The primary has come and gone, and now it's time to look ahead to the general election.
Locally, the big one to keep an eye on is the Blytheville mayoral race.
The race is a rematch of the the 2010 election: Mayor James Sanders versus businessman and City Council Finance Committee Chairman Tommy Abbott.
There are rumblings another candidate or two may emerge as well, but thus far, Sanders and Abbott are the only two to begin publicly campaigning.
Three Blytheville City Council seats will also be on the ballot, those currently occupied by Councilwoman Missy Langston (Ward 2) and Councilmen Stan Parks (Ward 1) and John Musgraves (Ward 3). None of the three have officially launched their re-election campaigns, but filing for municipal office doesn't open until July 25, when filing begins for the general election.
Obviously, they have a little time to decide whether to throw their hat in the ring again (most, if not all, probably will).
Along with the familiar positions, there will be a new office on the Blytheville ballot. For the first time, there will be a combined city clerk/city treasurer office, after the City Council passed an ordinance Tuesday night merging the two.
The city stands to save about $4,400 a year by eliminating the part-time treasurer's benefits.
Shifting the duties to one full-time office is a good move by the city, in my opinion. There wasn't much push-back either, which probably made the Council's unanimous decision easier.
The November ballot will include a number of local leadership positions in Blytheville, Gosnell and the county.
It should be an interesting next few months.
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Monday's state semifinal loss to Ashdown marked the end of the road for the Gosnell Pirates and their retiring head coach, Bret Jackson.
Jackson has come close to playing for a state championship several times, including making four semifinal appearances. There's no cheering from the press box, but I must admit around the office, our staff was rooting for the Pirates to make what would have been Jackson's first appearance at Baum Stadium in his 22-year coaching career.
It would have been a fairytale ending to what Jackson described as "a fulfilling career."
At one point, Jackson had led teams to 13 straight trips to the state tournament -- quite an impressive feat.
Good luck in retirement, Coach. Coach Blake Burnside inherits a talented young bunch. Called by Jackson one of the best baseball minds he's been around, Burnside could guide the Pirates deep into the state tournament again next year.
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Armorel will add to its ever-growing trophy case Friday -- with either a state championship or state runner-up. The Tigers face South Side Bee Branch at Baum Stadium, looking for a third baseball state title. It's Armorel's fifth appearance in the championship game in 10 years and their third in the last four years.
Coach Charlie Brown produces state title contender after state title contender.
Year in and year out, his teams are playing deep into May. It's easy to take the success for granted because Brown makes it look much easier than it is. His teams have to fight through a district, then a regional, just to get to the state tournament.
Once there, the competition is the cream of the crop. But Brown's teams always find a way to win, whether it's winning a state title despite being no-hit or outscoring the opposition in a slugfest.
Brown does an incredible job every year. His teams represent the school well both on and off the field.
mbrasfield@blythevillecourier.com