Georgia Politics, Campaigns, and Elections for April 24, 2018

The Library of Congress was founded on April 24, 1800 and is the largest library in the world today.

Jack Kingston was born on April 24, 1955. He was elected to the Georgia House of Representatives in 1984 and served four terms and in 1992 was elected to the United States Congress.

“Georgia On My Mind” became the official state song on April 24, 1979, when Governor George Busbee signed legislation designating it.

IBM introduced the Personal Computer Model 5150 on April 24, 1981, though some authorities date the introduction to April 12. It sported an Intel 8088 processor at 4.77 Mhz, a whopping 16k of RAM, which was expandable to 256k, and a clicky keyboard. The initial price tag was $1565, equivalent to more than $4000 today.

Georgia Politics, Campaigns, and Elections

Governor Nathan Deal announced that Gulfstream will invest $55 million dollars and create 200 new jobs in an expansion of its manufacturing in Chatham County.

“Aerospace products are currently the No. 1 export for our state largely due to the growth and expansion of industry leaders such as Gulfstream who call Georgia home,” said Deal. “Georgia’s record-breaking ports system serves as a premier gateway to the Southeastern market and beyond and our skilled workforce provides a robust foundation for Gulfstream’s continued growth. With our logistics infrastructure, as well as our transportation network and digital assets, Gulfstream will continue to enhance the services offered to its worldwide customer base. We appreciate Gulfstream’s continued investment in Georgia over the past five decades and look forward to strengthening this partnership in the years to come.”

Gulfstream located its headquarters in Savannah in 1967 and has since grown from 100 local employees to more than 16,000 employees on six continents. Gulfstream aircraft are operated by corporations, individuals and militaries worldwide.

NCR Corporation announced that it will close two manufacturing facilities in Columbus, shedding 1000 jobs, according the the Ledger-Enquirer.

One Columbus plant will close in August, the company said, with the other winding down in September and shutting down completely by in October.

“While difficult, this move will help ensure that NCR maintains its position as the global leader in ATMs, self-checkout and point-of-sale devices as we accelerate our transformation,” NCR spokesman Tim Henschel said in an email statement from the company Monday. “NCR is executing a multi-year strategic initiative to strengthen our global competitive position and accelerate our transformation to a software and services-led, data-driven business.”

Columbus Mayor Teresa Tomlinson said she received a verbal agreement from the company that it would abide by any claw-back provisions related to tax incentives that NCR had received from the state and the city when the deal was struck a decade ago to bring them here.

“We will be getting monies back under the agreement. … So the citizens will be protected in that regard,” she said of the provisions and any funds that might be returned to the city, the total of which has yet to be calculated.

Lieutenant Governor Casey Cagle is preparing for a runoff election for Governor, according to the Gainesville Times.

Casey Cagle let it be known in front of crowds in Gainesville, Jefferson and Hoschton on Monday, April 23: Clearing the Republican gubernatorial primary without a runoff is “mathematically impossible.”

Even though he’s holding onto a huge fundraising advantage, Cagle returned multiple times to the idea on Monday that a runoff is unavoidable during the bus tour stops on Monday, which were attended by The Times.

With seven names on the ballot, Cagle reckons there’s no way he’ll end primary day on May 22 with more than 50 percent of the vote — the threshold needed to fend off a one-on-one challenger in the race to replace Gov. Nathan Deal. Former state House Minority Leader Stacey Abrams and former state Rep. Stacey Evans are facing off in the Democratic primary.

Based on the polling in the race so far, that No. 2 spot appears to be filled by [former State Senator Hunter] Hill, who has taken the most attacks in the primary up to this point behind Cagle himself and has been dogged by attacks on his record on gun rights.

Former State Rep. Amy Carter (R-Valdosta) will deliver the keynote address at Valdosta State University on May 5th, according to the Valdosta Daily Times.

“Graduation is a defining moment in every student’s life,” said Dr. Richard A. Carvajal, VSU president. “We are excited to pay tribute to the outstanding efforts of our spring graduates and celebrate education as the foundation upon which success is built. These students have had to overcome any number of challenges to reach this point in their life’s journey. It is that very perseverance that protects and nurtures Blazer Nation’s tradition of academic, creative, athletic, research and service excellence.”

Carter graduated from VSU in 1993 with a bachelor of science in education in business education. She is a member of Phi Mu, a national nonprofit fraternity committed to helping young women become better students, stronger professionals and greater leaders, and Georgia Children’s Cabinet, a group that works to ensure every child is safe, healthy, educated, productive and connected to caring adults, according to university officials.

Part of Rome has been designated a Quality Opportunity Zone, which gives favorable tax treatment for investments, according to the Rome News-Tribune.

The federal Opportunity Zone designation was created by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 to enhance economic growth in low-income communities by allowing investors to defer federal taxes while taking capital gains from other investments and investing in these designated areas.

Qualified Opportunity Zones are intended to encourage  investment in areas where poverty rates are greater than 20 percent. The program is expected to be administered by the Georgia Department of Community Affairs.

The Bulloch County GOP and the Statesboro Herald will co-host a candidate forum for County Commission on May 3d at 7 PM in the Joe Kennedy Auditorium at Ogeechee Technical College, according to the Statesboro Herald.

Bulloch County Republican Party Chairman Reid Derr will moderate the event.

“This forum will help candidates present themselves positively and personably to voters,” he said. “And it gives people a sense of who they would like to represent them.”

Candidates participating are incumbent Walter Gibson, Travis Chance and Sid Jones for commission Seat 2B, and Jeff Klare and Timmy Rushing for commission Seat 2D.

The forum is for Republican candidates only. Democratic candidates are unopposed prior to the general election in November.

After the primary election May 22, Democrat Adrienne Dobbs will oppose the Republican winner of Seat 2B and Democrat Carlos Brown will oppose the Republican winner of Seat 2D when the general election is held in November.

The Glynn County Democratic Party hosted a forum for local candidates, according to The Brunswick News.

Around 60 to 70 people left standing room only for those wanting to listen to Glynn County Commission candidate Julian Smith; Board of Education candidates Regina Johnson, Sharon Robinson and Markisha Butler; state Senate candidate Jerrold Dagen; state House of Representatives candidates Julie Jordan and Cedric King; and U.S. House of Representatives candidates Barbara Seidman and Lisa Ring.

The National Hills Neighborhood Association is hosting a forum tonight for candidates for Augusta Mayor and Commission District 10, according to the Augusta Chronicle.

As of Monday, all four – Mayor Hardie Davis and challenger Gould Hagler, and commission hopefuls John Clarke and Lori Myles – had confirmed they will attend, said Tina Slendak, secretary for the association.

Glynn County Commission Post 1 candidate Jane Fraser is being sued by lawyer Mary Helen Moses over alleged unpaid bills, which Fraser denies owing, according to The Brunswick News.

Muscogee County School District arrests an average of a student every day, according to the Ledger-Enquirer.

Four Republicans are running for House District 141 in Macon to succeed Rep. Allen Peake, who is retiring, according to the Macon Telegraph.

Allen Peake’s departure from the House of Representatives leaves a void in the state Legislature for the top advocate for medical cannabis oil.

The four Republican candidates vying for the House District 141 seat Peake held for about a decade say they support ways to improve the ability of people who suffer from some conditions to have better access to the oil that relieves pain. Although state law allows those people to legally use the oil as treatment, there are laws preventing it from being grown or shipped to Georgia.

The primary election is May 22, with early voting beginning April 30. The winner of the Republican primary will face no Democratic opposition in the November general election.

Democratic State House District 151 candidate Joyce Barlow is challenging incumbent Republican Gerald Greene, according to the Albany Herald.

Joyce Barlow’s top priorities are the expansion of Medicaid and the creation of programs to preclude the closing of rural hospitals in southwest Georgia.

“I’m running because I want to see more done for health care, not only in District 151, but also in the state,” Barlow, a native of Ft. Pierce, Fla., said. “I want the Democratic people to have a voice to know that their concerns will be addressed. I have always been interested in politics, and I have always been involved because it controls our lives by whatever decisions they make, whether it be at the state level or the federal level. It’s going to impact most of us some way. Sometimes people don’t notice that, but it really makes a difference.”

Barlow said if elected she would join other Democrats in attempting to expand Medicaid.

“The first thing I’m concerned about is the expansion of Medicaid,” she said. “Because Medicaid expansion needs to be done. We are one of the states that didn’t accept the Medicaid expansion money. And the people in the rural counties are the ones hurting. The people I am going to be addressing are in Dougherty County and are in rural areas like Randolph and Clay counties. Very rural areas are all around Dougherty County.”