PROVO — Let Election 2005 begin.

Residents in 18 Utah County cities go to the polls today to decide which candidates in 31 races will move on to the general election in November.

The contests include mayoral races in Alpine, American Fork, Eagle Mountain, Genola, Goshen, Highland, Lehi, Pleasant Grove, Saratoga Springs and Woodland Hills.

Six of those cities will have new mayors because only four — Goshen, Lehi, Pleasant Grove and Saratoga Springs — have incumbent mayors seeking new terms in office.

An additional two cities where mayoral primaries were expected after the candidate filing deadline in August won't be having primaries after all.

In Mapleton, Mac N. Bills and Jack E. Perry dropped out of the race after just a few days, leaving only two candidates — Stan Sorensen and Dean Allan. So Sorensen and Allan are spared the primary experience and will face off on Nov. 8.

In Cedar Hills, City Councilman Rob Fotheringham dropped his opposition to Mayor Mike McGee, leaving McGee to square off against H.R. Brown next month.

Fotheringham dropped out on Sept. 26. That same day, another late dropout left the race for the Payson City Council. Councilwoman Colleen Jacobson will not seek re-election, Payson City Recorder Jeanette Curtis said.

Messages left Monday afternoon for Fotheringham and Jacobson were not immediately returned.

Mapleton also expected a primary for City Council races, but it was canceled last week after the council appointed candidate Jim Brady to replace Councilman Ryan Parham. Parham resigned nearly a month ago to take a job in Arizona, City Recorder Camille Brown said.

Brady is a former Mapleton city attorney.

Voters in Provo will decide whether they want George Stewart back in City Hall. Known as "King George" during his term as mayor from 1994-98, Stewart is seeking a citywide seat on the City Council.

Stewart is running against Mark Sumsion, Howard Stone and Charles "Pat" Cochran. Stewart and Sumsion had raised more than $15,000 as of last week's deadline for campaign finance disclosure, while Stone and Cochran had not raised any funds.

In another Provo City Council race, incumbent two-term Councilman Paul Warner is facing a challenge from six opponents. The six expect Warner to advance through the primary, so the race to watch is who voters select from the six to face Warner in the general election. The group has promised to band together behind that candidate in an effort to defeat Warner.

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