Charlie Bibb wins Warner Robins council seat in runoff. Joy Peterson claims Perry post.

Charlie Bibb easily captured the at-large Post 2 seat on Warner Robins council in the runoff election Tuesday with 58.55 percent of the vote, according to unofficial vote totals.

“I know I’m going to win today,” said a confident Bibb outside the Houston Healthcare Pavilion Conference Center polling place Tuesday before polls closed.

He could not be reached again for comment after the unofficial results were in Tuesday night.

The victory came on the heels of the arrest the day before the runoff of his opponent, Eric Langston, on first-degree forgery and false-statement-in-writing charges.

Langston is accused of forging a document that indicated that he didn’t owe any back taxes. He said he’s not guilty.

Bibb captured 1,072 votes, with Langston garnering 759 votes, or 41.45 percent of the vote total.

Bibb was not unscathed during the runoff.

He came under scrutiny during the runoff when WMAZ-TV aired a story about a decades-old arrest for burglary in which he received probation and first offender status, which means he doesn’t have a record because he successfully completed his probation.

Bibb, who noted that he surrendered his life to Jesus, said he’s always been open about his past.

“If the Lord can change me, he could change anybody,” Bibb said. “That’s how I live my life.”

When interviewed before the polls closed, Bibb said his immediate focus will be on the city charter. He favors the creation of a city administrator position to work alongside the mayor.

Bibb also said he wants to focus on transparency in government, calling for internal audits.

He said the focus of council should be on its role in appropriating funds for the running of government and allowing department heads to function without micromanagement.

Langston, who works at Robins Air Force Base where he manages a small fleet of special operations helicopters, narrowly lost a previous bid for a Warner Robins council seat.

“I wish the best for Charlie, I wish the best for city council and the mayor, and I hope just that the community can come together, everyone as a whole, and get behind mayor and council to help move this city forward,” Langston said after the election Tuesday night.

Bibb claims the seat formerly held by Carolyn Robbins, who did not seek re-election. She died Sept. 30.

In the Perry runoff election, Joy Peterson narrowly beat John “Jack” James for the District 2 Post 2 seat. She captured 50.50% of the vote, according to unofficial vote totals.

Peterson, a retired, career educator, captured 203 votes. James, an attorney based in Perry, received 199 votes.

The two emerged out of a pack of four candidates in the general election.

This story was originally published December 3, 2019 at 9:23 PM.