Write-in campaign falls short

Mayor Hugh HallmanTEMPE - The quixotic campaign of an 18-year-old high school student who ran as a write-in challenger to Tempe Mayor Hugh Hallman is over.

Garnering only 6% of the vote, Derek Lull, a senior at Corona del Sol High School, lost to the incumbent mayor, who was gracious in victory, addressing a crowd gathered at his home to watch the results come in.

"The young man received 849 votes, or..." then called for a supporter to report the percentage... "6%."

"Which means the recipient of the balance of the votes," he said, pausing dramatically, "was..."

Well, suffice to say that Mayor Hugh Hallman was re-elected handily.

In other Tempe election news, two of the three open seats on the Tempe City Council have been filled, or likely will be. Both Mark Mitchell and Corey Woods are expected to receive over 50% of votes cast once all the ballots have been counted, meaning they have been elected to the council according to election rules.

The third seat will go to either Joel Navarro or Hut Hutson, the two next-highest vote-getters, who received virtually the same number of votes and will face each other in a runoff election in May to determine the ultimate winner of the slot. This leaves Julie Jakubek, Darryl Jacobson-Barnes and Rhett Wilson out of the race.