Candidates keep coming as qualifying continues

Three new candidates qualified for the 2011 election roster Wednesday morning including two incumbents and a new opponent.

Mike McNabb, council member Ward 4, and Mayor Max Bacon both qualified as candidates this morning. McNabb will run against Alex Bretch and . McNabb was first elected to office in 2003 and is running for his third term.

Bacon also qualified today. Originally elected in 1985, he is seeking his eighth term of office. Bacon is . This is not the first time Bacon has faced off against Backry who also ran for mayor in the 2007 election.

Bacon said this is the first time he’s ever run against two opponents.

“One of the things that’s fortunate for me being in office this long is you do have a record to run on,” he said. “I’m proud of the record I’ve got. We’ve accomplished a lot of things. For someone who grew up here, I would have never thought we could have done what we’ve done.”

Newcomer John Miller will face off against incumbent candidate Melleny Pritchett for the Ward 1 city council seat. Miller, originally from Selma, Ala., is a U.S. history teacher and baseball coach at Wheeler High School in Marietta.

“Getting into this arena is something I’ve always wanted to do and it’s a good time in my life to do that,” he said. “I really want to serve the community and hear what the people want and try to relate what they need.”

Also since the most recent report, Garry Osborne has qualified to run for city council, Ward 7.

Smyrna-Vinings Patch will continue to provide coverage of the 2011 election qualifying period that continues until 4:30 p.m. today. The general election will be held Tuesday, Nov. 8, 2011.