Georgia Governor Joseph Brown addressed the Georgia legislature calling on them to consider Georgia’s future on November 7, 1860, the day after Abraham Lincoln’s election as President.
Jeanette Rankin was elected to Congress, the first female Member, on November 7, 1916 from Montana. After leaving Congress, Rankin moved to Watkinsville, Georgia in 1925. The Jeanette Rankin Scholarship Foundation, based in Athens, Georgia provides college scholarships and support for low-income women 35 and older.
President Franklin Delano Roosevelt was elected to a record fourth term on November 7, 1944.
Democrat Sam Nunn was reelected to the United States Senate on November 7, 1978.
On November 7, 1989, David Dinkins was elected the first African-American Mayor of New York and Douglas Wilder was elected the first African-American Governor of Virginia.
On November 7, 2006, Georgia reelected its first Republican Governor since Reconstruction, Sonny Perdue, and elected its first GOP Lieutenant Governor, Casey Cagle.
Georgia Politics, Campaigns, and Elections
The Cobb County elections office failed to mail more than 1,000 requested absentee ballots, according to the AJC.
Cobb County election officials made a “critical error” and failed to mail over 1,000 absentee ballots to voters who had requested them, the county’s elections director said Friday night.
Most of the voters who weren’t sent their ballots will now have to vote in person on Election Day if they want to participate in the election. The county is mailing ballots by overnight delivery to out-of-state voters, but ballots will only be counted if they’re received back at the county’s elections office before polls close at 7 p.m., according to state law.
Elections Director Janine Eveler wrote in an email to the county’s elections board Friday that election workers didn’t upload ballot information to a mailing machine, and ballots were never created nor sent on two days last month. There were 842 ballots that were supposed to be mailed Oct. 13 and 194 ballots on Oct. 22.
“I am so sorry that this office let these voters down,” Eveler wrote. “Many of the absentee staff have been averaging 80 or more hours per week and they are exhausted. Still, that is no excuse for such a critical error.”
Of the 1,036 voters who weren’t sent ballots, about 250 of them instead voted in-person during early voting, according to state election data.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Georgia called for officials to accept absentee ballots until the ballot return deadline for military and overseas voters on Nov. 14. All other voters must get their ballots in by Tuesday.
A lawsuit has been filed over the omission, according to the AJC.
Voters who were never mailed their absentee ballots filed a lawsuit Sunday asking a judge to require Cobb County to send ballots by overnight mail and extend the state’s deadline to return them.
The lawsuit comes after Cobb election officials acknowledged Friday that they failed to mail absentee ballots to 1,036 voters who had requested them.
“Hundreds of eligible Cobb County voters did everything right and yet find themselves on the brink of total disenfranchisement because they were never mailed their absentee ballots, as is required under Georgia law,” said Jonathan Topaz, an attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union’s Voting Rights Project.
From the Secretary of State’s Absentee Voting Database:
Total ballots cast: 2,520,494
Total mail ballots cast: 226,197
Total in-person ballots cast: 2,291,161
In-person October 17, 2022: 134,876
In-person October 18, 2022: 135,204 *
In-person October 19, 2022: 127,954
In-person October 20, 2022: 123,107
In-person October 21, 2022: 141,844
In-person October 22, 2022: 80,638
In-person October 23, 2022: 18,131
In-person October 24, 2022: 133,506
In-person October 25, 2022: 125,739
In-person October 26, 2022: 119,747
In-person October 27, 2022: 112,198
In-person October 28, 2022: 139,652
In-person October 29, 2022: 93,740
In-person October 30, 2022: 24,147 *
In-person October 31, 2022: 131,255
In-person November 1, 2022: 124,738
In-person November 2, 2022: 135,136
In-person November 3, 2022: 157,826
In-person November 4, 2022: 231,588
In-person November 5, 2022: 12 **
In-person November 6, 2022: 1 **
In-person undated: 116
Total Electronic ballots cast (overseas and military voters): 3,136
Outstanding Electronic ballots (issued, not cast): 3,739
Outstanding Mailed ballots (issued, not cast): 55,200
* current number is lower than previously reported for this date.
** In-person early voting ended November 4, 2022.
Note: In Person numbers do not add up as one voter in Glynn County is recorded as having voted in person on 10/13/2022, when early voting was not open, and one voter in Pickens County is recorded as having voter in person on November 25, 2022.
Governor Brian Kemp and Attorney General Chris Carr announced the indictment of 17 alleged gang members, according to a Press Release.
Governor Brian P. Kemp, First Lady Marty Kemp, and Attorney General Chris Carr, joined by leaders of state public safety agencies, members of the General Assembly, and local law enforcement officials, today announced the indictment of 17 alleged members of the 183 Gangster Bloods following a large-scale investigation conducted by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation’s (GBI) Gang Task Force and the Department of Corrections’ (GDC) Office of Professional Standards Investigative Division and Security Threat Group Unit. The indictment, obtained by the Attorney General’s Gang Prosecution Unit in Barrow County, charges the defendants with engaging in a pattern of racketeering activity that spans 10 Georgia counties and includes Murder, Trafficking in Fentanyl and other dangerous drugs, various weapons offenses, and the recruitment of children. Since becoming operational in July, the Gang Prosecution Unit has obtained 11 indictments, charging 46 alleged gang members and associates, including those announced today.
“We created the Gang Prosecution Unit with our partners in the legislature because we knew something had to be done to get dangerous criminals off our streets,” said Governor Kemp. “The GBI’s Gang Task Force has also made great strides working with law enforcement at every level to pursue those who pose a risk to our communities. Thanks to all involved in the investigation and prosecution of this case, these 17 gang members will face justice. Today is a great example of how my administration and other state partners are working with those on the local level who are fed up with gangs bringing drugs and crime into our communities and harming our children. Together, we are saying ‘enough!’”
Governor Kemp signed HB 1134, legislation that provided the Office of the Attorney General with concurrent jurisdiction to prosecute criminal gang activity statewide, earlier this year. Representative Chuck Efstration and Senator John Kennedy sponsored the legislation during this past session. Georgia’s FY 2023 budget also includes $1.3 million to fund the Gang Prosecution Unit’s operations.
“This case serves as a reminder that gangs are present and actively recruiting in every corner of our state, perpetrating violent crimes and terrorizing entire communities,” said Attorney General Carr. “We must continue to work together across all levels of law enforcement to combat this criminal activity, put violent offenders behind bars and keep our people safe. That is exactly what we are doing with our new Gang Prosecution Unit, and we will keep fighting each day to stop those who put our children, our families and our communities at risk.”
One of Governor Kemp’s early priorities in office, the GBI’s Gang Task Force has already found much success working with local, state, and federal partners to investigate and dismantle gangs. This past year, the GBI investigated 446 gang-related cases across 100 Georgia counties and charged more than 170 gang members.
“We value the strong working relationship we have with the Georgia Department of Corrections and the Georgia Attorney General’s Office,” said GBI Director Mike Register. “Gang activity will not be tolerated out on the streets or behind the wire. These indictments and arrests make that loud and clear. We are reaching our goal to make communities safer by investigating these cases that reach successful prosecutions.”
There are more than 14,000 validated Security Threat Group offenders in the Georgia GDC, which represents approximately 30 percent of the daily inmate population. The mission of GDC’s Security Threat Group Unit is to effectively validate related persons, gather intelligence on related activities, and provide investigative support in all related occurrences. GDC has confiscated more than 5,000 contraband cellphones since July and conducted 107 full facility shakedowns this calendar year alone.
“Identifying and managing those participating in gang activity from behind the walls of our facilities is paramount in our commitment to public safety and it is an ongoing battle,” said GDC Commissioner Timothy C. Ward. “We are proud of our team for bringing this case to our law enforcement partners and we appreciate their ongoing support in ensuring that justice will be served on these individuals for their role in jeopardizing the safe operations of our facilities, and most importantly, the safety of the public.”
The Enterprise
The 183 Gangster Bloods (1-8 Trey Bloods) is a set of the larger criminal street gang known as the Bloods. The 183 Gangster Bloods is based out of New York, specifically the Bronx. It is one of the original sets of the United Blood Nation, which is an alliance of Blood sets that was formed in the Rikers Island Correctional Facility in New York City.
The Attorney General’s Gang Prosecution Unit presented evidence to a Barrow County Grand Jury on Oct. 25, 2022, resulting in the indictment* of these 17 defendants.
The Conspiracy
As alleged associates of the enterprise 183 Gangster Bloods, the defendants are believed to have conspired to associate together and with others for the common purpose of illegally obtaining money, weapons, and property through a pattern of racketeering activity.
RICO Overt Acts and Predicate Offenses
All defendants are charged with Conspiracy to Violate the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act. The indictment includes 136 predicate acts of which the defendants are alleged to have committed and caused to be committed in furtherance of the conspiracy and to effect its objectives and purposes. All acts are alleged to have occurred between January 2019 and October 2022 and span the following Georgia counties: Athens-Clarke, Barrow, Bulloch, Candler, Chattooga, Fulton, Gwinnett, Laurens, Monroe and Walton.
Those 136 predicate acts include, in part, the following offenses: Murder, Aggravated Assault, Armed Robbery, Trafficking in Fentanyl, Trafficking in Methamphetamine, Trafficking in Cocaine, Trafficking in Marijuana, Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon, Possession of a Firearm by a First Offender Probationer, Possession of a Firearm During the Commission of a Felony, Terroristic Threats, Criminal Damage to Property in the First Degree, and Arson.
This case also has ties to alleged gang activity in the Department of Corrections by way of the two incarcerated individuals – Ralph Alicea, who is alleged to be a national leader of the 183 Gangster Bloods, and Jamar Ramsay, who is alleged to be a statewide leader of the gang. While incarcerated, Alicea and Ramsay are alleged to have directed other defendants to engage in criminal activity to further the 183 Gangster Bloods enterprise. In addition, the defendants are alleged to have engaged in discussions regarding the packaging and shipping of contraband items into a GDC facility, as well as the sale and distribution of controlled substances in Hays State Prison.
The indictment can be found here. No further information about the investigation or about the indictment may be released at this time.
Tuesday is the last day for voting in the General Election, according to The Brunswick News.
Glynn County voters who haven’t already mailed in their ballots or showed up to the polls during the early voting period have a final opportunity to vote Tuesday in person.
U.S. Rep. Buddy Carter, whose 1st District includes Glynn and surrounding counties, will face Democrat Wade Herring.
Democrat Richard Ingalls will face Republican Thomas “Bo” Clark for the at-large Post 1 Glynn County Commission seat currently held by David O’Quinn, who did not seek another term.
Former Brunswick Mayor Cornell Harvey qualified as a Democrat for the District 4 seat and will face Republican David Sweat for the right to claim the office held by Republican Bill Brunson. Brunson is stepping down at the end of the year.
Rachael J. Thompson will face Hank B. Yeargan Jr. for the District 4 school board seat.
Voters also have a Local Option Sales Tax referendum to consider, along with two state constitutional amendments and two referendum questions.
From WTVM:
It’s been a great turnout across the Peach state, with more than two million people taking advantage of the voting opportunity. Just under 34,000 of those ballots are from Muscogee County voters.
The latest demographics show more women cast votes early, and most of those have been submitted by people between the ages of 60 to 65.
“Those were to be expected. That’s the usual group, so that’s to be expected, but all efforts are turned toward turning out men to vote and turning out young people to vote,” said Social Chair of the Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated Pat Hugley Green.
“If there’s any issue when you’re trying to vote, request a provisional ballot. Do not leave without casting a vote on a provisional ballot,” Green adds.
Employers in Georgia are required to give employees at least two hours paid time off to cast their ballot.
“The most critical thing that anyone can do before they go vote on Tuesday is to check my voter page so that you know where your polling location is,” said Butler.
You can also use the website to access a sample ballot and see who’s on your ballot before you arrive at the polls.
“This particular election, all eyes are on Georgia because we have an opportunity to make history. We have a female running for Governor — African American female running for Governor,” Hugley adds. “There’s a lot at stake, and this is a historical election, but EVERY election, not just the 2022 election, every single election is important.”
From WTVM reporting on Harris County:
“Here in Harris County, I had a wait of exactly 90 seconds, phew, I got it done,” says Tom Johnson, Harris County Resident.
More than 6,700 people have voted early in the county, so far. Chief Registrar of the Harris County Elections Office, Sherrail Jarrett, says these are fantastic numbers for mid-term elections.
As early voting ends today, Friday at 5pm, Jarret says about 30 percent of Harris County has voted, averaging between 400 to 500 voters a day.
“Usually, we have 100 or so the first few days each, but we started out with 400 and we haven’t slowed down since,” says Jarrett.
Glynn County voters will decide a Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST) referendum, according to The Brunswick News.
Jimmy Arnold and Donna Davis, two members of the Impact Glynn political action committee, feel very good about this year’s SPLOST referendum.
“We’re trying to improve our county as a whole,” Arnold said. “(Glynn is) one of six counties in the state that doesn’t have a SPLOST currently. That’s revenue that could go to good use, and Impact Glynn has been involved in the city and county in setting expectations about what we would like to see as citizens.”
SPLOST, short for Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax, is a means for county governments and municipalities to raise funds for projects by asking citizens to impose a limited 1% sales tax. State law caps a SPLOST at six years. Historically, participating government organizations provided a list of projects they hope to use the money on. That happened in the 2016 SPLOST that passed and the 2021 SPLOST that failed.
“A big point for us is if we collect $133 million — that’s the Carl Vinson study, but also a consulting firm called GUDE — 44% would come from visitors,” Davis said. “That’s $58 million that’s coming from people who visit the area.”
“The way the information is now pulled from the Department of Revenue from the counties is a lot more detailed than it was in 2015. There’s a lot more detail to this information now,” Arnold explained. “This is hard data that’s been provided by the Department of Revenue to the Carl Vinson Institute. All the numbers are factual, independent of Impact Glynn or any other entity.”
From the Athens Banner Herald:
Advance voting in Athens-Clarke County concluded at 5 p.m. Friday. The three weeks of polling were marked by contention.
Activists and political candidates alike raised the alarm about local early voting rates falling short of the statewide average, prompting changes from the Athens-Clarke County Board of Elections.
Polling locations, most of which were open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., consistently collected between 600 to 700 ballots each day. But when the numbers began to slump in the second week, politicians and activists began to show some concern.
On Oct. 25, Mayor Kelly Girtz and Athens-Clarke County Commissioner Tim Denson announced a press conference in advance of the Board of Elections meeting. (The press conference was later canceled when the Board of Elections meeting was moved). UGA student organizations, like UGA Votes and the Davenport-Benham Black Law Student Association, pointed out Athens-Clarke County’s comparatively low early voting rates.
After rescheduling its meeting from Oct. 25 to Oct. 26, the Board of Elections voted to expand early voting hours at three locations. Each of the three polling stations would now be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on select days.
Early voting turnout picked up significantly in the third week, with more than 2,000 people casting their ballots each day. But it’s hard to say whether expanding voting hours did the trick.
From the Gainesville Times:
Less than a week before Election Day, officials have reported a robust turnout among Hall County voters, with the number of ballots cast surpassing totals seen in May’s general primary.
Figures from Hall County elections officials show that 33,265 voters have gone in-person to the polls to cast an early vote. That’s 18,516 more than the 14,749 total residents who participated in early in-person voting during the primary. It’s also 12,621 more than the 20,644 ballots cast on Election Day in May.
Hall County Elections Manager Paige Thompson said so far there haven’t been any issues reported at polling locations. Thompson attributed the recent efficiency of early voting to Hall County’s involvement in a new pilot program under the Secretary of State’s Office. The program, she said, is intended to quicken the process for voters going in and out of polling locations.
“In the past, an early voting voter would have to fill out a voter certificate, then go to the poll pad and laptop where a voter card would be made,” Thompson said. “With the new process a voter checks in just like on Election Day, which has cut the time per voter drastically. We have not seen lines like in the past with the new system. The voters and poll workers love the test system.”
From the Rome News Tribune:
Some 61,573 advance and absentee votes had been accepted by elections offices in Floyd, Bartow, Gordon, Polk and Chattooga counties as in-person voting closed Friday evening.
As for the other forecast — turnout — that remains a calculated guess but usually we see election day turnout matching the early vote.
In Floyd County’s case, that should amount to 32,000 of 60,000 or so registered voters, or 53.3%.
In November 2018, 58% of Floyd’s voters turned out, or 30,440 of 52,469 eligible. That election featured more on the local ballot, including county commission, state House and state Senate races.
Governor Brian Kemp campaigned in Augusta, according to the Augusta Chronicle.
The local Republican parties put together a “Breakfast with Brian Kemp” Saturday morning under the pavilion at Evans Towne Center Park. Around 100 people enjoyed breakfast biscuits as they talked to and shook hands with Kemp. Many were dressed in Republican red complimented by Georgia Bulldog red fan gear in preparation of UGA’s game against the Tennessee Volunteers later that day. Kemp did his own pumping up by shouting “Go Dawgs!{ during the start and end of his speech, and his supporters joked that he was anxious to get back to Athens.
After a very brief introduction by Augusta businessman Don Grantham and State Rep. Jodi Lott, Kemp explained how they are working hard to make sure Stacey Abrams does not become governor. A large chunk of his speech involved criticizing Democrats, particularly Abrams, emphasizing that, come Election Day, “We wouldn’t move off kilter a little bit if we don’t turn out Tuesday. It’ll be a complete 180.”
On election reform, Kemp took pride in passing Senate Bill 202, calling it “the strongest elections integrity act in the country that makes it easy to vote and hard to cheat despite Stacey Abrams and President Biden and the woke corporate CEO’s and Major League Baseball all crying ‘Foul!’ They struck out.’
Abrams has also been very critical of her opponent, especially during her last visit to Augusta on Oct. 27. One issue she raised there and at other events was Kemp’s failure to expand medicaid. When asked about this, the governor called medicaid “a broken government program” and “that’s why we did two waivers to expand medicaid for certain populations but also to provide a pathway where they can get on an affordable private sector plan.”
“Stacey Abrams wants government to control everything in your life,{ he said. “She wants to control every decision you make, whether you get vaccinated or not, whether you wear a mask or not, and I do not. I trust the people over the government. She trusts the government more than the people, and that really sums up what this race is all about.”
Kemp has two more stops on his tour ahead of the election, including a lunch at the Outback Steakhouse in Ringgold on Sunday and a rally with other statewide candidates Monday afternoon at the Cobb County International Airport in Kennesaw.
From WJBF:
“People will ask you ‘hey you supporting Kemp,’ and you say yes, I’m supporting him, and they gon’ say why and you gon’ say ’cause I know him. ‘Cause he’s looked me in the eye and told me what he would do, and he has done it and he wants to keep doing it,” Governer Kemp said.
He says in the past two years, Georgia has had two record years in a row when it comes to creating jobs.
Senator Warnock held a meet and greet in Grovetown before making his way to Broad Street where he visited local residents at their home.
U.S. Senator Raphael Warnock (D-Atlanta) campaigned in Savannah, according to WTOC.
In the final hours of his 2022 midterm campaign incumbent Georgia US Senator Raphael Warnock knocked on Eastside Savannah doors hoping to mobilize voters.
“We’re actually in my mother’s neighborhood, not far from where my mom lives. So I know people all over the city and it’s great to be home,” Sen. Raphael Warnock said.
“I can’t tell you how many folks I’ve met, just knocking on doors, work every single day they have no healthcare. I’m going to be thinking about them hopefully when the people of Georgia return me to the Senate to do this work,” Sen. Raphael Warnock says.
The Senator met with supporters earlier in the day enlisting the help of film director Spike Lee to energize support.
“When I think about something like Medicaid expansion, for example, the fact that our hospitals have been closing. Almost all of them have been in rural areas, they’ve been outside of Atlanta. So, I absolutely care about these folks.”
Republican Georgia Senate Candidate Herschel Walker also hit the campaign trail near Atlanta Sunday. He was joined by former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley who was there to show her support.
From WSAV:
On Sunday, Senator Warnock made a stop in Savannah, his hometown. Warnock, greeted by dozens of supporters at Bethel AME Church, encouraged his supporters to get out and vote, calling this race “a battle for the soul of the state and nation.”
“I’m going to leave it all on the field,” Warnock said. “I’m going to work until we hear the four greatest words ever heard in a democracy, ‘the people have spoken.’ And I hope the people give me a chance to speak on their behalf for the next six years.”
The incumbent senator was joined by actress Lynn Whitfield, Spike Lee and several elected officials including Savannah Mayor Van Johnson, who urged Georgians to make their voices heard at the polls.
“Here’s the thing, while we’ve been paying record prices at the pump and at the pharmacy counter, at the grocery store there are corporate actors that have been experiencing record profits,” Warnock said. ” So the question is, who’s going to stand up to them? I don’t work for the big pharmaceutical companies, I don’t work for the big oil and gas companies. I work for the people of Georgia and you need somebody who’s going to stand up for ordinary people.”
Warnock said he feels confident in the tight race. If neither candidate gets more than 50% of the vote Tuesday, it will go to a runoff election on December 6th.
Walker has also been making his way through the Peach State on his Unite Georgia Bus Stop Rally, most recently in Paulding County on Sunday.
Warnock also campaigned in Augusta, according to the Augusta Chronicle.
“I think connecting with the people on a regular basis is an important part of governing,” Warnock said. “I’ve been engaging the people of Georgia way before the campaign got going in earnest. I’ve spent many of my recesses either talking to farmers…or talking to small business owners, or people in the manufacturing region or just talking to ordinary folks.”
He started at the Richmond County Democratic Party HQ on the 400 block of Broad Street, where he was met by dozens of volunteers ready to spread his message. The sky was gloomy, having showered in the last hour, and the air was humid, but that didn’t deter the canvassers, who crowded into the office to hear Warnock speak before they hit the damp streets.
“The role that canvassers play is so very important. People get to hear from the candidates, but there’s nothing like hearing from your own neighbors,” he said. “Don’t underestimate the power of your voice.”
Republican Nikki Haley said that Warnock ought to be deported, according to WSAV.
“Legal immigrants are more patriotic than the leftists these days,” Haley said at the Hiram, Ga., rally. “They worked to come into America and they love America. They want the laws followed in America. So the only person we need to make sure we deport is Warnock.”
Haley, who served as ambassador to the UN during the Trump administration and is considered a potential 2024 presidential candidate, has stumped for a number of GOP candidates across the country ahead of the midterms.
After rallies in Georgia and New Hampshire on Sunday, Haley will travel to Wisconsin and Pennsylvania on Monday.
At the rally, Haley, a former governor of South Carolina, said Walker is a “good person who has been put through the ringer and has had everything but the kitchen sink thrown at him.”
Democrat Stacey Abrams also campaigned in Savannah, according to WTOC.
Abrams had a number of people speak before her including Wade Herring, Bee Nguyen, Edna Jackson, and even actress Natalie Portman.
“We are three days from destiny, three days from victory that is unfinished business for the state of Georgia, three days away from reclaiming our rights and writing our future,” Stacey Abrams said.
Republican Chris West, seeking election in the Second Congressional District, campaigned in Albany, according to WALB.
Chris West is running for office for the first time against longtime Democratic Congressman Sanford Bishop. Part of his plan is to ensure better representation for the district he serves.
One of the concerns West wants to address is not having to rely on foreign countries for oil and gas. As gas prices are going up, that is one thing he hopes to fix if elected.
“I serve as an officer for Georgia’s National Guard. That’s also in the district of Robins Air Force Base and our military community. Our veterans mean a lot to me. And just the people throughout this district have grown up playing sports sometimes the same thing sometimes against relationships that go back years and I just love this community,” West said.
“We’ve been in the top 10 poorest congressional districts for years. 35 districts, out of the 435 districts, we’ve been in the top 10. I think it’s unfortunate because a lot of communities that have been left behind throughout this district need economic opportunity. And that’s what we’ve been doing in the private sector. And that’s what we want to do as the congressman for this area,” said West.
State Rep. Mike Cheokas (R-Americus) is defending his House District 151 seat, according to the Albany Herald.
The Republican incumbent is seeking a ninth term, with parts of Dougherty, Stewart, Terrell and Webster added to his territory of Chattahoochee, Marian, Schley and Sumter counties, and he is reaching out to colleague Gerald Greene, who is losing part of that territory after redistricting.
“I have a great working relationship with Gerald Greene and have his support,” Cheokas said. “Being part of the representation in rural Georgia, we talk a lot about the needs in our districts and how we can collaborate to help the people in southwest Georgia.
As chairman of the House Small Business Development Committee, the candidate said he is working to find solutions to perhaps the largest problems facing rural communities in the district — loss of population and lack of health care in those areas.
“Losing population and the service of local hospitals go hand-in-hand,” he said. “A hospital has to have a certain number of patients to be economically viable. In that capacity (the Small Business Development Committee is) looking at ways we can strengthen small businesses, strengthen entrepreneurship, so we can bring back life and vibrancy to these small communities.”
One key to helping those areas catch up is access to high-speed internet broadband service, he said. There are a number of examples of struggling businesses in the district that not only survived but thrived through expanding into online opportunities, and one of those in Marion County created 20 jobs.
Democrat Joyce Barlow is running against Cheokas, according to the Albany Herald.
To reverse the trend of closing hospitals, leaving many in rural areas with long trips to seek treatment or when faced with a health emergency, the owner of Englewood Health Care in Albany is endorsing the expansion of Medicaid for the state.
“We are one of 12 states that does not have Medicaid expansion,” she said. “Even if you have insurance, one illness can wipe out your savings. It affects those who do have insurance because it increases your co-pay.
“Under my opponent’s watch, we had three hospitals close, and in one county the only doctor retired, so they have no doctor in that county.”
The lack of accessibility leads individuals to put off preventive care and forces them to use home remedies or borrow medication from relatives, Barlow said.
Eventually they often end up in an emergency room with an acute condition that could have been treated earlier.
And, once a community loses its hospitals and sees doctors and nurses leave for other locations, it leads to a downward spiral for the economy, the candidate said, and the lack of health care can prevent companies from locating in the area. On top of that, those who worked in maintenance and as janitors and other roles in health care often are forced to commute to other cities to support their families.
“When you close your rural hospital, there’s a slow decline,” Barlow said. “We’re losing population. Most companies relocating know what they are looking for — quality health care, good schools, broadband is another.
“When people are in a car, driving 40 or 45 miles one way, they evaluate it, and eventually a family makes a plan to move.”
From WALB:
Barlow ran for state representative in each of the last two elections. She lost close races to a long-time incumbent, Gerald Greene. After redistricting, she now faces another incumbent, Republican Mike Cheokas.
State Rep. Darlene Taylor (R-Thomasville) is working to defend her House District 173 seat, according to WALB.
Darlene Taylor has served as the Georgia Representative for District 173 for 11 years now and said she’s not ready for her work to stop now.
“I feel like God put me here for a reason,” she said.
Representative Taylor said she was never into politics before she ran for her seat. She was encouraged to run in 2011 by some of her family and friends. Since then, she said she’s never looked back.
“I didn’t know really what I was getting into. It’s good to know something about politics but I didn’t go in totally blind. I understand the politics as far as you have to work with all people. You have to work across the aisle,” she said.
She added that she stands tall as a woman in politics as she’s worked on another passion of hers—women’s rights. For her, being a businesswoman in health care and a politician hasn’t always been easy.
“At first it was just getting in the room. Let’s be frank I grew up when woman were burning their bras. I didn’t care if I came in the back door. Being a woman, I can still be compassionate and people accept me now in the room because I have the knowledge to stand there with them,” she said.
After being defeated in 2014 when he ran against Taylor for seat 173, Democratic candidate Keith Jenkins is back eight years later ready for a rematch.
Republican State Senator Matt Hatchett is running for reelection in District 50, according to AccessWDUN.
Republican incumbent Bo Hatchett will be facing the Democratic nominee Paulette Williams for the Georgia State Senate District 50 seat in the 2022 midterm election.
District 50 covers Rabun County, Towns County, Habersham County, Stephens County, Franklin County, Banks County, east of White County, north of Jackson County and a small portion of Hall County.
Hatchett grew up in Demorest, Ga. and is a lawyer by profession, according to his website. He has represented Georgia’s 50th District since 2021 and is pro-life, a 2nd Amendment supporter and believes in limited government and stopping government overreach.
Williams believes the focus should be on affordable health care and the expansion of Medicaid.
“Georgia ranks in the bottom of states in terms of our ability to provide health care to our citizens,” Daley said on behalf of Williams. “And one focus of her campaign is to have the Georgia State Legislature accept Medicaid expansion.”
WJBF profiles the candidates for Richmond County Board of Education District 7.
Both candidates for Richmond County’s Board of Education District 7 seat – incumbent Charlie Walker Junior and challenger Brittiany Broadwater — say they’re focused on what’s important – education .
“I think with my skill set– I have a background in education, I graduated from Stanford University where I studied education and all of the youth serving roles that I have had– I think I now have a skillset where I can contribute to improving our school district,” Broadwater said.
“To offer our teachers and our support staff the opportunity to get back to a normal environment, and to continue to support and nurture that early-learning opportunity so that when kids come into the system, it’ll give us a better chance to be a more successful school system,” Walker Jr. said.
Republican Hall County Board of Education District 1 member Mark Pettit faces Democratic challenger Isabel Martinez Flynn, according to AccessWDUN.
Pettit was elected to the board in 2018 for the post representing the south end of the county. The post is elected by an at-large vote.
“My goal is to be accessible to constituents and the public and be active within the community, so I feel like I’m always campaigning and listening to folks and engaging with the community and things of that nature,” Pettit said.
One issue that has recently faced the county school board is reading materials for children. A group of parents expressed concerns to the board in April about some materials that contained what they considered to be inappropriate content.
Pettit said said he is comfortable with the school system’s ability to address those concerns.
“We have a policy on the books in Hall County that’s been there for decades. If anybody at any time has any issue at all with any material in Hall County schools, they can issue a challenge. A committee will be convened, the content will be reviewed in its entirety for context and a decision will be made. If the individual is not happy with that committee’s decision, they can appeal it to the district level and if the same thing happens there and the individual is still not happy, they can appeal it to the board of education,” Pettit said. “The process has been used once in eight years, so I would say we don’t have an issue here.”
Flynn said she is against banning reading materials.
Speaking of banning books, more than twenty books in the Thomas County Public Library have received complaints, according to WALB.
Over 20 books at the Thomas County Public Library have been challenged and brought up for reconsideration of circulation.
Books like “The Other Boy” and “The Perks of Being a Wallflower” are just two of those publications called into question. Community members are saying the material in these books is inappropriate for young readers.
The concerns started surfacing in September. Other familiar titles under review include “The Kite Runner”, “All the Boys Aren’t Blue” and “Me and Earl and the Dying Girl”. Most of these books include race and sexuality as topics.
“In my 10 years as a library director, I have never had one material challenged,” said Holly Phillips, director of Thomas County Public Library System.
Phillips said some of the feedback she has received about these books say they “promote transgender agenda to children”, “Bible calls queer an abomination” and that the material had “controversial diversity issues” and included profanity.
Right now, 12 books have been reviewed by the library and either moved to the adult section or left in the teen and young adult sections.
The Georgia Department of Natural Resources has banned private ownership of some reptiles, according to the Savannah Morning News.
A controversy is brewing for reptile breeders and lovers after the Georgia Department of Natural Resources updated its wild animals list for the first time since the mid-1990s.
The list includes animals not allowed for importation, transportation, sale, transfer or possession due to their potential dangers and capacity to become a disruptive species.
Burmese pythons and Argentine white and black tegus were named as animals that Georgians must stop breeding and buying. The list also includes other reptiles as well as aquatic species, and critters like the marbled crayfish that have high potential to harm their native counterparts.
People who currently own these animals do not have to get rid of their pets. But they have 12 months to tag and register them with DNR.
For more information on the rule changes and a list of all the impacted animals, visit bit.ly/3NzPaOB.
In the Everglades, the non-native Burmese pythons, which can grow beyond 16 feet in the wild, have been colossally disruptive to the environment. Populations are exploding in south Florida and they out-compete native wildlife for food and resources.
“Invasive species cost billions of dollars of damage to the economy” beyond the ecological devastation they can bring, said Brett Albanese, assistant chief with DNR’s Wildlife Conservation Section. “The trick is that once something becomes established, it’s really hard to eradicate, so we are trying to be more proactive.”
Albanese said there’s uncertainty about whether pythons could survive and establish themselves in Georgia. But with the climate warming up, DNR is taking a cautious approach.
Whit Gibbons, a herpetologist at the University of Georgia’s Savannah River Ecology Lab, said that the jury is out on what would happen if Burmese pythons made their way to the wilds of Georgia. There are two limiting factors he said would make it unlikely for the snakes to establish themselves.
“The difference between most of Georgia and the Everglades is that there is plenty of food for them in the Everglades,” Gibbons said. Released anywhere in Georgia, Gibbons said Burmese pythons would run out of food sources.
