Mayor S. Fred Simmons lost his re-election bid Tuesday to challenger Mike Bennett in a bitterly contested election that drew a record turnout.
Simmons, the gun-toting Republican who touted his anti-crime agenda in perhaps the most negative and divisive campaign in a decade, conceded defeat, saying he had no regrets.
“The voters decided on what is, not on any promises,” Simmons said. “I did what I did. I didn’t make any unkept promises.”
Bennett, a former state trooper, captured 1,323 votes, to 908 for Simmons, while Nicole Burlew, the 19-year-old Towson University student, got 181. The 2,435 votes cast surpassed the record 2,200 in the last election.
“I’m very grateful for all the support I had around town,” Bennett said. “We went house-to-house several times and covered the entire city at least twice.”
Simmons had drawn praise for his tough stance on crime and criticism for his ardent support of the Wetlands Golf Course annexation, which he blamed for polarizing many outside the city to campaign against him.
“You can’t listen to the sniping,” said Darlene Boddy, a resident of Swan Meadows who supported Simmons’ push for aggressive arrests, searches and seizures. “You have to look around you and go with what you see. And I see a lot of improvement.”
Avery Ward, a Harford Community College professor, said the high turnout could be linked to the big issues at stake in Aberdeen: crime, aging infrastructure, water shortages and tension over whether to expand the city and develop the Wetlands Golf Course, just beyond city limits.
But, Ward said, the negativity of the campaign reached a pitch unseen in the county since 1998, when Art Helton challenged Jim Harkins in the race for county executive,
Elliott got the most council votes, 1,484. Incumbent Ron Kupferman garnered 1,113; and Council President Mike Hiob, 906. Ruth Ann Young, a frequent participant in city and county council meetings, became the only new council member elected, with 907 votes, unseating Councilman David Yensan.
