Georgia Politics, Campaigns, and Elections for February 19, 2023

On February 19, 1807, Aaron Burr was arrested in the Mississippi Territory, in what is now Alabama. Burr had served as Vice President during the first term of President Thomas Jefferson, leaving the administration after the 1804 election; later Jefferson issued a warrant accusing Burr of treason.

On February 19, 1942, President Franklin D. Roosevelt issued Executive Order 9066, authorizing the military to remove from military areas any people whose exclusion was “necessary or desirable.” By June 1942, more than 110,000 Japanese Americans had been interned in concentration camps in the western United States. On the same day, the United States War Department announced that a new bomber plant would be built in Marietta, Georgia.

Georgia Politics, Campaigns, and Elections

Early voting is underway in the March 3, 2024 Presidential Preference Primary election, according to the Statesboro Herald.

Georgia has a presidential preference primary March 12 with three candidates on the Democratic ballot and 11 candidates on the Republican ballot. And the opportunity for in-person early voting begins Monday.

As mandated by current Georgia election law, there will be three weeks for early voting, including two Saturdays. In Bulloch County, the one place to vote early in-person will be the elections office in the County Annex, 113 North Main St., Suite 201, Statesboro. Hours for advance voting will be 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Mondays through Fridays, Feb. 19-March 8, and 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 24 and Saturday, March 2.

Yes, on the Republican side, many of the best-known candidates, including Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, South Carolina U.S. Sen. Tim Scott, pharmaceutical company founder Vivek Ramaswamy, former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson, have dropped out of the race, at least to the extent of suspending their campaigns.

But the Republican ballot in Georgia’s presidential preference primary still includes all of these candidates: Ryan L. Binkley, Doug Burgum, Chris Christie, Ron DeSantis, Nikki Haley, Asa Hutchinson, Perry Johnson, Vivek Ramaswamy, Tim Scott, David Stuckenberg and Donald J. Trump.

The latest guidance that Bulloch County Election Supervisor Shontay Jones received from the Elections Division at the Georgia Secretary of State’s Office on Feb. 7, was that none of those candidates had officially withdrawn, she said Thursday. So, for now, she won’t even be putting up those signs at voting places that often inform voters of candidates who have withdrawn but whose names are still on the ballot.

On the Democratic ballot, the three candidates are Joseph R. Biden Jr. (incumbent), Dean Phillips and Marianne Williamson. Philips, U.S. representative from Minnesota’s 3rd congressional district, has served as CEO of his family’s Phillips Distilling Company, based in Minneapolis, and owned some other companies. Williamson, author of self-help books and former spiritual leader of the Church of Today, a Unity Church in Warren, Michigan, also ran for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2020, but eventually endorsed Sen. Bernie Sanders.

To vote in the presidential preference primary, voters must choose either the Democratic Party or the Republican Party ballot. But Georgia does not have party registration for voters. So choosing a party in the presidential primary will not bind a voter to choose th  same party in any other election, not even Georgia’s May 21 general  primary and nonpartisan general election, Jones confirmed.

The May 21 primary will be for county offices, state legislative seats and U.S.  House seats and also includes a general election for nonpartisan positions such as judgeships and school  board seats. It is entirely separate from the March 12 presidential primary.

If voters aren’t already registered, it’s too late to register to vote in the March 12 presidential primary, since the registration deadline was Feb. 12. However, there’s still time to register to vote or update your registration address or name for the May 21 general primary and nonpartisan general election. That deadline is April 22.

From WSAV:

Whether you prefer to vote early, by mail, or in-person, there is a lot you need to know about when and where to vote. Here are the basics about early voting in Georgia:

1. Early voting begins today through March 8th.

2. March 1st is the deadline for presidential primary absentee ballot requests.

3. March 12th is presidential primary election day

4. March 15th is the deadline for provisional voters to correct missing documents, address missing signatures or incorrect I-d information on their ballots.

5. November 5 is the date for the nationwide general presidential election.

Remember, Georgia employers are now required to give employees two hours of leave to vote early, or on election day.

From the AJC:

Most Georgia voters have cast their votes in advance of election day in recent elections, with 58% voting in person at early voting locations during the 2022 midterms. About 6% of voters returned absentee ballots, and the remaining 36% showed up on election day.

This is the first presidential election under Georgia’s overhaul of voting laws after the 2020 race.

No-excuse absentee voting and ballot drop boxes are still available, but they’re more limited than four years ago.

Absentee ballot applications must include a handwritten signature on a request form, which can be submitted by email to county election offices. Absentee applications require a driver’s license number or another form of ID, and they are due by March 1. Completed ballots must be received by election offices before polls close on March 12.

Drop boxes are restricted to inside areas of early voting locations, and they’re only available during in-person voting hours. The number of drop boxes is capped at one for every 100,000 active registered voters.

Georgia’s voting law, Senate Bill 202, also mandates a second Saturday of early voting in counties that didn’t already provide it, allows residents to file unlimited challenges to other voters’ eligibility, and bans handing out food and water to voters waiting in line.

WALB has more information for local voters.

Under the Gold Dome Today

1:30 PM  HOUSE Regulated Ind. Sub Alcohol & Tobacco – 606 CLOB

2:00 PM  HOUSE REGULATED IND – 606 CLOB

3:00 PM  HOUSE Energy, Util & Telecom Sub Energy – 341 CAP

Georgia State legislators whose districts overlap with the 12th Congressional District elected Statesboro lawyer Daniel B. Snipes to the Georgia Department of Transportation Board, according to the Statesboro Herald.

The 12th Congressional District encompasses counties in east central and east southern Georgia, Bulloch, Burke, Candler, Columbia, Effingham, Emanuel, Evans, Glasscock, Jefferson, Jenkins, Johnson, Laurens, Lincoln, McDuffie, Montgomery, Richmond, Screven, Tattnall, Toombs, Treutlen, Warren, Washington, Wheeler, and Wilkes counties.

The 14-member State Transportation Board determines policy and governs the Georgia Department of Transportation.

Each member is elected by a caucus of Georgia General Assembly members from their specific congressional district. Board members serve staggered, five-year terms.

Georgia Department of Transportation plans, constructs and maintains Georgia’s state and federal highways. With nearly 4,000 employees, the DOT is involved in bridge, waterway, public transit, rail, general aviation, bike and pedestrian programs.

House Bill 1172 by State Rep. James Burchett (R-Waycross) passed out of the House Judiciary Committee by a single vote, according to the Capitol Beat News Service.

House Bill 1172, which cleared the House Judiciary Committee Thursday by just one vote, is a follow-up to legislation the General Assembly passed on the last day of last year’s session.

Last year’s bill was introduced following a lawsuit a property owner along the Upper Flint River filed seeking to ban public fishing along his stretch of the river.

After Gov. Brian Kemp signed the bill and it became law last July, some waterfront property owners expressed concerns that the measure included language codifying Georgia citizens’ right to use the state’s waterways under the “public trust doctrine.”

The new bill struck the reference to the public trust doctrine while maintaining the purpose of last year’s legislation, House Majority Whip James Burchett, R-Waycross, House Bill 1172’s chief sponsor, told committee members before Thursday’s vote.

“By common law, the citizens of this state have the inherent right of use for passage for hunting and fishing on navigable streams,” he said.

Burchett emphasized that the bill only applies to navigable streams.

But the measure’s opponents argued the current definition of “navigable streams” in state law dates back to the 19th century, a time when Georgia’s waterways were used to transport freight.

Joe Cook, coordinator of the Georgia River Network’s Paddle Georgia program, said that definition leaves out many streams across the state that are capable of floating a boat.

“Vast numbers of Georgia streams will fall under the category of non-navigable,” he said. “Many of our trips take place on rivers and streams that may not be deemed navigable. … There is a right of passage on all these streams that are not navigable.”

Suzanne Welander, author of a Georgia canoeing and kayaking guide book, said recreational paddling is a fast-growing activity in Georgia that generated $1.1 billion in revenue in 2022 and is responsible for 238,000 jobs.

“I’m concerned future generations might lose this ability to have those experiences,” she said.

Carol Reiser, past president of the Georgia Canoeing Association, said lawmakers in North Carolina and South Carolina have passed fishing rights legislation that guarantees public access to any river and stream that can float a boat, as long as the boaters don’t get out of the water and enter private property. She suggested recreational canoeists in Georgia would welcome a similar approach.

“We pass through,” Reiser said. “We don’t get out and party on people’s property.”

Senate Bill 443 by State Sen. Ben Watson (R-Savannah) attempts to address the issue of un-permitted public events on Tybee Island, according to WSAV.

The measure was passed by the state Senate on Thursday by a vote of 47 to 1.

SB 443 targets unpermitted events like Orange Crush on Tybee Island and would hold organizers financially accountable.

“It is common sense that promoters should work with municipalities to get legal permits to host events,” stated Rep. Jesse Petrea, a sponsor of the bill. “If we are successful in passing this legislation to give cities this tool, any promoters of unpermitted events need to understand that they are on the hook to pay for expenses incurred by that unpermitted event.”

“We are thankful that our legislators understand how unfair it is for promoters of unpermitted, mass gatherings to reap all the profits while forcing local taxpayers to pick up the tab for trash, property damages, public safety services and more,” stated [Tybee Island interim city manager] Michelle Owens. “We look forward to having an effective new tool to hold these promoters financially accountable.”

House Bill 1138 by State Rep. Dar’shun Kendrick (D-Lithonia) would require the state’s “Invest Georgia Fund” to include demographic representation as an investment criterion, according to the Gwinnett Daily Post.

The fund is a state-backed long-term investment program designed to help grow venture capital and private equity investment funds in the state. The Invest Georgia Fund’s ultimate goal is to help Georgia entrepreneurs grow new companies and create of new jobs.

“The Invest Georgia Fund is not a venture fund,” Kendrick told the Georgia House of Representatives Economic Development and Tourism Committee on Tuesday. “It is a fund to funds, meaning we give money to it and then it invests in venture funds, and then the venture funds invest in Georgia portfolio companies.”

State law has already established 17 criteria that are used for determining where state funds are invested. Kendrick’s bill, House Bill 1138, would add an 18th criteria to state one of the fund’s objectives would be to “promote and reflect the demographic makeup of Georgia.”

“The Invest Georgia Fund Program serves as a beacon of opportunity for growth and mentorship for Georgia’s venture capital and private equity investment funds,” Kendrick said in a statement. “This legislation would extend the opportunity to foster long-term success by encouraging the opportunity for investment to the entire demographic makeup of Georgia.

“I am proud to support this legislation and the Invest Georgia Fund as it paves the way for the creation of high-paying jobs that drive our states economic success.”

The Forsyth County Board of Elections released information on local candidates qualifying for the May 21, 2024 General Election, according to AccessWDUN.

In Forsyth County, potential candidates who would like to see their name on the ballot in one of the county’s local elections will have the opportunity to qualify between March 4 and March 8 at the Forsyth County Voter Registrations & Elections Office in Cumming.

Candidates who plan to run in the nonpartisan election in May, as well as those who plan to run as an independent in November, must qualify with the elections office.

Republican and Democratic candidates will qualify with representatives from the county’s respective parties. Qualification fees will be paid to the organization with whom the candidate is running.

Bulloch County Chief Magistrate Judge Karen Riggs Jones, who was appointed to the seat, announced she will seek a full term in office, according to the Statesboro Herald.

Judge Karen Riggs Jones, Bulloch County chief magistrate by appointment since last fall, has announced as a candidate for a full four-year elected term as chief magistrate judge in the May 21 nonpartisan general election and general primary.

State and county candidates must complete paperwork and pay fees during the March 4-8 qualifying period to make their candidacies official, but several would-be local candidates have now announced their intentions. Unlike partisan races, which will appear on their parties’ May 21 primary ballots and send nominees forward to the November election, any contests for nonpartisan offices – such as the magistrate’s office and other judgeships – will be decided either May 21 or in a possible June 18 runoff.

Jones, who has more than 35 years of experience in the Magistrate Court office, including previous roles as deputy clerk, chief clerk and deputy magistrate judge, was appointed and sworn in as chief magistrate judge by Chief Superior Court Judge F. Gates Peed upon the Sept. 30, 2023, retirement of previous Chief Magistrate June Bradley Braswell.

Lowndes County Commission Chair Bill Slaughter announced he is running for reelection, according to the Valdosta Daily Times.

Slaughter has held the seat since 2013. During his last three terms, he said, he worked to improve Lowndes County by improving roadways, revitalizing public spaces for community use, and creating more local jobs.

If Slaughter is re-elected for a fourth term he plans to focus on the continuation of the Transportation Improvement Act. The TIA is a regional 1% sales tax that Slaughter said helps improve traffic flow around Lowndes County by paving dirt roads as well as widening roads in high traffic areas.

“With us being the economic hub of south Georgia, it just made sense to share this one penny tax through a regional concept so that the roads, the bridges, that infrastructure can be improved and be beneficial to Lowndes County and folks coming into our community,” said Slaughter.

Slaughter hopes to work with the county Board of Commissioners to make improvements on ordinances so they can better serve all the residents of Lowndes County. Some of the ordinances Slaughter wants to improve have not been updated for 20 years or more.

“It’s time to update a lot of those ordinances…We started working on that this past year, and certainly there will be a lot more ordinances to come that we will need to look at,” said Slaughter. “We have ordinances we want to improve in animal control, and some of our noise ordinances.”

Columbus federal prosecutor Amy Helmick was appointed United States Magistrate Judge for the Middle District of Georgia, according to the Ledger-Enquirer.

She’s currently an assistant U.S. attorney and branch chief for the district’s Columbus division.

On July 1, she takes the seat vacated by retiring Judge Stephen Hyles. He has held the position since 2010, through two eight-year appointments

Magistrate court holds first-appearance hearings in federal cases, including misdemeanors on government land such as Fort Moore.

The district’s U.S. court judges, four sitting and three senior, unanimously chose Helmick for the job.

From WRBL:

Helmick’s eight-year term starts on July 1 of this year.

According to Middle District Judge Clay Land, “Amy Helmick is uniquely qualified to be our district’s next Magistrate Judge. She has a keen intellect, broad relevant experience, and the proper judicial temperament.”

Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens said he will run for reelection in 2025, according to the AJC.

Dickens has confirmed he will be launching a reelection bid in 2025. The first-term mayor said his current gig is the job he’s wanted since age 16, and a position he doesn’t want to forfeit anytime soon.

Dickens’ remarks came during a sweeping interview with the AJC which touched on topics like his role in the Biden-Harris reelection campaign, the city’s response to the training center referendum effort, affordable housing projects on the horizon and his efforts to reduce violent crime.

“Georgia is a battleground state so I’ll be making sure that across Georgia they know that I’m on that team,” Dickens said. The mayor noted that he expects numerous visits from Biden and Harris to Atlanta.

The vice president has made two trips to Georgia this year already, including a stop in the capital city for a discussion with voting rights advocates. First Lady Dr. Jill Biden also traveled to Atlanta this month to spotlight women’s health initiatives.

Former Richmond County Commissioner Sammie Sias had his prison sentence reduced from 36 months to 30, according to WJBF.

A necropsy of the dead Right Whale found off the coast of Tybee Island revealed the whale died of traumatic brain injury caused by a ship collision, according to WTOC.

The right whale is one of the most endangered large whale species with only around 360 alive today. In most cases, right whales are killed by getting caught up in fishing nets or boat crashes, since they stay near the surface, according to NOAA.

The boat captain who helped bring the whale calf to shore said he frequently sees the whales during this migration season. He and his crew go slow around the water to avoid hurting them, and he says casual boaters should do the same.

“Use caution not to hurt them, they don’t fear a whole lot of things because of their size, so they’re not just going to run away because they hear a noisy boat,” Jim Givens said.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has proposed expanding speed limits for boats during Right Whale migration season. Last August, Georgia 1st District U.S. Congressman Buddy Carter, proposed a bill to block that plan.

In a statement to WTOC, Rep. Carter said,

“It’s disheartening that a young female North Atlantic right whale calf has died. While the cause of death is not certain, we must protect this endangered species from extinction. Fortunately, there are promising new technologies to track the whales, which will help preserve and protect Georgia’s state marine mammal without killing our commercial boating and fishing industries.”