Dervay wins back Tega Cay council seat

By Toya Graham - Fort Mill Times

TEGA CAY -- John Dervay may have lost his City Council seat last November, but he wasn’t out of office for long.

Voters in Tega Cay returned Dervay to the council, according to unofficial election results. Dervay had 432 votes. His opponent, Doug Collins, had 275, York County elections officials said Tuesday night. Chris Landvik-Larsen, who launched a write-in campaign recently, had 193 votes.

“I am happy,” Dervay said after the election. “The City Council can now go back to work because we now have a complete council.”

“The people have spoken,” Collins said after the election. “I wish the city the best of luck.”

Dervay, 65, has an extensive history with the city. The father of two adult children formerly was Tega Cay’s zoning administrator, code enforcement officer and secretary with the board of zoning appeals and planning commission. When he retired from the city in 2005, he sought and won a council seat the next year.

“They respect the experience that I have in Tega Cay,” Dervay said of the voters. “I respect that.”

Last November, he lost his council seat by fewer than 10 votes to Stephen Perkins, who had previously served on the council. In that same election, then-Councilman George Sheppard defeated incumbent Mayor Bob Runde. When Sheppard gave up his council seat to become mayor, a special election was called.

Collins, a political newcomer and broker in charge of EDI Real Estate in Tega Cay, had to defend his eligibility at a hearing before elections officials in January. The hearing was called after some residents questioned Collins’ residency in the city. Immediately after the hearing, Collins was cleared to remain in the race.

Among the issues the candidates focused on in the race were Tega Cay’s finances and the need to rebuild the city’s contingency fund.

Dervay has said he wants to put the brakes on city spending. He takes issue with last year’s contingency fund – money the city allots for emergencies – that dropped below $7,000.

“We are in a recession,” Dervay said. “God knows what the economy will do, and we still balanced a budget with a skimpy contingency. When anything goes bump in the night with this year’s budget, we might not have the money to cover it.”

Voter turnout was close to 17 percent. The votes will be certified at 10 a.m. Thursday, said Steve Rast, election commission chairman.