Gillsville is trying again to fill a City Council seat.

The small East Hall city has called a March 6 election to fill Post 5, which is currently held by Richard Ferguson.
The vote will take place on the same day as Georgia's presidential primary.

Qualifying for anyone interested in the seat is set for 8:30 a.m.-1 and 2-4:30 p.m. Jan. 9-13 at the Hall County elections office, 2285 Browns Bridge Road, Suite 2, Gainesville. The qualifying fee is $9.

The council had three posts up for election this year. Two posts had takers: Jeffrey Dale qualified to run for Post 3 and Herbert Segars qualified for Post 4.
But no one qualified for Ferguson's seat, so the Nov. 8 election came and went without that office being filled.

Ferguson, whose term ends Dec. 31, decided not to seek re-election due to health issues, Gillsville Mayor Larry Poole said prior to the November election. Poole couldn't be reached for comment Sunday.

Starting Jan. 1, the council will be one person short.

If Gillsville succeeds in filling the seat in March, the new council member will begin the term as soon as election results are certified. The term runs until Dec. 31, 2015.

Filling a council seat has been tricky before in Gillsville.

In 2009, no one stepped up to run for the Post 2 seat for the November election. At the time, city officials said the phenomenon had never occurred.
Council members had to call a special election the following March to fill the seat.

Local politics doesn't seem to be a hot topic in the town.

"I know who the mayor is, that's about all," said one resident, William Littlefield, in a November interview.