Georgia Politics, Campaigns, and Elections for August 18, 2021

On August 18, 1591,the English settlement at Roanoke Island in the Outer Banks of what is now North Carolina was found deserted.

On August 18, 1795, President George Washington signed a treaty with Great Britain called the Jay Treaty, after Supreme Court Justice John Jay who negotiated it. Thomas Jefferson and James Madison led opposition to the treaty.

On August 18, 1862, Confederate Major General of Cavalry J.E.B. Stuart was nearly captured, losing his distinctive hat and cloak and written copies of Lee’s orders near Verdiersville, Virginia.

The Georgia General Assembly adopted a joint resolution urging the creation of a federal Health Department on August 18, 1908.

On August 18, 1916, the Cherokee Rose was designated the official state flower of Georgia by a joint resolution of the State House and Senate.

The practice of tipping service employees was outlawed by legislation signed on August 18, 1918.

Georgia Governor Hugh Dorsey signed legislation regulating the practice of architecture and licensing practitioners on August 18, 1919.

The Georgia Board of Public Welfare was also created on August 18, 1919 when Gov. Dorsey signed legislation establishing that body and a companion bill that created the Community Service Commission.

Tennessee became the 36th state and the final state whose ratification was required to adopt the Nineteenth Amendment on August 18, 1920, which reads:

The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex.

Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.

On August 18, 1924 Gov. Clifford Walker signed legislation that would allow a referendum on a Constitutional Amendment to allow Atlanta, Savannah, or Macon to consolidate their respective municipal governments with their county governments. Macon-Bibb County merged in 2014 after voters passed a referendum in July 2012.

The Beatles played at Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium on August 18, 1965. AtlantaTimeMachine.com has a couple images from the night.

On August 18, 1991, hardline Commies in the Soviet Union arrested Prime Minister Mikhail Gorbachev as part of a coup against Gorbachev’s reforms.

On August 18, 2015, Jeb Bush visited The Varsity in Atlanta. Here’s the funniest line from the CBS46 story:

Recently, Bush put a series of “Jeb No Filter” videos on YouTube and some say it’s a way to bring up his popularity.

“We’re going to work hard to earn the support of Georgians in the March 1 primary. It’s the second largest state in the primary, it’s our neighbor to our north, we’re going to be working hard,” Bush said.

While the instinct behind “Jeb No Filter” may have been good, it would take Donald Trump to show what No Filter really means.

Georgia Politics, Campaigns, and Elections

Hawk Harrison, a literal poster boy for medical cannabis reform, died Friday, according to the Gainesville Times.

The Gillsville boy suffered spontaneous brain hemorrhaging at 3 weeks old and experienced frequent seizures. [Mother Katie] O’Neal previously told The Times doctors gave the family roughly a 2 percent chance that he “would ever be ‘normal’” and did not expect him to live.

O’Neal said the cannabis oil limited the frequency and intensity of her son’s seizures, helped him fall asleep, increased appetite and lessened his nausea.

In her continued advocacy for families seeking to use cannabis oil, O’Neal said she would like to see easier access and more available information. She said families often come to her “embarrassed to ask, don’t know who to turn to (and) feel shame” inquiring whether it will help their loved one.

More school closures and changes:

McIntosh County schools will “pause” in person instruction, according to WTOC.

According to the school system, school attendance will be optional Wednesday, Aug. 18 through Friday, Aug. 20. Teachers will be present these days for planning.

The school system said each of the schools will have a deep cleaning conducted starting Friday evening through Tuesday, Aug. 24. No one will be in the school buildings during those days.

Schools will offer continued instructional opportunities during the pause period of Aug. 25 through Sept. 3 and have plans to commence school again on Tuesday, Sept. 7.

Jeff Davis County schools will begin what I’ll consider a partial shutdown as they go to an alternating schedule. From WTOC:

The school system plans to operate as normal through Thursday, Aug. 19. This Friday, Aug. 20, schools will be closed for students only. Staff will work and use Friday as a planning day.

Stating Monday, Aug. 23, the district will operate under an “A/B” schedule for two weeks. On Thursday, Sept. 2, the district will evaluate whether or not they will be able to safely return to a regular schedule starting Tuesday, Sept. 7.

For those two weeks, the district will use the following format:

•  Monday/Tuesday: Students with last name A-L will attend school.
•  Wednesday: No students – staff planning day with a deep cleaning for all schools and buses.
•  Thursday/Friday: Students with last name M-Z will attend school.

Bryan County schools will require masks, according to WTOC.

Bryan County Schools will require students and staff to wear masks beginning Thursday, August 19, according to an email sent by district Superintendent Paul Brooksher.

The mask mandate will be in effect for the first nine weeks of school, ending Friday, October 8. Bryan County Schools will reevaluate the mandate at that time.

From the AJC:

[O]utside of Atlanta, multiple school districts — at least 15 — temporarily shut down or pivoted to virtual learning within days of opening classrooms. In some cases, football games and other extracurricular activities are being canceled or postponed.

Turner County Schools

Action: Switch to virtual learning, Aug. 17-Aug. 27.

Action: Middle and High school special education students in self-contained classes will be virtual until Aug. 27

I’m glad the AJC caught up in their count.

Bibb County courts will suspend criminal jury trials, according to the Macon Telegraph.

Howard Z. Simms, chief judge of the Macon Judicial Circuit, said “several cases” have been affected due to witnesses and others tied to proceedings reporting having tested positive for COVID or possibly having been exposed to it.

“If we have to delay any further, I’m likely going to have to declare a (local) emergency,” Simms said, which could affect criminal trials into September and possibly beyond.

Governor Brian Kemp announced members of the Senate Study Committee on Violence Against Health Care Workers. The Committee was created by Senate Bill 281 and is chaired by State Sen. Kay Kirkpatrick (R-Marietta). Other members include Senators Butch Miller, Steve Gooch, Valencia Seay, Michelle Au, Sheila McNeil, and Bo Hatchett (Ex-Officio).

Governor Kemp might be willing to accept some refugees from Afghanistan, according to the AJC.

Kemp said in a statement that “it is vitally important to keep those who partnered with American armed forces over the last 20 years safe from harm” even as he criticized the military withdrawal by President Joe Biden that triggered chaos in Afghanistan.

“Joe Biden has broken his word to the nation, the Afghans and the world, but we as Americans cannot break our word to those who lent aid to us in our mission to defend freedom and bring justice to those who attacked our country on September 11,” he said.

Kemp’s aides stress that the resettlement process is likely to take months, even years, and that his administration will insist on a thorough vetting required under federal law.

State officials are relatively powerless to stop federal resettlement of refugees, though they can seek to complicate the process.

From Newsweek:

Outspoken Georgia representative Marjorie Taylor Greene was one of the first to voice her disapproval. “GA shouldn’t welcome Afghan refugees while 1,000’s of Americans are stranded,” the Republican tweeted late Tuesday.

“Vet them outside the US, just like Remain in Mexico. Will this bring chain migration too? How much will it cost GA taxpayers in Gov assistance? The future of GA shouldn’t be like MN that voted for Omar.”

Houston County District Attorney George Hartwig announced his retirement, according to 13WMAZ.

Houston County District Attorney George Hartwig submitted a letter of retirement to Governor Brian Kemp last Saturday.

Kemp accepted his retirement Tuesday, according to Pete Skandalakis, the executive director of the Prosecuting Attorneys’ Council of Georgia.

After joining the Houston County District Attorney’s office as an assistant DA in 2001, he ran for the top job in 2010, succeeding Kelly Burke. He won a new term just last year.

Hartwig won reelection without opposition in 2012 and 2016, and just nine months ago, he beat his former chief assistant, Erikka Williams with 52 percent of the vote.

Now, Hartwig’s position will be temporarily filled by Chief Assistant District Attorney William Kendall. Then, the governor will appoint a new prosecutor to fill the District Attorney’s position.

“There’s a lot of talented, qualified attorneys in Houston County. We just got to see who puts [their] name in,” Williams, Hartwig’s former opponent said. “I would just like to say I would like to serve in whatever capacity that they see fit. I’m a big fan of Houston County. That’s why I work so hard to bring change.”

Hartwig’s retirement will be effective September 1, 2021.

From the Macon Telegraph:

Word of his departure comes as a surprise to many on the heels of his November re-election after a contentious campaign.

Even so, Hartwig, 62, said retirement was something he had considered for some time and that now just seemed right.

Hartwig told The Telegraph that he hopes to “enjoy my life a little bit” and that there were no other reasons compelling him to step down. He said any word or rumor suggesting otherwise “in any kind of negative way, that’s not true.”

“I’m excited to hear the news,” [2020 election opponent Erikka] Williams said. “I’m weighing my options about what steps to take next. I was with the office for eighteen-and-a-half years, and it’s a very special office.”

Georgia Court of Appeals rulings may clear the way for Brunswick to remove a Confederate memorial in Hanover Square, according to The Brunswick News.

The Georgia Court of Appeals has made a ruling in three cases filed to block the removal of Confederate monuments in Newton and Henry counties. The court ruled against the plaintiffs who asked the courts to halt removal of the monuments.

Brunswick city officials have been awaiting the court ruling before proceeding with the removal of the monument in Hanover Square. Benny Williams, a member of Sons of Confederate Veterans, sued the city to block the removal of the monument. That suit was dismissed while city officials agreed to wait for rulings in other cases in the appellate court.

Mayor Cornell Harvey, in a phone interview Tuesday, said the city attorney will brief commissioners at an upcoming meeting about the court ruling.

Atlanta plans to remove a Confederate memorial from Oakland Cemetery, according to the AJC.

The City Council passed a resolution Monday evening declaring that the city should remove the “Lion of the Confederacy” monument and place it in temporary storage. The removal could happen as soon as this week, according to a member of City Council.

In recent years the statue has been defaced with graffiti, red latex and hit with objects like a pickaxe and sledgehammer.

The statue was built by T.M. Brady and dedicated on Confederate Memorial Day in 1894 to honor the 3,000 unknown Confederate dead resting in Oakland Cemetery. The statue depicts a wounded or dead lion with its right paw resting on a cannonball partially concealed by Confederate flag.

Carved from Georgia marble, the lion is modeled after the Lion of Lucerne in Lucerne, Switzerland — an 1821 sculpture memorializing the Swiss guards massacred during the French revolution. The 30-foot-long Swiss sculpture is carved into the face of a low cliff, and is considerably larger than the Oakland version.

“There’s been this constant vandalism and constant drain on city resources trying to protect and restore it,” said Councilwoman Natalyn Archibong, whose district includes Oakland Cemetery.

Richard Harker, executive director of the Historic Oakland Foundation, said that since October 2019, the marker had been vandalized at least eight times and that the interpretive signage below the statue, including the contextual marker, had been defaced repeatedly, sometimes in broad daylight. City employees have spent 150 hours rehabbing the statue after instances of vandalism.

Savannah Mayor Van Johnson said he may consider new COVID restrictions, according to the Savannah Morning News.

“COVID is growing out of control in our city and if things don’t change quickly, increased measures will be necessary to protect public health, safety and welfare,” said Johnson, who reinstated a mask policy last month.

Johnson said reinstating the mask mandate in July was done as a precautionary measure to emphasize the importance of the situation and to encourage vaccinations, but he continues to see packed indoor locations and tour vehicles and very few people wearing masks.

Speaking on a recent episode of The Commute podcast, Johnson said if the city could take action and close parks and pull permits for events and activities.

“It’s unfortunate that those who have done the right and necessary thing have to suffer, because the majority chooses not to do what’s necessary,” he said.

The Valdosta Daily Times looks at redistricting.

Georgia is growing more diverse as minority populations have seen more growth in the last 10 years, while the white population has declined, according to 2020 U.S. Census data.

The white population shrunk from 55.9% to 51.9%, or 5.55 million, putting Georgia in the top 10 states with the lowest population of people identifying as white. Minority populations in Georgia are increasing, with Georgia’s Black population increasing by 12.5%, or more than 367,319, for a population of 3.32 million; the Hispanic population increased by nearly 2% by 269,768 over the last 10 years and Asians had the largest increase at 52.3%.

Thirty-one percent of the state’s population now identifies as Black, 4.5% identify as Asian and 6.9% or more than 743,000 identified as two or more races.

Areas that have seen an increase in minority population, including areas that flipped from Republican to Democrat in the 2020 elections (Cobb, Gwinnett, Henry, Rockdale and Douglas counties) will likely be targets for redistricting, as minority populations typically vote Democrat.

Athens-Clarke County commissioners voted to offer $100 gift cards for new vaccination recipients, according to the Athens Banner Herald.

The program will be run through the local health district, which will provide and administer the shots. The currently planned incentive allows a $100 gift card per shot for those eligible.

There are three vaccinations currently available and offered through DPH, one of which has only one dose whereas the other two are both two-dose shots. The $100 gift card would be given for each shot in the two-dose vaccinations, allowing for the potential to receive $200 through the program.

In order to qualify for the program, the person must either live, work, or attend school in Athens-Clarke County.

The project will be funded by $250,000 from the American Rescue Plan, which allocated nearly $60 million to Athens.  The program’s success will be evaluated on a monthly basis, to determine if more funds from the American Rescue Plan should be spent on the program.

Albany City Commissioners heard about an increase in opioid overdoses, according to the Albany Herald.

The third wave of the nation’s opioid crisis is crashing hard in Dougherty County, which saw overdose deaths increase last year by more than 400 percent from 2019.

In 2019 there were two overdose deaths linked to opioids in the county, a number that jumped to nine in 2020, said Phyllis Rolle, a public health analyst with the agency, during a virtual presentation to commission members.

Through May of this year there were 88 opioid overdose cases in the county, Rolle said.

“As you can see, we’re surpassing the overall numbers for 2020,” she said.

Bibb County Commissioners voted to raise the minimum pay level for county employees, according to 13WMAZ.

Commissioners agreed to allocate millions toward annual incentives for employees who work in public safety.

Commissioners voted unanimously to raise the minimum wage to $14 an hour by the beginning of 2022 and $15 by 2023.

“The reasons we’re doing that is as a compression piece. For those who are making $15 at that point, putting a distance between them and the ones you just moved up, so we think we’ll be financially secure enough at that point to do that,” Miller said earlier this month.

Miller says the minimum wage for county employees is around $12.33 an hour right now.

Warner Robins will have a contested election for Mayor, according to 13WMAZ.

Stephen Baughier and LaRhonda Patrick signed up to be on the ballot.

Baughier is an accountant and Patrick is an attorney — both grew up in Warner Robins.

Chatham County Recorder’s Court Judge Tammy Stokes kicked off her campaign for Superior Court Judge, according to the Savannah Morning News.

“The fact is, our court system touches the lives of each of us, Each one of us, every day,” Stokes said in brief remarks during the Tuesday morning event. “Every citizen of Chatham County deserves respect and dignity when navigating with the court system.”

In June, Stokes told the Savannah Morning News she was running to fill the seat vacated by Judge Louisa Abbot, who is retiring after her term. Stokes has spent 17 years in Recorder’s Court and was appointed chief judge in 2012. She is the first Black woman judge in the county. She is running unopposed.

Candidate qualifying in Lowndes County has been dominated by incumbents seeking reelection, according to the Valdosta Daily Times.

Qualifying continues through Friday, Aug. 20, at the Lowndes County Board of Elections.

In Valdosta, six positions are set for qualifying. Valdosta City Council Districts 2, 4 and 6 are up for election at $474 for qualifying and Valdosta Board of Education Districts 7 (Superward East), 8 (Superward West) and 9 (at large) are up for election at $35 for qualifying.

A special election for school board District 1 will be held as well with qualifying set at $35. The position was formerly held by Liz Shumpard who stepped down early August. This is an unexpired term that will run through Dec. 31, 2025.

Hahira has three positions up for election, the mayor and city council districts 1 and 4. The mayor’s qualifying fee is $252 while the Hahira City Council qualifying fee is $180.

Election day will be the second Tuesday in November, Nov. 2, and early voting will start three weeks before then, Oct. 12.

Statesboro‘s Mayor will have an election challenge in November, according to the Statesboro Herald.

Monday, the first day of qualifying for Statesboro’s Nov. 2 city election, all three incumbents qualified, and so did challengers for two of them.

Mayor Jonathan McCollar and a challenger for the mayor’s office, Ernest Larry Lawton, both signed up and paid their qualifying fees.

After an off- and on-again change of mind, incumbent Statesboro City Council member John Riggs followed through on his more recently announced intention and qualified Monday to seek re-election in District 4.

But Kristine Yager-Rushton, who stated her occupation on the qualifying form as prospect researcher, will challenge Riggs for the seat, with District 4’s voters to decide. Yager-Rushton indicated that she has been a resident of the city for 13 years.

For the District 1 council seat, incumbent Phil Boyum was the only candidate who signed up and paid the fee the first day.