Georgia Politics, Campaigns, and Elections for June 28, 2024

On June 29, 1565, Pedro Menéndez de Avilés sailed from Cadiz, Spain to invade Florida.

On June 30, 1665, England’s King Charles signed a royal charter for Carolina, defining its southern border and also claiming all land in what is now Georgia.

Johan De Kalb was born on June 29, 1721 in Germany. In 1777, De Kalb joined the Marquis de Lafayette in supporting the Americans against British forces, dying in Camden, South Carolina in 1780. In 1822, the Georgia General Assembly created DeKalb County.

On June 28, 1742, Spanish forces based in Florida invaded Georgia.

On June 29, 1767, the British Parliament passed the Townshend Acts, levying a tax on glass, paint, oil, lead, paper, and tea in order to raise funds from the colonies.

On June 30, 1775, the Continental Congress passed the Articles of War, laying out complaints against Britain’s Parliament.

“The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States.”

On June 28, 1776, Thomas Jefferson’s second draft of the Declaration of Independence was presented to the Second Continental Congress in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

On June 28, 1887, John Pemberton patented Coca-Cola Syrup and Extract.

Austrian Archduke Franz Ferdinand was assassinated in Sarajevo, Bosnia on June 28, 1914, sparking the First World War.

Gone With the Wind by Margaret Mitchell first went on sale on June 30, 1936; on June 30, 1986, the United States Postal Service issued a stamp commemorating Margaret Mitchell.

Today could well be called Intermodal Transportation History Day in Georgia. The first four-lane highway in Georgia was announced on June 30, 1937 from Atlanta to Marietta. The first C5 air flight took place from Dobbins in Marietta on June 30, 1968 and MARTA rail service began on June 30, 1979.

Superman made his first appearance in Action Comics #1 on June 30, 1938.

Ohio became the 39th state to ratify the 26th Amendment on June 30, 1971, lowering the voting age to 18.

The first production Corvette was assembled on June 28, 1953 in Flint, Michigan.

The United States Supreme Court released its 5-4 opinion in Furman v. Georgia on June 29, 1972, holding that the death penalty violated the Constitution’s ban on cruel and unusual punishment.

Spike Lee’s Do the Right Thing was released on June 30, 1989. Lee was born in Atlanta and graduated from Morehouse College.

On June 29, 1993, Governor Zell Miller bought the first ticket in the Georgia Lottery.

Georgia Politics, Campaigns, and Elections

Newton County Commission Chairman Marcello Banes was indicted on federal charges, according to the Capitol Beat News Service via the Macon Telegraph.

Newton County Commission Chairman Marcello Banes and a local real estate broker have been indicted on federal charges of laundering money obtained through a fraud scheme.

Banes, 48, and Stephanie Lindsey, 52, both of Covington, are charged with conspiracy to launder money and with money laundering. A federal grand jury also indicted Lindsey for income tax fraud and charged Banes with lying to FBI special agents.

According to the indictment, Banes and Lindsey misled a company interested in purchasing about 40 acres of land from the Joint Development Authority of Jasper County, Morgan County, Newton County and Walton County in 2018 about the terms of a brokerage agreement.

The company was led to believe that a commission resulting from the agreement would be paid only to Lindsey. In reality, Lindsey was planning to pay most of the commission to Banes. Had the company’s owners known Banes would receive any of the commission, they would not have entered into the brokerage agreement, according to the indictment.

As chairman of the Newton County Commission, Banes represented Newton County on the development authority. At an authority board meeting in 2019, Banes voted to allow the purchase without disclosing that he was going to receive $100,000 of the $150,000 commission through a newly formed business entity he and Lindsey created.

Besides the money laundering offense, Lindsey is also charged with two federal tax violations for allegedly claiming false business deductions to reduce her tax liability for the $150,000 payment.

Banes is also charged with lying to FBI special agents by falsely telling them he was unaware that Lindsey was involved as a broker in the land deal.

Douglas County Probate Judge Christina Peterson was removed from office, according to the AJC.

Douglas County Probate Judge Christina Peterson, 38, has been fighting judicial misconduct allegations since she was elected to the bench in an uncontested November 2020 election. In late March, the JQC’s hearing panel recommended that Peterson be removed from office, citing her “systemic incompetence.”

The Georgia Supreme Court decided Tuesday that Peterson’s removal from the bench is warranted, saying some of her conduct “portrays to the public an image of a judge who believes she is above the law.”

“Removal is the appropriate sanction,” the court said.

Peterson addressed the court’s decision in an Instagram post, saying the JQC is among her “political enemies” that have worked “to tarnish my name and good reputation.”

“These attacks on me have been occurring since 2015 and got stronger and more aggressive when I was elected judge,” Peterson said in the post. “This is a setup and this is not justice. Once I became a judge, my access to justice was denied! Question is, who will fight for me?”

JQC director Courtney Veal said Peterson’s removal was the only fitting sanction, considering her “unbroken pattern of misconduct” that has harmed Douglas County’s community and judicial system.

Peterson had already lost her bid for another term in office, defeated in the May Democratic primary by Douglasville attorney Valerie Vie, who does not face a Republican challenger in the November general election.

Douglas County Superior Court Chief Judge William McClain said he will appoint a replacement probate judge to serve the remainder of Peterson’s term.

The Georgia Court of Appeals ordered Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee to halt proceedings against an additional defendant in the Trump case, according to the AJC.

The Georgia Court of Appeals on Wednesday ordered the trial court judge overseeing the Fulton County election interference case to temporarily halt proceedings against another defendant as it considers whether to remove District Attorney Fani Willis.

In a brief order, the appeals court directed Fulton Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee to pause the case against Misty Hampton pending the outcome of the appeal.

Hampton, the former elections supervisor for Coffee County, had asked for the appeals court to step in after McAfee had vowed to plow ahead with pretrial motions from the six defendants who are not involved in the push to disqualify Willis. The appeals court had previously stayed action against the nine defendants who had submitted appeals, including former President Donald Trump, former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows and David Shafer, who once chaired the state GOP.

Lawyers for state Sen. Shawn Still, who is also a defendant in the case, had previously asked the appeals court to clarify its order and say whether the stay applied only to the nine defendants pursuing the disqualification appeal or to all remaining 15 defendants. The appeals court did not address that request, and it is unclear whether the other five other defendants who are not part of the appeal will also ask for a stay.

Governor Brian Kemp issued Executive Order #06.26.24.01, appointing Carolyn “Tippi” Cain Burch as Judge of the Superior Court of the Chattahoochee Judicial Circuit. The appointment was first announced on May 17, 2024.

Governor Kemp said he left his 2024 Presidential Preference Primary ballot blank, according to CNN via the Albany Herald.

“I didn’t vote for anybody. I voted, but I didn’t vote for anybody,” Kemp told CNN’s Kaitlan Collins on “The Source” the day before the historic presidential debate in his home state.”I mean, the race was already over when the primary got here,” he continued, later adding, “I always try to go vote and, you know, play a part in it, but look at that point, it didn’t really matter.”

Despite not voting for Trump in the primary, Kemp has maintained that he’ll “support the ticket” in November when Trump is set to face the presumptive Democratic nominee President Joe Biden.

Gwinnett County Board of Education member Karen Watkins criticized runoff elections after losing her seat in this month’s runoff, according to the Gwinnett Daily Post.

Watkins lost to Rachel Stone by a margin of 17 votes, giving Stone a less than 0.5% victory over the incumbent. Under state law, Watkins could request a recount, and she had until Wednesday afternoon to do so.

Instead, she announced Wednesday that she will let the results stand while taking a shot at Georgia’s requirement that candidates must get more than 50% of votes to win an election.

“This situation is a clear example of how runoff elections impact our democracy and why it’s crucial to learn from this experience,” Watkins said. “Georgia is one of a small number of states that use runoffs in elections, and this process can significantly dilute voter turnout.”

Watkins led the field in the May 21 primary election, getting 41.8% of the votes cast. That put her in a runoff with Stone, who received nearly 30.6% of the votes cast in May.

A third candidate, Leroy Ranel Jr., received 27.62% of the votes cast in the primary.

There were a total of 18,590 votes cast in the District 1 election on May 21.

By contrast, on June 18, only 3,719 votes were cast in the District 1 runoff.

Stone received 50.23% of the votes in the runoff. She got 1,868 votes while Watkins got 1,851 votes.

Watkins said in a statement that the turnaround time between the primary and the runoff, just under a month, helped lead to lower turnout.

Her campaign called it voter suppression.

“Runoffs make it harder for people to vote, which is why voting rights groups advocate for eliminating this system. It not only costs taxpayers money but also results in major vote dilution,” Watkins said.

Watkins’ defeat means there will be two new faces on the five-member Gwinnett County Board of Education in January. Steve Gasper won a runoff for the District 3 seat that was open this year due to board member Mary Kay Murphy’s plans to retire at the end of this year.

Cattle rustlers beware: new state legislation effective July 1, 2024, makes livestock theft a felony, according to the Ledger-Enquirer.

Georgia Governor Brian Kemp recently signed 709 bills into law and [many of] those laws will be in effect July 1, 2024.

A new law taking effect July 1, 2024, makes it illegal to steal any livestock and anyone who does so will be guilty of a felony. The law further states that the punishment is imprisonment for at least two years, but up to 15, and a fine of $10,000.

However, if the livestock fair market value is $100 or less, the person will be guilty of a misdemeanor “of a high and aggravated nature.”

Another new law in effect July 1 will allow peace officers to be eligible for student loan relief. Peace officers must be currently employed to take advantage of the relief. Peace officers must enter into an agreement with the Georgia Student Finance Authority and the total of the loan cannot exceed $20,000 to be eligible.

Licensed mental health and substance professionals can get student loan relief starting July 1. In order to be eligible for the relief, workers must submit their loan information to the Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce. The Board will pay workers in installments of 12 months at a time.

State Rep. Katie Dempsey (R-Rome) will chair the House Study Committee on Alternatives to Opioids for Pain Management, according to the Coosa Valley News.

 State Representative Katie Dempsey (R-Rome) was recently named by Speaker Jon Burns (R-Newington) to serve as the chair of the House Study Committee on Alternatives to Opioids for Pain Management.

“As we have seen in recent years, Georgians have been increasingly affected by the opioid epidemic,” said Rep. Dempsey. “While we must address alternatives to opioids for pain management, we must also work to support those who suffer from chronic pain and are in fear of losing access to these medications. Furthermore, our work this summer will target health providers and patients by educating them on the importance of exploring pain management methods that do not involve highly addictive opioids but address the need for their accessibility to patients who rely on them to treat chronic pain. We will continue the work to prevent the loss of lives due to this crisis, and I am grateful to Speaker Burns and the House’s leadership for their efforts to counter the opioid epidemic.”

The House Study Committee on Alternatives to Opioids for Pain Management was established following the adoption of House Resolution 1360 during the 2024 legislative session. The study committee will explore methods to increase awareness of non-opioid alternatives, including non-opioid pharmacologic treatments, through educational programs for healthcare providers. The committee aims to foster collaboration and integrated care among all healthcare providers involved in pain management. Additionally, the committee may propose legislative recommendations before the 2025 legislative session.

Speaker Burns also appointed the following study committee members: State Representatives Butch Parrish (R-Swainsboro), Lee Hawkins (R-Gainesville), Sharon Cooper (R-Marietta), Michelle Au (D-Johns Creek), Lynn Gladney (D-Augusta) and Mark Newton (R-Augusta). Mr. Jeff Breedlove, Mr. Michael Persley, Dr. Armin Oskouei, Mr. Jesse Weathington and Mr. Adam Kaye will serve as the non-legislative members.

A poll shows broad opposition to proposed mining near the Okefenokee Swamp, according to the Capitol Beat News Service via the Ledger-Enquirer.

A new poll shows overwhelming public opposition to an Alabama company’s plans to mine titanium near the Okefenokee Swamp.

The survey of 600 Georgia voters, conducted last week by Washington, D.C.-based Hart Research Associates, found widespread bipartisan opposition to issuing state permits to Twin Pines Minerals for the project.

More than nine of 10 poll respondents said it is important to protect the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge and its wildlife from pollution and other environmental dangers. By the same overwhelming margin, the voters surveyed said it’s more important to protect plants and wildlife that live in the swamp from harm, even if it might prevent economic development.

“This supports exactly what we’ve been hearing across our state for years, that Georgians do not want this mine threatening the Okefenokee,” said Bill Sapp, a senior attorney with the Southern Environmental Law Center. “For years, Twin Pines has failed to prove their proposed mine would not harm the swamp. Clearly, Georgians oppose any threat to the swamp, including Twin Pines’ proposed mine.”

The Georgia Environmental Protection Division (EPD) released draft permits for the first phase of the proposed mine in February. Twin Pines executives have said the project would not harm the swamp.

An AJC poll shows widespread concerns about election integrity, according to the AJC.

Voter confidence remains low in Georgia — especially among conservatives — with slightly over half of likely voters saying the upcoming presidential election will be fair and accurate, according to a new Atlanta Journal-Constitution poll.

The AJC poll indicates that faith in elections hasn’t recovered since Donald Trump lost the 2020 presidential election and continued to repeat the false claim that he had won.

About 57% of voters surveyed said they’re at least somewhat confident in this year’s election, which is the same confidence level as in a previous AJC poll in January and close to the 56% who expressed trust in elections in 2022.

Just 35% of Republicans said they’re confident the presidential election will be fair and accurate, the poll showed. By comparison, 77% of Democrats and 74% of independents expressed trust in elections.

The poll was conducted by the University of Georgia’s School of Public and International Affairs from June 11-22 and involved 1,000 likely voters. The poll has a margin of error of 3.1 percentage points.

Dalton Municipal Court Judge Rob Cowan was elected president of the Georgia Council of Municipal Court Judges, according to the Dalton Daily Citizen News.

Cowan will serve this year as president-elect and will serve as president next year. He previously served as a district representative, secretary and vice president of the organization.

The Georgia Council of Municipal Court Judges assists judges in the execution of their duties and promotes professional training. All judges serving in municipal and special courts in Georgia are members of the council.

“I am honored to serve in the leadership of the Council of Municipal Court Judges,” Cowan said. “I am surrounded by brilliant people in my role. All of these folks want to make the judicial process easier, more transparent and flexible, meeting the needs of our communities and the people before the court. That is why I am excited to serve as president. I hope to continue the good work that leadership before me has been able to achieve and build on their successes. Consistency and stability in the judiciary, at any level, gives the public the confidence that their case is being handled fairly.”

Cowan was also honored with the organization’s President’s Award at its annual summer meeting earlier this month in Savannah.

Bulloch County Commissioners rescheduled a meeting to address agreements with Bryan County on wells to feed the Hyundai metaplant, according to the Statesboro Herald.

The Bulloch County Board of Commissioners’ special meeting for approval of two proposed agreements with Bryan County that was cancelled on a 4-3 tiebreaker vote Tuesday has been rescheduled for 5:30 p.m. Thursday, June 27.

One of the agreements is the memorandum of understanding, or MOU, to establish the mitigation program for other well owners whose water level may be impacted by the counties’ providing four large wells to supply Hyundai Motor Group’s Metaplant America. The other is a proposed intergovernmental agreement, or IGA, between Bulloch and Bryan counties for operation of county-owned water and sewer systems.

Bulloch Commmissioners in the rescheduled meeting approved of the wells, according to WSAV.

Bulloch County leaders reached a controversial vote Thursday night, voting in favor of four Bryan County wells.

Around 75 or more Bulloch residents attended the meeting, concerned about the four new groundwater wells being built in their backyards.

“This is a lot more than just putting in wells,” said speaker Lawton Sack. “This is about protecting the rights of Bulloch County citizens. And I tell you these people are fed up with it.”

The Hyundai Metaplant and surrounding growth are projected to need about 6.7 million gallons of water per day, something Bryan County officials say they need Bulloch’s help with.

“It is not the Bulloch commissioners’ problem nor burden to put on people when proper planning could have ensured an alternate water source,” said Kristen Stampfer, a resident involved in an active Facebook group called “It’s about water.”

The two agenda items, an intergovernmental agreement with Bryan County and a well mitigation program, were each approved 4-2.

“What are you going to do if your actions lead to direct water shortages that would affect your loved ones, family children, grandchildren, neighbors and others that surround us,” local farmer Ryan Brannen said in the meeting.

WSAV caught up with sitting chairman Roy Thompson after the unwelcomed vote. He says the state forced their hands with a tight deadline, saying without signing these agreements they could have lost any benefits to gain from it.

“The state will come in and put it in themselves,” said Thompson. “They will hire a private contractor to put the wells in and none of that would change.”

A few speakers accused Thompson of having private conversations with Gov. Brian Kemp about the Hyundai plant. He denied those accusations with his hand sitting on the Bible.

From WTOC:

The decision comes as Georgia’s Environmental Protection Division discusses plans to build four new wells in Bulloch for water supplies related to the Megasite.

Some people have voiced concerns about residential well water depletion and saltwater intrusion.

This comes after the Ogeechee Riverkeeper announced plans to sue the U-S Army Corps of Engineers over the Hyundai plant at the Megasite.

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation’s Middle Georgia Gang Task Force announced indictments and drug seizures, according to the Macon Telegraph.

Now the group is going to add prosecutors to the team.

Assistant Attorney General Ashton Jordan will be Macon’s prosecutor, and Fulton County’s senior criminal investigator Nathan Shoate will be joining her as Macon’s criminal investigator.

State Sen. John F. Kennedy estimated there are 1,500 gangs in Georgia, and they make up 60% of violent crime. Middle Georgia is one of the main sources of funding for gangs across the state, GBI Director Chris Hosey said at a news conference Wednesday.

Since the GBI task force settled in Macon, Hosey says the investigators have made tremendous progress. The force initiated over 200 gang-related cases, took 72 weapons off the street, arrested 158 people and confiscated $1.5 million worth of drugs, said Hosey.

Since July 2020, the statewide prosecution unit has secured more than 40 convictions, indicted more than 140 people, and maintained a 100% conviction rate, officials said in a Wednesday news conference.

Attorney General Chris Carr said he is proud to expand the group’s footprint to Middle Georgia, and that there is a lot of work to be done to help the families that are afraid to sit on their porch steps at night and the families that are afraid to let their kids walk to the bus stop for fear of them getting recruited by a criminal gang.

“All Georgians, no matter where they live, deserve to feel safe and deserve to be safe. It’s a fundamental human need,” said Carr.

Chatham County Sheriff’s Office released information on Sheriff John Wilcher’s condition after his hospitalization, according to WTOC.

Wednesday, the Chatham County Sherriff’s Office has announced that Sheriff John Wilcher is on the road to recovery and continues to get better each day. This update comes after the sheriff experienced a cardiac event the morning of June 16th at his home.

Wilcher’s family and the Sheriff’s Office thank the public for their continued respect as Wilcher recovers.

From the Sherriff’s Office on Facebook:

Your messages and gestures of support have been a tremendous source of strength for our family. We continue to be touched by the community’s solidarity and the love shown by the Chatham County Sheriff’s Office.

We are pleased to tell you he is well on the road to recovery and continues to improve every day. In true John Wilcher fashion, he is as cantankerous as ever. He is receiving exceptional care from his dedicated medical team and we appreciate their efforts.

We ask that you continue to keep Sheriff Wilcher in your thoughts and prayers.

Thank you for your continued respect for our privacy during this time. If you wish to send a card or note, please address it to the Chatham County Sheriff’s Office, 1050 Carl Griffin Drive, Savannah, Georgia 31405.

Sincerely,
The Wilcher Family