German scientist Johannes Kepler dated the creation of the universe to April 27, 4977 BC(E).
James Oglethorpe won reelection to the British Parliament while in America on April 25, 1734.
On April 27, 1773, the British Parliament enacted the Tea Act, granting a monopoly on selling tea to the American colonies.
On April 28, 1776, Colonel Lachlan McIntosh wrote from Savannah to General George Washington.
he concluded his letter with the report that because the South had limited manufacturing capability, the price of needed goods was two or three times higher than in the North, making procurement of clothing and arms for the new recruits difficult.
This last tidbit would prove prescient as lack of manufacturing proved an insuperable problem for the Confederacy.
Richard B. Russell, Sr. was born on April 27, 1861 near Marietta, Georgia. Russell served in the Georgia House of Representatives, on the Georgia Court of Appeals and Supreme Court, and ran for Governor, Congress, and United States Senate. His son, Richard B. Russell, Jr. served in the Georgia State House, including a stint as Speaker, as Governor of Georgia, and in the United States Senate.
On April 26, 1866, the Atlanta Ladies’ Memorial Association held a Confederate memorial observance at Oakland Cemetery for the first time.
In 1874, the Georgia General Assembly passed legislation designating April 26th of each year as “Confederate Memorial Day,” choosing the day of Confederate General Joseph E. Johnston’s surrender to Union General William T. Sherman at Durham Station, North Carolina. There is no longer a statutorily-recognized Confederate Memorial Day, but it became custom for Governors to issue a proclamation yearly designating April 26th as Confederate Memorial Day or to make it the Monday or Friday closest to the 26th.
The United States declared war on Spain on April 25, 1898.
On April 26, 1913, 13-year old Mary Phagan was found dead, having been sexually assaulted, in the basement of a pencil factory in Atlanta. Guilt was pinned on the Jewish owner of the factory, Leo Frank. Frank was convicted, but later his sentence was commuted after Governor John Slaton concluded from his own investigation that Frank had been framed. Frank was later hanged by a lynch mob.
On April 26, 1986, the world’s worst nuclear accident occurred at Chernobyl in the Soviet Union.
Thirty-two people died and dozens more suffered radiation burns in the opening days of the crisis, but only after Swedish authorities reported the fallout did Soviet authorities reluctantly admit that an accident had occurred.
On April 27, Soviet authorities began an evacuation of the 30,000 inhabitants of Pripyat. A cover-up was attempted, but on April 28 Swedish radiation monitoring stations, more than 800 miles to the northwest of Chernobyl, reported radiation levels 40 percent higher than normal. Later that day, the Soviet news agency acknowledged that a major nuclear accident had occurred at Chernobyl.
On April 25, 1996, Georgia Governor Zell Miller signed Senate Bill 519 designating English the official language of Georgia.
On April 28, 2014, the earliest ever Primary Elections in Georgia began, as in-person early voting started across the state.
On April 26, 2016, Governor Nathan Deal signed legislation designating “the Adoptable Dog” as the Official State Dog of Georgia.
Georgia Politics, Campaigns, and Elections
Governor Brian Kemp tweeted a statement on the protests at Emory University. From 13WMAZ:
In Atlanta, a protest encampment was set up Thursday morning on Emory University’s campus. 11Alive crews were at the protest site and witnessed several individuals being detained and loaded into police vans.
Students also had a walkout at Kennesaw State University and another rally was held at Georgia Tech’s campus.
In response to those protests, the Georgia governor wrote the following statement:
“Across the country, Americans have watched with horror as radicals have terrorized Jewish students and forced them to evacuate from their dormitories and classrooms. College campuses are designed to be places of learning and often civil discourse, but in Georgia, they will never be a safe haven for those who promote terrorism and extremism that threatens the safety of students.”
“I am thankful for state and local law enforcement who responded swiftly to Emory University’s call for support and restored order on campus.”
“Just as we have always done in the past, we will respect the right to peacefully protest, but those who choose to make the unwise decision to use our college campuses to intimidate, make threats, promote violence, or in any other way break the law will be met with the full force of the law and brought to justice.”
Emory University published a statement saying, “several dozen protesters trespassed” onto the campus.
The protesters were apparent activists trying to disrupt the university. The Emory police department ordered them to leave and asked Atlanta Police and Georgia State Patrol for assistance.
At Kennesaw State University, a small group gathered on campus to express their support for Palestinians. They waved Palestinian flags and held signs saying “Free all Palestinian political prisoners.”
WSAV reached out to Emory University about the incident. They said “We have been notified that 28 individuals have been arrested, including 20 Emory community members, some of whom have been released. We are working with responding agencies to expedite the release of any Emory community members who remain in custody.”
In a statement, Emory University said several dozen protesters trespassed onto the private school’s campus early Thursday morning and set up tents in the Quad. The school’s police department told the group to leave and called Atlanta police and state patrol for help.
“These individuals are not members of our community. They are activists attempting to disrupt our university as our students finish classes and prepare for finals,” the statement continues. “Emory does not tolerate vandalism or other criminal activity on campus.”
Georgia State Patrol said one protestor was hit with a Taser before being arrested. According to GSP. the man resisted arrest after being placed on the ground. Troopers then hit him with a taser in the stomach and right thigh.
“We urge everyone to stay safe and exercise peaceful means of free speech,” the department said.
Congressman Hank Johnson (GA-04) released the following statement:
“I am disturbed to learn that Governor Brian Kemp has deployed the Georgia State Patrol onto the Emory University campus. The mandate of GSP is to ‘investigate traffic crashes and enforce traffic and criminal laws on the state’s roads.’ Georgia State Patrol has no place on the college campus. And neither do outside agitators who seek to usurp the peaceful protests against the Netanyahu government’s killing of tens of thousands of innocent Gazans by giving life to a false narrative that the protest movement is violent and anti-Semitic. Those participants who seek to intimidate, threaten, or demean our Jewish brothers and sisters have no place among the legitimate protesters. Reminiscent of the anti-war and civil rights protests on college campuses in the 1960s and 70s, today’s student protesters have a First Amendment right to protest against what they see as unjust policies and practices of their government, I fully support their right to peacefully protest on campus, and I call for the outside agitators to stay away from our college campuses.”
Meanwhile, Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr posted an approval of the school’s action.
“Nobody has the legal right to shut down our schools by camping out and making antisemitic threats,” he wrote on X.
Following the Thursday morning protest, at least 23 people were booked into the DeKalb County Jail on charges including disorderly conduct and obstruction of law enforcement officers. At least one person was charged with simple battery against a law enforcement officer, while another was charged with aggravated assault and reckless conduct, according to jail records.
Thursday evening, about 30 people stood outside the cookie shop, which is owned by Sagi Shablis, an Israeli who has been in the United States for two years. Achiron said the goal was to stand in solidarity with Jewish students who have been feeling unsafe on campus after several gatherings that have taken place on campus since the start of the Israel-Hamas war on Oct. 7.
State Rep. Esther Panitch helped put the event together and said they decided to meet off campus to de-escalate tensions between students after the morning protest.
The state patrol said officers responding “were met with protestors who threw bottles and refused to leave.”
“During the encampment protest response, Troopers deployed pepper balls to control the unruly crowd but did not use tear gas,” the agency said, adding that any charges would be issued by the Emory Police Department.
Emory’s graduation is scheduled for May 13; the speaker will be Dr. Valerie Montgomery Rice, president and CEO of Morehouse School of Medicine.
Senior Republicans labeled the protesters who were removed by state and local police as antisemitic anarchists and accused them of supporting terrorists. Key Democrats questioned the use of force by officers who, in some cases, carried semiautomatic weapons as they dismantled the camp and arrested at least 23 people.
On the Republican side, Lt. Gov. Burt Jones and former U.S. Sen. Kelly Loeffler, likely 2026 candidates for statewide office, each called them “pro-terrorist radicals.” And Attorney General Chris Carr said he “proudly” stands by the university’s approach.
“Nobody has the legal right to shut down our schools by camping out and making antisemitic threats,” said Carr.
State Rep. Ruwa Romman, a Duluth Democrat and the only Palestinian-American in the Legislature, criticized the use of “extreme-riot techniques” by law enforcement to disband the protest.
“Regardless of one’s views on this or any other issue, there is no justification for this kind of excessive force,” read a letter signed by more than a dozen Democratic legislators that Roman orchestrated.
State Sen. Elena Parent, whose Atlanta-centered district encompasses Emory University, raised questions about a video that showed officers using a stun gun on a demonstrator they had pinned to the ground.
“The right to protest and free speech are foundational to our rights and freedoms,” she wrote. “At the same time, safe places to learn and the university’s mission are essential to the community I represent.”
Voters will have three weeks of Advance (In-Person) voting beginning Monday, according to The Brunswick News.
Early voting ends May 17.
Christina Redden, assistant director of elections in Glynn County, said voters should visit www.mvp.sos.ga.gov to refresh themselves on their polling place location and review sample ballots. Some polling places have moved, so it’s a good idea to check no matter what, she said.
The more time voters spend reviewing the sample ballot, the quicker they’ll be in and out of the polling place.
State elections on the primary ballots will include:
• Republican incumbent Mike Hodges faces no opposition in the primary and no Democratic challenger in the Senate District 3 race.
• Incumbent Republican Buddy DeLoach and Democrat Rebekah Moore face no in-party opposition in the race for House District 167.
• Republican incumbent Rick Townsend faces no opposition in the primary and no Democratic challenger in the House District 179 election.
• Republican incumbent Steven Sainz faces Glenn Cook and David Rainer in the primary election. Defonso Daniels is running unopposed for the Democratic nomination.
• Keith Higgins, the Republican incumbent, will face John B. Johnson III in the primary. No Democrats are running for the seat.
Voting for District 139, which consists of parts of Muscogee and Harris County, will start April 29th through May 3rd.
Then, early voting for the Primary election including races like the Muscogee County Sheriff, Coroner, and City Council seats also starts April 29th and ends May 17th.
Director of Elections and Registration Nancy Boren says her team is ready for the election season.
“So we have prepared obviously for the March presidential preference primary,” Boren said. “We are prepared for May 21st, so we are geared up and we are ready and we will start early voting for both of those election cycles on Monday, April 29th.”
From the Athens Banner Herald:
Many elected positions will be unopposed in their primaries setting up for contested races in the November election.
Voters will face a number of questions posed on ballots for Republican and Democratic votes. The questions range from elections practices to immigration issues on the Republican ballots and assault weapons to library books on the Democratic ballots.
Voters should check their local board of elections websites for places and times for election.
Besides some elected offices, voters in Oconee County will vote on a Homestead Exemption measure that affects taxation for residents 65 years old or over and those 75 years old and older.
WJBF covers local early voting locations across the CSRA.
Richmond County offices up for grabs include five Augusta Commission seats, one judge’s seat on Augusta’s Superior Court, sheriff, district attorney, and the District 12 seat on the U.S. House of Representatives. Augusta voters will also decide if the mayor should get an equal vote to the Augusta Commissioners rather than just a tie-breaker vote.
Columbia County offices up for grabs include coroner, two county commission seats, and one school board seat.
While there are other local seats up for election, they only have one incumbent.
Gwinnett County encourages prospective mail-in absentee ballot voters to apply early, according to AccessWDUN.
Gwinnett Voter Registrations and Elections recently encouraged voters to apply for an absentee ballot as soon as possible due to delays in the U.S. Postal Service.
Gwinnett County officials said eligible voters have until Friday, May 10 to request an absentee ballot for the General Primary and Nonpartisan General Election on May 21.
Voters can request an absentee ballot or check the status of their absentee ballots at MVP.SOS.GA.gov. For assistance, call the Elections Office at 678-226-7210.
Once voters complete the absentee ballot application they can mail or hand-deliver it to Gwinnett Voter Registrations and Elections Beauty P. Baldwin Building, fax it to 678-226-7208, or email it to Absentee@GwinnettCounty.com.
Voters who applied for absentee ballots before Monday, Apr. 22 are asked to allow three to five days from when the application was submitted for delivery of the absentee ballot.
It’s probably best to mail your ballot back as early as possible or use a drop box if one is available.
Hundreds of candidates are competing in races for Congress, the General Assembly, the Georgia Supreme Court, district attorneys, judges and county commissioners.
The most closely watched contests include a challenge to Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis as she’s prosecuting Donald Trump, a packed primary for an open congressional seat in west Georgia, and a three-way showdown for DeKalb County CEO.
Early voting, which lasts three weeks before election day May 21, is usually the most popular method for Georgians to participate. All registered voters are eligible to participate in the election, but they have to choose either a Democratic, Republican or nonpartisan ballot.
“Georgia is a national leader in election integrity and security,” Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger said. “Early voting starts Monday, and voters will have the opportunity to secure their ballot during Georgia’s 17 days of early voting or on election day.”
While Trump isn’t on the ballot in the primary, one of his former aides is.
Brian Jack is carrying the former president’s endorsement into the Republican primary for the 3rd Congressional District, a test of Trump’s coattails in a deeply conservative west Georgia district ahead of the November election.
Jack is one of several Republicans seeking to replace U.S. Rep. Drew Ferguson, a dentist retiring after four terms. The race also includes former state Sen. Mike Crane, ex-state Senate Majority Leader Mike Dugan and former state Rep. Philip Singleton. Two Democrats are also in the race.
And in DeKalb County, three county commissioners are seeking to replace CEO Mike Thurmond as the leader of the state’s fourth-largest county. The candidates are Steve Bradshaw, Larry Johnson and Lorraine Cochran Johnson.
But there are several highly competitive legislative races, including Atlanta-area Democratic contests between state Sen. Elena Parent and former state Sen. Nadine Thomas, state Rep. Saira Draper and state Rep. Becky Evans, and state Sen. Sally Harrell and David Lubin, the father of a woman killed in Israel in November who ran after Harrell sat out a vote on an antisemitism bill.
Early voting is available in every Georgia county from Monday through May 17, including two Saturdays. Counties also have the option to open voting locations on Sundays.
Biden Administration officials will discuss maternal healthcare in Atlanta, according to the AJC.
The Biden administration is confronting the country’s worsening maternal mortality rate with visits to multiple states, including Georgia on Monday, to focus attention on women’s access to health care.
The visit to Atlanta is part of a year-long initiative launched in January to expand the federal government’s work to address maternal health disparities across the country and implement the White House Blueprint for Addressing the Maternal Health Crisis. The meeting will bring together community organizations that are already working to reduce pregnancy-related deaths and complications in Georgia.
The problem is especially acute in Georgia, where women are dying from pregnancy-related causes at the highest rate documented by the state in the past decade. Each year, between 35 and 40 mothers die in Georgia, yet the vast majority of deaths are believed to be preventable, the AJC reported earlier this year.
“Nothing breaks my heart more than when we go to a meeting and a woman who has had a bad maternity outcome says, ‘I thought I did everything right’,” said Carole Johnson, administrator of the federal agency that is organizing gatherings in multiple states. “The burden shouldn’t be on women. The burden should be on us as policymakers to make sure that they have all the services and supports they need to have the best possible outcome.”
Johnson leads the Health Resources and Services Administration, an arm of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, that focuses on funding state and local maternal and child health programs. The work includes growing the state’s health care workforce, supporting maternal health care in rural areas and ensuring people can access health care regardless of their ability to pay, she said.
Johnson is expected to announce new funding for maternal health programs during her visit.
Monday’s visit will focus on ways to lessen the health disparities that women face due to where they live or their race.
Many women experience pregnancy complications, such as bleeding or high-blood pressure, that put their life and the lives of their babies in danger. Pregnancy can be particularly risky for Black women, who are two times more likely to die from pregnancy-related causes than white women in Georgia, according to state data.
U.S. Rep. Nikema Williams, D-Atlanta, gave birth to her son, Carter, eight years ago and was leaving the hospital when a nurse checked her blood pressure and realized it was high. Williams was readmitted and put on medication for post-partum pre-eclampsia, which is a life-threatening condition. In an instant, a moment that should have been filled with joy was replaced by stress as her 3-day-old son went home without her, she said.
United States Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg visited Hartsfield-Jackson airport, according to the AJC.
Buttigieg joined Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens at the construction site where work is underway to build pieces of an expansion of Hartsfield-Jackson’s Concourse D.
“For a long time we were lamenting the condition of America’s airports,” Buttigieg said. Now, he said “we have the best and most innovative style of construction to deliver world-class terminals to the busiest airport in the world.”
The officials gathered to commemorate the first move of a huge prefab section of the expansion to the concourse site earlier this week, marking a step forward in the project to alleviate congestion in a crowded part of the airport.
Passenger counts are expected to continue to grow. But the world’s busiest airport can’t shut down for construction.
The project received $40 million in federal funding from the federal bipartisan infrastructure law. The full project, including the construction of extra gates on Concourse E to make up for gates lost due to the work, will cost a total of $1.4 billion and take until 2029 to complete.
Vice President Kamala Harris returns to Atlanta on Monday, according to the AJC.
This time, Harris is coming to deliver a speech focused on ways she and President Joe Biden are working to improve economic opportunities for Black men.
The White House in a news release said Harris will highlight how the administration has implemented policies that have increased the number of Black-owned small businesses. In addition, improvements in health care and infrastructure, and in forgiving student loan debt, removed barriers to access and helped families build wealth.
“Vice President Harris will also outline additional steps that she and President Biden are taking to expand this work,” the release said.
The White House has not said where in Atlanta her speech will take place.
Black men are a key constituent group for Harris and Biden as they seek another term in office. Polling has consistently shown that more Black men are open to supporting former President Donald Trump than in previous elections.
Governor Kemp signed a package of anti-human trafficking legislation, according to a Press Release.
Governor Brian P. Kemp, accompanied by First Lady Marty Kemp, members of the General Assembly, state and local leaders, and members of the GRACE Commission signed a package of anti-human trafficking legislation into law, including SB 370 – the ninth piece of legislation brought forward and passed by First Lady Marty Kemp and the GRACE Commission.
Sponsored by Senator Mike Hodges, signed by Senators Ben Watson, John Albers, Bo Hatchett, and Kay Kirkpatrick, carried in the House by Representative Soo Hong, and heard in the Senate Committee on Regulated Industries and Utilities by Chairman Bill Cowsert and the House Committee on Regulated Industries by Chairman Alan Powell, SB 370 includes convenience stores, body art studios, businesses that employ licensed massage therapists, manufacturing facilities, and medical offices in the list of businesses that must post the human trafficking notice; allows the Georgia Board of Massage Therapy to initiate inspections of massage therapy businesses and board recognized massage therapy educational programs without notice; requires massage therapists affix a passport sized photo with their license certificate that is displayed at their place of work; and requires massage therapy board members to annually complete human trafficking awareness training.
“For years Georgia was considered a hot spot for human trafficking, but thanks to the GRACE Commission, under the leadership of First Lady Marty Kemp, we have established Georgia as a national leader in this fight by passing legislation that cracks down on both traffickers and buyers while also, and even more importantly, empowering survivors,” said Governor Brian Kemp. “I could not be more proud to sign the ninth piece of legislation brought forward by the GRACE Commission since its formation only 5 years ago, continue to go after human traffickers and make sure that those caught in trafficking situations know in Georgia, there is always help for them, both in getting to safety and in moving on to a better life.
Along with SB 370, Governor Kemp signed two additional pieces of legislation included below:
HB 993, sponsored by Representative Alan Powell, signed by Representatives Tyler Paul Smith, Jason Ridley, Derrick McCollum, J. Collins, and Trey Rhodes, carried in the Senate by Senator Bo Hatchett, and heard in the House Committee on Juvenile Justice by Chairwoman Mandi Ballinger and the Senate Judiciary Committee by Chairman Brian Strickland, creates the felony offense of grooming of a minor and prohibits the defense from prosecution for offenses relating to visual mediums depicting minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct on the basis that the visual medium was created, adapted, or modified to show an identifiable minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct.
Special thanks to Attorney General Chris Carr and Hannah Palmquist, the head of the Attorney General’s Human Trafficking Prosecution Unit, for their support and work on this legislation
HB 1201, sponsored by Representative Houston Gaines, signed by Representative Tyler Paul Smith, Speaker Pro Tempore Jan Jones, Representatives Deborah Silcox, Soo Hong, and Katie Dempsey, and carried in the Senate by Senator Brian Strickland, allows human trafficking survivors that received first offender or conditional discharge status the ability to vacate such status for certain crimes, so long as the crime was a direct result of being a victim of human trafficking, and defines the term “commercial sexual exploitation recovery center.”
Special thanks to the Director of the Criminal Justice Coordinating Council, Jay Neal and the Commissioner of the Department of Human Services and Division of Family and Children Services, Candice Broce, for their support and work on this legislation.
Governor Kemp extends his appreciation to Lieutenant Governor Burt Jones, Speaker Jon Burns, and all of those whose diligent work and efforts led to him being able to sign these bills today.
Governor Kemp also signed a raft of bills to support veterans, service members, and their spouses, according to a Press Release.
Governor Brian P. Kemp, accompanied by First Lady Marty Kemp, members of the General Assembly, and state and local leaders, signed a series of bills focused on improving recruitment and supporting veterans, military service members and their spouses as they look to utilize their skills and abilities to fulfill the numerous opportunities available throughout the state.
With this package of legislation signed, military medical personnel will be able to receive a provisional practice allowance and newly relocated military spouses will be able to work in their licensed field while their license receives in-state recognition.
“Our veterans and military families have dedicated their lives and undergo great sacrifice in service to our country,” said Governor Brian Kemp. “While we can never repay the debt we owe them, by signing these pieces of legislation I am proud to say that we are living up to our promise of keeping Georgia the best state in the country for service members and their spouses to live, work, and raise a family.”
Governor Kemp signed four pieces of legislation included below:
HB 880, sponsored by Representative Bethany Ballard, signed by Majority Whip James Burchett, Chairman Shaw Blackmon, and Representatives Brian Prince and Steven Sainz, and carried in the Senate by Chairman Larry Walker, allows spouses of military service members to start work under a license they hold in another state and the supervision of an existing Georgia entity after applying for expedited licensure by endorsement.
Special thanks to 21st Century Partnership, the Robins Region Chamber, and the many Georgia groups that worked on this bill on behalf of military families in our State.
SB 449, sponsored by Chairman Larry Walker, signed by President Pro Tempore John Kennedy, Majority Caucus Chair Jason Anavitarte, Majority Leader Steve Gooch, Chairman Chuck Payne along with many other members of the Georgia State Senate, and carried in the House by Chairman Shaw Blackmon, creates 12-month provisional practice allowance for military medical personnel while a license application is pending; creates a new Advanced Practice Registered Nurse (APRN) license; and establishes a new licensing system for APRN licenses.
Special thanks to Department of Veterans Services Commissioner, Col. Trish Ross and Julianna McConnell for their work on this legislation.
HB 995, sponsored by Chairman Josh Bonner, signed by Representatives Chas Cannon, Bethany Ballard, Steven Sainz, and Will Wade, and carried in the Senate by Chairwoman Kay Kirkpatrick, clarifies that K-12 educational institutions are able to administer the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB) during school hours, but are not required to do so.
Special thanks to Adjutant General Thomas Carden of the Georgia Department of Defense (GDOD) and Joe Ferrero, Deputy Adjutant General of GDOD whose leadership resulted in this legislation being drafted, passed, and signed.
SB 389, sponsored by Chairman Chuck Payne, signed by Chairwoman Kay Kirkpatrick, Chairman John Albers, and Senators Mike Hodges and Bo Hatchett, and carried in the House by Representative John Carson, removes a requirement to annually print and distribute the military code to save taxpayer dollars and protect the identities of military officers.
Special thanks to Adjutant General Thomas Carden of the Georgia Department of Defense (GDOD) and Joe Ferrero, Deputy Adjutant General of GDOD whose leadership resulted in this legislation being drafted, passed, and signed.
Governor Kemp extends his appreciation to all of those whose diligent work and efforts led to him being able to sign these bills today.
Kemp also signed legislation in Brunswick declaring the White Shrimp as Georgia’s official state crustacean, according to the Capitol Beat News Service.
House Bill 1341 declares the white shrimp Georgia’s official crustacean. White shrimp account for 70% of the state’s annual shrimp harvest, Kemp told coastal Georgia political and business leaders during a ceremony at the state Department of Natural Resources Coastal Regional Headquarters.
House Speaker Jon Burns said having an official state crustacean will help promote Georgia white shrimp to consumers at restaurants and grocery stores.
“It’s a family business. It’s gone on in our state for generations,” said Burns, R-Newington. “We want to ensure the opportunity continues to exist in the future.”
Kemp also signed House Bill 1041, which will increase the bonding capacity for the Savannah Convention Center to $400 million; House Bill 244 updating state hunting and fishing regulations; and House Bill 206, which will create a statewide program letting local development authorities help property owners finance improvements.
Kemp has until May 7 to sign or veto this year’s crop of bills. Anything he doesn’t sign or veto by that deadline would become law automatically.
Athens Mayor Kelly Girtz filed a lawsuit to stop the recall effort against him, according to the Athens Banner Herald.
Athens-Clarke County Mayor Kelly Girtz is asking the county’s Superior Court to order the suspension of a recall effort against him until the court reviews the proceedings thus far in the initiative.
In a petition filed Wednesday, Girtz asks that the court’s review include an examination of the sufficiency, or lack thereof, of the grounds stated for the recall effort. Girtz also asks that the court review “… the facts, if any, upon which the grounds in the Application (for recall) are based… .”
Also, in his petition, Girtz contends county elections officials have mishandled the recall effort and violated provisions of the state Recall Act. Girtz is represented by private counsel with his petition, and no county funds are being expended in connection with his effort.
The recall effort is being led by James DePaola, who has routinely used the name James Lee to avoid association with a 2016 incident in which he was charged with obstruction of a 911 call, criminal trespass and damage to property. According to local police reports from the time, DePaola apparently became irate when his wife put too much cheese on his grilled cheese sandwich.
Two days after the March 5 commission meeting, the recall effort got off to a rocky start, as the county elections office initially issued DePaola the wrong form for collecting signatures for a recall application. As the first step in a recall initiative, a recall application requires a minimum of 100 signatures.
DePaola was mistakenly issued a form for a recall petition, the second step in a recall effort, which locally would require thousands of signatures from verified registered voters for the scheduling of a recall election.
Elections officials recognized the error, notified DePaola, and within a few days, he obtained the correct form from the elections office.
At an April 1 meeting, the county’s appointed elections board — a five-member body comprising three commission appointees, and one appointee each from the local Democratic and Republican party organization — voted unanimously that enough signatures had been collected for issuance of a recall petition, and also that the grounds for recalling the targeted officials were sufficient for the effort to proceed.
But in his petition, Girtz contends that, despite the election board’s vote, the recall application failed to meet the standards for sufficiency because DePaola did not, as required, mark any of the circumstances listed on the form as grounds for recall. Those grounds are malfeasance in office, violation of oath of office, misconduct in office, failure to perform duties prescribed by law, or willful misuse, conversion or misappropriation of public funds.
Hall County Republicans will host a candidate forum, according to AccessWDUN.
14 candidates will speak at the event, which will take place from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Gainesville Civic Center on Green Street.
Those speaking and the seats they are running for are as follows:
Jim Hammock, Hall County Sheriff
Gerald Couch, Hall County Sheriff (I)
Craig Lutz, Hall County Commission Chairman
David Gibbs, Hall County Commission Chairman
Chris Slate, Hall County Clerk of Court
Mark Pettitt, Hall County Clerk of Court.
Brian Heck, Hall County State Court Judge
John “Tripp” Wingate, III, Hall County State Court Judge
Michelle Hall, Superior Court Judge
John Breakfield, Superior Court Judge
Norine Cantor, GA State House District 30
Derrick McCollum, GA State House District 30 (I)
Drew Echols, GA State Senate District 49
Josh Clark, GA State Senate District 49The event is organized by the Hall County Republican Party, Republican Women of Hall, and the Hall County Young Republicans.
Two disqualified candidates for Bibb County Sheriff have appealed the Board of Elections decisions, according to 13WMAZ.
Two weeks ago, the Bibb County Board of Elections voted to disqualify Ron Rodgers and Marshall Hughes after they found the two didn’t get fingerprinted within three business days of the close of qualifying.
Both Rodgers and Hughes have appealed the decision to Bibb County Superior Court, but as of now, there’s no hearing scheduled for either candidate — four days from the start of early voting. There doesn’t appear to be a path for the two to get back on the ballot ahead of Monday.
“We’ve already sent out a good number of the absentee ballots. The ones locally and the overseas ones. So, I’m not sure how that gets rectified,” Gillon explained. “The hearing for their qualification happened before the ballots were finalized.”
Gillon’s staff finalized ballots a week after the April 10 disqualification hearing. He says they need time to get them printed and sent to absentee voters. Gillon says if they get reinstated, he’ll reach out to the secretary of state’s office for guidance.
“I suspect the secretary of state’s office has dealt with something like this before. So, there will be some precedent for it,” he said.
13WMAZ reached out to the state election board for information about the hearing deadline. A representative said the deadline to appeal is Friday, but directed further questions about the final date to hold a hearing before a judge to Chairman John Fervier. He has not responded.
Appeals have been successful following prior disqualifications. Attorneys pointed to a 2016 Muscogee County case involving sheriff candidates disqualified for a similar reason. In those cases, a judge ruled getting the paperwork done was the important part — not the timeframe.
Hughes has asserted that his disqualification stems from “disparate treatment” by the Board of Elections compared to the treatment of another candidate, according to the lawsuit.
Before the challenge, Hughes asked election board supervisor Tomas Gillon if anything was required besides the paperwork he submitted for his candidacy. Gillon said Hughes only needed to turn in a financial disclosure statement, but didn’t say anything about fingerprints or background checks, according to the lawsuit.
Another candidate, DeAndre Hall, was notified by a representative that he was missing his fingerprints, according to the lawsuit.
The complaint says Hughes wasn’t told anything regarding those documents throughout the qualification period until he learned he was subject to disqualification for not submitting his fingerprints. He was told over the weekend, so he addressed the issue the following Monday.
The lawsuit argues that, even though Hall didn’t request guidance while Hughes asked, their action was “an abuse of discretion.”
While both of the former candidates are requesting the courts to reverse the decision, they also want the courts to keep them on the ballot, to remove any notices of their disqualification, and to grant other remedies that the court deems favorable.
Additionally, Rodgers is requesting the courts to hear the case before early voting between April 29 and May 17. Every candidate in the race for sheriff is a Democrat this year, so the race will be decided in the May 21 primary election.
He also wants the Macon-Bibb Board of Elections to notify voters of the court’s decision and that he would still run for Sheriff. Hughes is requesting another election, should it be reasonable.
Fulton County Superior Court candidate Tiffani Johnson appealed her disqualification, according to the AJC.
After hearing arguments for nearly four hours, DeKalb Superior Court Judge Stacey Hydrick opted to uphold a recent ruling from an administrative law judge that struck candidate Tiffani Johnson’s eligibility from the ballot.
Administrative Law Judge Ronit Walker had disqualified Johnson from standing for Fulton Superior Court judge after her residency was challenged and she failed to appear at an April 2 hearing. Walker’s decision was then finalized by the Secretary of State’s office.
Johnson’s attorney Kurt Kastorf argued Thursday that Johnson didn’t receive proper advanced notice of the hearing before Walker and that it is too early in the electoral process for residency challenges to be entertained. Such matters are ripe for consideration only at the time of the election, he said, and all that matters under the law is that Johnson was eligible to vote in any county in Georgia during the May election when she filed paperwork to run — not exclusively Fulton.
Until recently, Johnson resided in DeKalb. A former assistant solicitor general in Fulton, Johnson entered the race with the intent to move to the county if she won, her attorney previously said. Johnson recently relocated to Fulton, Kastorf clarified Thursday.
Hydrick declined to wade into the fight on when and how residency fights can be waged. But she concluded that Johnson had been given adequate notice before the hearing with Walker via email and regular mail and that it was her campaign’s responsibility to monitor all channels, including spam folders, where the hearing notice was later found.
Voters are slated to begin casting their ballots on Monday in the nonpartisan race, in which incumbent Judge Scott McAfee is seeking his first full term in office.
McAfee, who was appointed by Gov. Brian Kemp early last year, has gained national prominence for his role overseeing the racketeering case against former President Donald Trump and 14 others — as well as the recent fight to disqualify Fulton District Attorney Fani Willis.
Civil rights attorney Robert Patillo is also challenging McAfee. If Johnson remains out of the race, he and McAfee no longer face the prospect of a costly June 18 runoff, which is required if no candidate wins at least 50% of the vote.
That last bit is incorrect. It is possible for two candidates to be forced into a runoff if they each receive precisely half the votes cast. This happened in 2014 in a Harris County Commission election.
Harris County Commissioner James R. Woods and challenger Andrew M. Sivell will battle for the District 2 seat in a July 22 runoff after Tuesday’s election ended in a 384-vote tie, an official said Friday.
Republican Harold McLendon is challenging Dublin Judicial Circuit District Attorney Craig Fraser, according to 13WMAZ.
McLendon started his career as an assistant district attorney and has been practicing in private practice, with a focus on criminal law since then. He’s been practicing law for 40 years.
McLendon said it was his passion, and the recent spike in crime in Laurens County, that made him decide to run.
“We have had the worst violence we have had in the history of this county. Seven people shot Easter Sunday, two of them died,” McLendon said.
He said the current district attorney’s reaction to that shooting was concerning.“The very next day, my opponent posted on his Facebook, ‘we don’t have a problem with crime.’ Having known that- ‘we don’t have a problem with crime.’ That is a problem, where he does not identify this as being a problem,” he said.
13WMAZ did reach out to Craig Fraser’s office several times to see if he’d like to respond and be interviewed about his campaign, but he never returned our calls. He is running as a Republican.
The Dublin Judicial Circuit serves Laurens, Johnson, Treutlen, and Twiggs Counties.
Georgia Supreme Court Justice John Ellington will speak at the Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College commencements on May 9, 2024, according to the Tifton Gazette.
Ellington, an ABAC alumnus of the class of 1979, was elected to the Georgia Supreme Court in 2018. He was recently awarded the Distinguished Alumni Award at ABAC’s 2024 Homecoming.
Cobb County commissioners voted to create a Cobb County Opioid Abatement Advisory Council to distribute the county’s share of the opioid settlement, according to the AJC.
The Cobb County Opioid Abatement Advisory Council will be made up of local leaders and health experts appointed by various elected officials. The money must be used to abate and remediate the impacts of the opioid crisis.
Some will serve by nature of their position or experience with the opioid crisis locally, including an addiction survivor or a family member of someone facing addiction; a substance use treatment provider; a member of the community service board’s executive team; and a member of the county Board of Health.
The state of Georgia will receive settlement funds totaling $638 million, some of which will be distributed to counties based on the impact the opioid crisis had in each jurisdiction. Of all the Georgia counties, Cobb is set to receive the largest payout from the state at just over $2 million.
Separately, Cobb has approved three other settlements: $19 million with opioid manufacturers and Janssen Pharmaceuticals; $15.2 million with manufacturers Teva and Allergan, along with pharmacies CVS, Walgreens and Walmart; and $3.5 million settlement with Rite Aid.
Counties eligible to receive funds through the state are required to form a council and meet certain requirements for its members. Smaller counties will join together to form regional councils.
In 2022, Cobb had 143 opioid overdose deaths, up from 123 the prior year, according to the Georgia Department of Public Health data.
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