By Rupert Howell
and Billy Davis

The Circuit Clerk’s office at the Panola County Courthouse in Sardis will be open this Saturday, November 22 from 8 a.m. until noon to accept absentee balloting for a school board runoff.

Circuit Clerk Joe Reid announced the office hours this week.

North Panola trustee Lydia Smith, of Sardis, faces challenger Patsy Jackson, also of Sardis, in the runoff election that will be held next Tuesday, November 25.

In the November 4 race, neither Smith nor Jackson received a majority in the race that included a third place finisher, John Clark Hudson.

Unofficial returns showed that Smith finished first with 422 votes in a three-person race. Jackson finished with 353 votes. Hudson finished with 294 votes.

The North Panola seat, formally known as the 4B position, will be decided by voters who cast a ballot in portions of West Sardis, East Sardis, South Sardis and Pleasant Mount precincts.

Smith, a retired North Panola teacher, is currently holding the position after she was appointed by fellow trustees.