Politics

Mills River mayor drops campaign for county commission

Shanon Gonce

By Bill Moss, Published: December 9, 2025

Shanon Gonce, the popular Mills River mayor and longtime council member, has decided to drop his earlier announced bid to run for an open seat on the Henderson County Board of Commissioners.

Instead, he’ll continue to undergo rehab after shoulder surgery a week ago and will also forgo running for re-election to the District 3 town council seat.

“I’m just tired at this point. I’ve been in it for 16 years — one more will make 17 — and I’ve been around it for 20-something,” he said. “Timing wasn’t good for me.”

He said his decision wasn’t related to the entry of former county manager Steve Wyatt into the contest for the seat currently held by Bill Lapsley, who plans to retire. Wyatt has assembled a campaign committee made up of well-known current and former Republican office-holders, including Grady Hawkins, the former commissioner, former Sheriff George Erwin and Amy Lynn Holt, the current school board vice chair.

“No, I haven’t even talked to Steve at all,” Gonce said. “I had other people try to persuade me to stay here in Mills River (as mayor).”