Georgia Politics, Campaigns, and Elections for November 6, 2020

Abraham Lincoln was elected 16th President of the United States and the first Republican to hold the office on November 6, 1860. By his inauguration in March, seven states had seceded.

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.

On November 8, 1860, Savannah residents protested in favor of secession following the election of Abraham Lincoln.

On November 6, 1861, one year after Lincoln’s election, Jefferson Davis and Alexander Stephens of Georgia were elected President and Vice President of the Confederate States of America.

President Abraham Lincoln (R) was reelected on November 8, 1864.

General William Tecumseh Sherman issued Special Field Order No. 120 on November 9, 1864.

Headquarters Military Division of the Mississippi, in the Field, Kingston, Georgia, November 9, 1864

5. To corps commanders alone is intrusted the power to destroy mills, houses, cotton-gins, etc.; and for them this general principle is laid down: In districts and neighborhoods where the army is unmolested, no destruction of such property should be permitted; but should guerrillas or bushwhackers molest our march, or should the inhabitants burn bridges, obstruct roads, or otherwise manifest local hostility, then army commanders should order and enforce a devastation more or less relentless, according to the measure of such hostility.

6. As for horses, mules, wagons, etc., belonging to the inhabitants, the cavalry and artillery may appropriate freely and without limit; discriminating, however, between the rich, who are usually hostile, and the poor and industrious, usually neutral or friendly. Foraging-parties may also take mules or horses, to replace the jaded animals of their trains, or to serve as pack-mules for the regiments of brigades. In all foraging, of whatever kind, the parties engaged will refrain abusive or threatening language, and may, where the officer in command thinks proper, given written certificates of the facts, but no receipts; and they will endeavor to leave with each family a reasonable portion for their maintenance.

7. Negroes who are able-bodied and can be of service to the several columns may be taken along; but each army commander will bear in mind that the question of supplies is a very important one, and this his first duty is to see to those who bear arms.

8. The organization, at once, of a good pioneer battalion for each army corps, composed if possible of Negroes, should be attended to. This battalion should follow the advance-guard, repair roads and double them if possible, so that the columns will not be delayed after reaching bad places.

Former Confederate General John B. Gordon was sworn-in as Governor of Georgia on November 9, 1886.

President Teddy Roosevelt left for a 17-day trip to Panama on November 6, 1906 to inspect work on the Panama Canal; he was the first President to take an official tour outside the continental United States.

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.

Franklin D. Roosevelt made his 15th trip to Warm Springs, Georgia on November 8, 1928 after winning the election for Governor of New York.

Richard B. Russell, Jr. was elected to the United States Senate on November 8, 1932 and would serve until his death in 1971. Before his election to the Senate, Russell served as State Representative, Speaker of the Georgia House, and the youngest Governor of Georgia; his father served as Chief Justice of the Georgia Supreme Court. On the same day, part-time Georgia resident Franklin D. Roosevelt was elected President of the United States.

President Franklin Delano Roosevelt was elected to a record fourth term on November 7, 1944.

A dam on the campus of Toccoa Falls Bible College burst on November 6, 1977 under pressure from heavy rains, killing 39 students and faculty.

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 8, 1994, Republicans won control of the United States House of Representatives and Senate in what came to be called the “Republican Revolution.”

Speaker of the United States House of Representatives Newt Gingrich (R-GA) resigned his office and his Congressional seat on November 6, 1998, effective in January 1999, despite having been reelected three days earlier.

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

For this post-election, I’m doing things differently here. I’m going to avoid the Presidential election and other elections where the outcome is still uncertain. I don’t want to be sending you information that’s already outdated. If you’re feverishly watching the counting and recounting and the yelling about the counting, you won’t need the updates.

Governor Brian Kemp announced new senior leadership in his office on Tuesday. From a press release:

Today Governor Brian P. Kemp announced recent additions to the Kemp Administration’s senior leadership team. Following the announcement of former Isakson aide Trey Kilpatrick as his Chief of Staff, Governor Kemp has named Caylee Noggle, who served as interim Chief of Staff before Kilpatrick entered the role, as Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations. Bert Brantley, former Chief Operating Officer for the Georgia Department of Economic Development and top aide to Governor Sonny Perdue’s administration, will serve as the new Deputy Chief of Staff for External Affairs. David Dove will continue in the role of Executive Counsel.

Additionally, long-time Kemp aide Candice Broce will serve as the Kemp Administration’s new Chief Operating Officer, and Kelly Farr will assume the duties of Chief Financial Officer in addition to his responsibilities as Director of the Governor’s Office of Planning and Budget.

“Having worked with Bert Brantley for several years now, I have always found him to be a strong leader committed to serving the people of Georgia,” said Governor Kemp. “With years of expertise from working with various state agencies and in former Governor Perdue’s administration, Bert possesses a collaborative spirit and dedication to building a better future for the Peach State, and I am proud to welcome him to the team.

“I’m also grateful to the other key members of our Administration who have stepped up to assume new duties in recent weeks. Working together, we will continue to protect lives and livelihoods and remain laser-focused on key priorities like expanding access to quality healthcare, bringing an end to human trafficking, and putting hardworking Georgians first.”

Bert Brantley is Deputy Chief of Staff for External Affairs in the Office of Governor Brian P. Kemp. Brantley most recently served as Chief Operating Officer of the Georgia Department of Economic Development, appointed to that role by Governor Nathan Deal in 2017. During Governor Sonny Perdue’s second term (2006-2011), Brantley was first hired as Press Secretary and ultimately served as the Perdue Administration’s Director of Communications. With more than 20 years of experience in state government, Brantley has held other roles at the Department of Driver Services, State Road & Tollway Authority, and Department of Transportation.

Caylee Noggle is Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations in the Office of Governor Brian P. Kemp. Noggle most recently served as interim Chief of Staff to Governor Kemp. Before joining the Kemp Administration in January 2020, Noggle served as President, Interim President, Chief Operating Officer, and Chief Financial Officer for the Georgia Student Finance Commission. She holds a bachelor’s degree from Millikin University and master’s degree in College Student Affairs from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock where she served as a financial aid officer before moving to Georgia.

Noggle has previously served as Director of the Physical and Economic Development Division in the Governor’s Office of Planning and Budget where she handled budget and policy oversight for more than twenty state agencies. She also served as Coordinator of First Year and Academic Support Programs at the University of West Georgia. She is a past recipient of GASFAA’s Outstanding Service to Students Award and NASPA’s Graduate and Professional Student Award.

Candice Broce is Chief Operating Officer in the Office of Governor Brian P. Kemp. Broce most recently served as Communications Director and Chief Deputy Executive Counsel for Governor Kemp, and she previously managed communications and served as legal counsel for elections and legislative affairs at the Georgia Secretary of State’s Office. Broce holds a bachelor’s degree in Management from the Georgia Institute of Technology and law degree from Georgia State University College of Law. Originally from Cartersville in Bartow County, she now lives in White, Georgia with her husband, Jason, and two sons, Beau and Jack. She is a member of the State Bar of Georgia, Federalist Society, Republican National Lawyers Association, and Georgia Board of Nursing.

Patrick “Kelly” Farr serves as Director of the Governor’s Office of Planning and Budget and Chief Financial Officer for the Office of Governor Brian P. Kemp. Farr holds a bachelor’s degree in Finance from Augusta University. He has significant expertise in business development from his work at Lucent Technologies, and Capgemini. In these capacities, Farr worked extensively with various state agencies to implement technological advances and improve constituent service. Farr also previously served as Deputy Secretary of State for the Georgia Secretary of State’s Office, responsible for budget management and oversight of daily operations.

First time unemployment claims are down in Georgia, according to the Capitol Beat News Service via the Gwinnett Daily Post.

More than 37,000 Georgians filed claims last week, down 6,442 from the week before.

The agency paid out more than $170 million in benefits during the week, bringing to $15.5 billion the total benefits paid in Georgia since the coronavirus pandemic began shutting down businesses last March, more than during the last 28 years combined.

The labor department also reported more than 25,000 Georgians are about to hit the 39-week limit for benefits provided through the federal Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program, established as part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act Congress passed in March.

Muscogee County District Attorney-elect Mark Jones (D) was indicted on multiple felony counts, according to the Ledger-Enquirer.

Columbus’ district attorney-elect Mark Jones has been indicted on felony charges related to a 2019 car crash and to alleged damage last summer to the Columbus Civic Center parking lot, where he filmed a campaign ad.

During his campaign, Columbus police arrested Jones and four others for causing an estimated $300,000 damage to the Civic Center parking lot. where the candidate had them cut doughnuts for a video posted to Facebook.

Jones in 2019 was charged with DUI and other traffic violations related to a car crash on the Manchester Expressway at River Road, where he’s alleged to have rammed a woman’s car from behind as she sat at a stop light.

[Outgoing DA Julia] Slater has recused herself from handling any case involving Jones, so the Georgia Attorney General has appointed a special prosecutor from outside the judicial circuit, who presented the cases to a local grand jury.

For the alleged damage to the Civic Center parking lot, police arrested Jones May 28 on charges of attempting to commit reckless conduct, conspiracy to commit reckless conduct, conspiracy to commit interference with government property, conspiracy to commit criminal damage to property, and two counts of attempting to commit interference with government property.

But not all those charges are listed in the indictment returned Monday, which charged Jones and four others only with interference with government property and first-degree criminal damage to property.

Georgia Democrats gained a net one seat in the State House of Representatives, according to the Capitol Beat News Service via the Albany Herald.

With several thousand ballots remaining to be counted statewide Thursday, Georgia Democrats had so far only gained one new seat in the Republican-controlled House – far short of the 16 seats needed to flip the chamber.

House Minority Leader Bob Trammell, D-Luthersville, was also turned out of his rural district seat southwest of Atlanta after state and national Republicans pumped millions of dollars into defeating him.

Democrats were hoping to build on the 13 state House seats they flipped in the 2018 midterm elections and take control of a General Assembly chamber that has stayed in Republican hands since 2005. But Republican incumbents from Savannah to Athens to the Atlanta suburbs batted them back, said Charles Bullock, a political science professor at the University of Georgia.

“It was not the night [Democrats] were hoping for,” Bullock said. “They didn’t come up completely empty-handed but the movement in the Democratic direction dramatically slowed down from what we saw two years ago.”

As of Thursday, Democratic candidates were poised to flip two seats held by House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Brett Harrell, R-Snellville, and state Rep. Dale Rutledge, R-McDonough. And they trailed by fewer than 1,000 votes in six other races with more than 60,000 ballots left to be counted across the state.

Democrat Shalena Cook Jones won the election for Chatham County District Attorney over incumbent Republican Meg Daly Heap, according to the Savannah Morning News.

Jones will be the second woman to hold the office and the first Black woman.

Jones, who led most of the evening on Tuesday as votes came in, maintained her lead the remainder of the week as absentee ballots were being counted. With the almost-final tally announced on Thursday night just after 6:51 p.m. (only provisional and overseas ballots remain to be counted), Jones cemented her victory with 68,944 votes for a total vote share of 52.83%, while Heap garnered 61,560 votes for a total share of 47.17%.

Democrat Chester Ellis defeated Republican Jason Buelterman for Chatham County Commission Chair, according to the Savannah Morning News.

With all Chatham votes counted by the Elections Board (other than provisional and overseas ballots) and announced at just after 6:51 p.m. on Thursday, Ellis continued to widen his advantage to garner 68,231 votes to take 52.44% of the vote share, while Buelterman trailed with 61,875 and 47.56% of the total.

Incumbent Republican Bulloch County Sheriff Noel Brown won reelection, according to the Statesboro Herald.

Brown, a Republican reaching for his second term, was opposed by challenger Rey Rodriguez, a former Bulloch County sheriff’s deputy who ran on the Democratic ticket. He is currently employed with a neighboring county’s sheriff’s office as a deputy.

Bulloch voters handed Brown the majority of the votes at 66.6 percent; 19,655 votes to Rodriguez’s 33.4 percent, with 9,944 votes.

Democrat Kebo Taylor won the election as Gwinnett County Sheriff, according to the Gwinnett Daily Post.

There are two big stories to take away from the election results in the Gwinnett County sheriff’s race.

One is that Gwinnett has elected its first Black sheriff. The other is that his election likely signals the end of the county’s participation in the controversial 287(g) program that retiring Sheriff Butch Conway has long been a champion of.

Keybo Taylor, the Democratic Party candidate, defeated Chief Deputy Lou Solis — who was Conway’s handpicked preferred successor — with 226,026 votes, or 57.21% of the votes cast in the race, according to unofficial results.

Taylor’s margin of victory was 56,998 votes over Solis.

Democrat Patsy Austin-Gatson ousted Republican incumbent Gwinnett County District Attorney Danny Porter, according to the Gwinnett Daily Post.

Austin-Gatson, who is one of several Democrats and people of color who were ushered into office by voters on Tuesday, will make Gwinnett history as the county’s first Black district attorney.

She earned 221,230 votes, or 55.81% of the votes cast in the race, according to unofficial results.

Austin-Gatson’s margin of victory was 46,065 votes over Porter, who had briefly flirted with the idea of switching parties and running for one final term as a Democrat before heading off into retirement.

Two Gwinnett County incumbent Republican lawmakers were defeated for reelection, according to the Gwinnett Daily Post.

State Rep. Brett Harrell, who chaired the House Ways and Means Committee, and state Sen. P.K. Martin, who led the Senate Education Committee, announced their concessions Wednesday morning.

Democrat Rebecca Mitchell defeated Harrell in the House District 106 race by receiving 17,315 votes, or 58.56% of the votes cast in the race.

Democrat Nikki Merritt defeated Martin in the Senate District 9 race by earning 52,971 votes, or 51.79% of the votes cast in the race.

Bibb County Sheriff David Davis (D) won reelection, as did Houston County District Attorney George Hartwig (R), according to the Macon Telegraph.

Democrat Greg Countryman was elected Muscogee County Sheriff, according to the Ledger-Enquirer.

Republican John Reidelbach won a seat on the Coweta County Commission, representing District 4, according to the Newnan Times-Herald.

Decatur County voters approved Sunday package sales of alcohol, according to the Post-Searchlight.