Mary Beth Tipton was named the new Director of Elections for Yancey County following a meeting by the Board of Elections Monday morning. Tipton has served an interim director since former director Loretta Robinson was placed on leave just weeks before her retirement. The board received ten applications for the vacant job and interviewed seven people who met the requirements before eventually choosing Tipton who has worked at the elections office for several years and has recently completed training required to be a certified elections official. Tipton went right to work preparing for the first filings for local and state races. The filing period closes at noon on February 29.