Staff report

Former Port Arthur City Council member Willie “Bae” Lewis has filed paperwork to run for mayor.

Both Lewis and Thurman Bill Bartie, a former justice of the peace, turned in their paperwork Wednesday to run to the city secretary’s office. It will take a few days before their candidacies are certified.

Bartie announced his candidacy Tuesday at City Hall.

Qualifying for the mayor’s race opened Wednesday and will close at 5 p.m. Feb. 15.