Carroll wins runoff election

Reid Carroll didn't have long to celebrate his victory in Tuesday's runoff election to fill a vacancy on the Siloam Springs Board of Directors.

Carroll defeated Karl Mounger 280-148 in the runoff for a special election for Position 5, an at-large position on the seven-person board. Carroll won the popular vote by a slim margin on Dec. 9, but because none of the three candidates -- Mounger and Jerry Cavness each received the same number of votes -- received a majority of the votes, a runoff election was necessary.

Carroll, who owned and operated Barnett's Dairyette in Siloam Springs for 18 years, found out late Tuesday night that he had won the runoff election. On Wednesday, his duties on the board began with him joining four other board members at a three-day Arkansas Municipal League conference at the Fort Smith Convention Center.

"I had a celebratory coffee with my wife (Mechelle Carroll) the next morning, so that was about it," said Carroll, who now works as a Realtor with Ward Jones Realty. "I was very pleased with the the outcome of the election. And I was very glad to see we actually had an increase in voters. I was very pleased with that."

Indeed, 428 people voted in the runoff election, up from the 254 votes that were cast in December's special election. Carroll ran on a campaign slogan of "Connecting the Wow," which is exactly what he plans to do now that he's been elected. To do so, Carroll hopes to find ways to spread the awareness about all of the city's attractions and explore ways to connect entities and groups like finding more ways for the city to work with the county and John Brown University in a joint effort to draw more visitors and future residents to Siloam Springs.

"I feel like that was a nice, easy slogan to have," Carroll said. "And now, to be able to have the opportunity to connect all the good things Siloam Springs has to offer so people can see it, because you may not be able to see it all, will be a goal. We hope to broadcast all we have to offer to help people see more about what is great about Siloam Springs."

Rather than campaigning by going door-to-door, Carroll said he found other ways to get his message to voters by speaking with community and civic groups and their membership, while also meeting voters at various spots around town. He believes those folks helped spread the word about getting out to vote while also helping him win the election.

"I do wish to thank the City of Siloam Springs for their support," Carroll said. "I'm honored to have been selected. I think Karl would have been a good choice as well and I will do my best to do my due diligence and represent the city the best I can."