Lowndes County voters on Tuesday rejected a $47 million bond issue that would have built a new vocational center and a new high school, as well as numerous capital improvements throughout the Lowndes County School District.
At 51.87 percent, the majority of voters approved the bond. However, the bond needed 60 percent of votes cast to win.
Unofficial results show 942 people voted in favor, while 873 voted against, according to the Lowndes County Circuit Clerk office. Two affidavit ballots must still be counted.
Reached Tuesday night, Superintendent Lynn Wright said he was disappointed in the results.
“We tried, but we just didn’t make it,” he said. “We really thought it would pass, but you just never know. The majority of the people voted in favor of it but not a large enough percentage. We certainly won’t give up, we’re going to keep plugging. We just didn’t have a very big turnout.”
Wright said all of the items that would have been affected by the bond bill — such as the new high school — were things the district needed to be able to grow and move forward. Despite the vote, the superintendent hopes to be able to build a new vocational center, as well as address the other needs of the district.
“We’re going to have to go back, reassess and we’re going to go forward,” Wright said. “It’s just going to take a little longer to get there but we’re not going to give up.”
Sarah Fowler covered crime, education and community related events for The Dispatch.
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