Early voting for the April 8 runoff election has been brisk in the Port Arthur area where two candidates are seeking the Precinct 3 County Commissioners race.

During the five-day early voting period which ended Friday, 1,516 people voted. Of those, 1,161 were from the Port Arthur area where Democratic candidates Thurman Bartie and Michael “Shane” Sinegal are vying for the commissioner’s seat currently held by Waymon Hallmark.

The number of people voting early this week hardly compared to those casting their votes early for the March 4 primary when Democratic candidates Hillary Clinton and Barrack Obama were on the ballot for their party’s presidential nomination.

During the primary election, a total of 24,230 people voted early in Jefferson County. Of those, 21,120 voted in the Democratic Primary while 3,100 voted as Republicans.

At the time, 3,562 Democrat votes were cast early at the Port Arthur Library and another 2,153 at the Port Arthur Sub-Courthouse.

For the runoff election, 661 people voted at the Port Arthur Sub-Courthouse and 500 cast their ballots at the Port Arthur Library.

Port Arthur area residents not voting early may go to the polls Tuesday to mark their ballots for either Bartie or Sinegal.

During the March 4 primary, Bartie garnered 2,319, or 23.70 percent of the vote, while Sinegal won 1,847, or 18.88 percent.

Bartie, 53, is a substitute teacher and associate minister at First Sixth Street Baptist Church in Port Arthur.

Maintaining the county’s roads and bridges, listening to all citizens’ concerns and being a good steward of taxpayer dollars are primary issues affecting the county, Bartie said in an earlier interview.

His opponent, Michael “Shane” Sinegal, 50, served on the city council for the past six years, and is the city’s mayor pro tem.

Reconstructing Texas 87, drainage and infrastructure issues in the Hamshire-Fannett area and ensuring that local people are hired for local expansion jobs are priorities Sinegal has campaigned on.

In addition to the commissioner’s race, Dale Henry and Mark Thompson are vying for the railroad commissioners’ seat are in a runoff. The railroad commissioner’s race will appear on all ballots, but only those in Precinct 3 will be eligible to vote for the commissioner’s race, Goodness said.

Contact this reporter at skoonce@panews.com