Mayor Bill Bell and three City Council members swamped their challengers in today's election, but kids saw things a little differently.

All systems have been running "teriffic," Elections Director Mike Ashe said this afternoon.

Except for voter turnout, that is.

Early voting in Durham's city election closed Saturday with 1,006 citizens having cast ballots.

That's 112 more than the 894 who voted early in the Oct. 6 primary. The primary set a record low for voter turnout, 4.36 percent according to the Board of Elections' official count.

Precincts open at 6:30 tomorrow morning and remain open for voting until 7:30 p.m.

The mayor's chair and three City Council seats are on the ballot.

City Council Ward 3 candidate Allan Polak has requested a city inquiry into a code of ethics violation he alleges his opponent, council member Mike Woodard, committed this week.

City Council candidate Allan Polak called a statement by councilman Mike Woodard "a complete lie" during a candidates' forum Tuesday night.

The accusation came after Woodard told Polak a statement he had made was "incorrect." Woodard did not respond to Polak's "lie" statement. Woodard and Polak are opponents for the City Council's Ward 3 seat in next Tuesday's election.

As of 5 p.m. today, 393 voters had cast ballots in early voting for mayor and three City Council seats.

That's more than a third of the 894 total early votes cast in the municipal primary earlier this month.

Early voting continues through Halloween (Saturday) at the Board of Elections office, 706 Corporation Street.

Early voting opened Monday in the city's mayoral and three City
Council races, and Tuesday night all eight candidates made their
pitches to about 30 voters at a forum held by the League of Women
Voters.

Incumbent Mayor Bill Bell and council members Cora
Cole-McFadden, Howard Clement and Mike Woodard talked about experience
and achievement during their times in office.

Challengers Steven L. Williams, Donald Hughes, Matt Drew and
Allan Polak talked about “difference,” “new leadership,” “fresh air”
and “different kinds of experience,” respectively.

Incumbent Town Council member Laurin Easthom says the current council should decide on a process for replacing Bill Strom soon and that process should include appointing the fifth-place finisher in November's election. If she happens to finish fifth out of eight candidates, though, she wouldn't seek appointment.

"I would want to be elected because I've done it before, so for me, it would be a loss if I wasn't in the top four," she said. "If there are not five seats on the ballot, then in my opinion, I didn't win my seat back on the council, and I don't think that the council should turn around and appoint me."