Almost two years ago, an unprecedented number of voters in District 95 turned out to vote in the presidential election. The majority of those voters of the district marked an "X" next to every candidate that was running as a Democrat.

This action resulted in the election of candidate who actually did nothing to deserve that election but pay his fee and put his name on the ticket.

That candidate was Toney Collins. Not only did Collins do nothing to earn the votes of the folks in the District 95, but after he was elected, he also did nothing.

We began calling Collins "No Show Collins," a name that was more than appropriate.

No Show Collins was a rare sight in his district — in fact, we only had sightings of him ourselves twice. One of those times was at a Chamber sponsored event and he spent his time telling the folks there that they had to do a better job of talking with their legislators. The only problem with that thought is that you have to available to talk to your constituents. We still chuckle when we think of his request.

We are pleased that in the election runoff Tuesday that the Democratic voters of District 95 woke up and showed No Show Collins to the door.

Because of political Gerrymandering, our county is sliced up to the point that unless every person we elect in one of the districts that crisscross our county is willing to work hand-in-hand with us in person, we as the voters will have absolutely no voice and no chance to receive our fair share of the government benefits we pay into.

We hope that the election of Collins will serve as a lesson to all of us. We need to take the time to learn about the candidates running for office to represent us before we place the "X" next to their name.