carter County.”

Woodby was selected to fill the remainder of former Mayor Rusty Barnett’s term when he passed away.

Tuesday’s election was the first time Woodby was running for an opportunity to secure a full term as mayor and said it “felt very rewarding.”

“It was hard work and with hard work always comes good rewards,” Woodby said. “I am very proud of that opportunity and very proud of my team who have worked with me along with my friends and family in this journey. The good Lord who has blessed me in so many ways and I give all the praise to Him. I am so happy to be a female elected in Carter County.”

Woodby said she is optimistic heading into the general election.

“We have two independent candidates in there but I will be the Republican nominee and I feel like Carter County really supports the Republicans here in Carter County so I am excited about that,” Woodby said. “My goal for Carter County is education. We have been working a lot on those pieces and have seen a lot of that stuff come together in the past year and a half. We hope to bring more opportunities in here for economic development like tourism. There is a lot of good opportunities for Carter County – we have been stagnated in a lot of ways but the relationships I have secured with Nashville is helping us to become a leader.”