Georgia Politics, Campaigns, and Elections for October 19, 2021

British General Charles Cornwallis surrendered to General George Washington at Yorktown, Virginia on October 19, 1781,  ending the American Revolution.

On October 19, 1790, Lyman Hall, one of three signers of the Declaration of Independence from Georgia, died in Burke County, GA. Hall was elected Governor of Georgia in 1783, holding the position for one year, and was an early advocate for the chartering of the University of Georgia.

On October 19, 1983, the United States Senate voted 78-22 to create a federal holiday honoring Martin Luther King, Jr., to be celebrated on the third Monday of January. The House passed the King holiday bill, sponsored by Reps. Katie Hall (D.-IN) and Jack Kemp (R-NY), by a vote of 338-90 in August. President Ronald Reagan signed the legislation on November 3, 1983.

The Ledger-Enquirer wrote about the beginning of what would eventually become Fort Benning.

100 years ago, Camp Benning raised its flag on Oct. 19, 1918, almost two weeks after the first Army troops arrived on Macon Road where the Columbus Public Library and other public buildings stand. The only evidence from the MidTown site that housed 300 tents is a nearby monument in the neighborhood at South Dixon Drive and Mimosa Street.

That small camp led to a bigger location 8 miles down the road and redesignated Fort Benning on Feb. 18, 1922. The Maneuver Center of Excellence is home of the Infantry and Armor schools as the sixth largest military installation in the United States.

“Columbus has been a good neighbor to us and wanted us here,” said Scott Daubert, director of the National Infantry Museum and Soldier Center. “They wanted us here. They courted the government.”

Georgia Politics, Campaigns, and Elections

As of the most current Absentee voter file released by the Secretary of State’s Office:

Total votes cast:            51,432

Mail-in votes cast:          2067

Electronic votes cast:            2

In-person votes cast:  49,363

Here are the General Election stats for one year ago, October 19, 2020, drawn from the Absentee voter file released daily by the Secretary of State’s office:

Total votes cast:           1,577,434

Mail-in votes cast:          745,140

Electronic votes cast:          5,611

In-person votes cast:     826,683

The Lowndes County Board of Elections reports fewer than 500 Absentee and Early votes cast so far, according to the Valdosta Daily Times.

Less than 500 registered voters cast ballots during the first week of early voting in Lowndes County.

Between the 11 races up for grabs, the Lowndes County Board of Elections reported 468 advanced votes received between Oct. 12-16.

Oct. 13 saw the highest amount of voters with 121 advanced votes cast, while Oct. 16 saw the lowest with 66 advanced votes cast. Oct. 12, 14 and 15 saw 99, 90 and 92 votes respectively.

As of week 1, the election board has mail issued 52 absentee votes with only six being returned. None have been rejected. No provisional votes have been cast either.

On this day in 2020, Lowndes County reported 17,753 votes cast in the General Election, more than thirty-five times this year’s vote.

Governor Brian Kemp and Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning Commissioner Amy M. Jacobs announced the Department will expand its Childcare and Parent Services (CAPS) program, according to a press release:

Governor Brian P. Kemp and Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning Commissioner Amy M. Jacobs today announced that Georgia will expand its Childcare and Parent Services (CAPS) program by 10,000 children, beginning November 1, 2021. The CAPS Program serves 50,000 children from families with no to low income and helps them with the cost of child care.

“Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, we have made child care a top priority in Georgia for assisting first responders, essential workers, and other hardworking families who could not stop their important work or work from home during this challenging time,” said Governor Kemp. “CAPS is a great example of a public initiative that helps families, their children, and providers alike. This expansion will allow us to serve more Georgians, while also helping more providers become Quality Rated.”

This increase in the number of children also includes an expansion of CAPS eligibility limits, making more children and families eligible for the program. New guidelines will increase the entry income threshold from 50% of the State Median Income (SMI) to 85% of SMI. The expansion, which continues through October 1, 2024, utilizes funding from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA).

To support providers in raising their quality, CAPS is increasing its tiered bonus payments to Quality Rated providers by 15%, based on their star level. Programs who are one-star will increase from 10% to 25%; two-star programs will increase from 20% to 35%; and three-star programs will increase from 40% to 55%. Child care providers who are on their way to achieving a rating, including those in a probationary or provisional status, will receive a 15% increase from current CAPS base rates. “This is to help in their efforts to increase their quality and successfully achieve a star rating,” said Commissioner Jacobs.

Awarding CAPS Scholarships is based on whether families qualify for at least one priority group. For the “Very Low-Income Priority Group,” CAPS will increase the percentage of the Federal Poverty Level (FPL) Guidelines that determines eligibility from 50% FPL to 150% FPL, vastly increasing the number of eligible Georgia families.

Governor Kemp announced that Brad Bohannon will serve as Director of Government Affairs and Policy in his Administration.

“Brad has a wealth of experience in government affairs and policy and representing the State of Georgia,” said Governor Kemp. “I am grateful to welcome him to our team, and I know he will have a positive impact on the work we do to serve hardworking Georgians in the Peach State.”

Brad Bohannon will join the Kemp Administration as Director of Government Affairs and Policy. Bohannon previously served as Vice President of Government Affairs at the Georgia Lottery. Before joining the lottery, he served as Deputy Chief of Staff and Chief of Staff to Congressman Lynn Westmoreland, and prior to that worked in Government Relations with Georgia EMC. Bohannon earned a degree in Consumer Economics from the University of Georgia and resides in Newnan with his wife and two children.

Port Wentworth has been aggressively policing the placement of political yard signs, according to the Savannah Morning News.

in Port Wentworth, some of those signs went missing over the Oct. 9 weekend as a result of confusion over a city ordinance.

According to residents of Port Wentworth, code enforcement officers told them residents were only allowed one sign in their yard, a rule that has since been suspended by City Manager Ed Booth who said the ordinance does not actually apply to political signs. Instead, Booth said the ordinance was originally intended for commercial signs.

The reversal took effect on Oct. 11, but not before actions carried out by the Port Wentworth Police Department’s (PWPD) code enforcement team confused and, in some cases, angered community members.

According to the PWPD, their office received multiple complaints about the number of political signs throughout the city, which prompted their regulation that Oct. 9 weekend.

Booth said he does not know why code enforcement officials removed campaign signs from private property and has asked Chief of Police Matt Libby to write up a report on the situation. The Savannah Morning News has requested a copy of the report under the Georgia Open Records Act.

Some residents, including District 3 candidate Janet Hester, said her political campaign signs, except for one, were removed directly from her property without her notice.

An Augusta resident is placing signs opposing a bond referendum, according to WJBF.

A concerned citizen in Augusta recently launched a grassroots movement to make sure that those who head to polls for November’s general election vote no to an arena tax.

“It’s just too much money for Augusta to spend right now and especially to ask for its homeowners to pay for these things,” said Michael Thurman, a concerned citizen.

NewsChannel 6 reported last month that the cost for the new arena will be $235 million. That would be funded through bonds. On the November ballot, voters must approve a referendum for a new tax to pay for those bonds. It adds up to about an extra hundred bucks a year tacked onto your tax bill, for every hundred thousand dollars worth of house you own.

Thurman said he’s spoken with about 100 other homeowners and around 95 of them say this tax will hit their pockets. He also said Augusta needs to get its priorities straight, pointing to several issues that need to be addressed before adding a new arena.

Augusta voters can now cast a ballot for the referendum on the new JBA arena tax now through November 2.

The Glynn County trial of three men accused of murdering Ahmaud Arbery began with jury selection, according to The Brunswick News.

A single-file line of 20 Glynn County citizens walked briskly down the hallway leading to the county courthouse’s Jury Assembly Room at around 1:20 p.m. Monday, marking the beginning of efforts to meld a local jury to decide the fate of three White men accused of murder in the February 2020 killing of a 25-year-old Black man.

Based on the initial rounds of questioning, the Superior Court Clerk’s decision to mail jury summonses for this trial to 1,000 residents appears to have been a wise one. That is about six time the normal mailings.

When prosecuting attorney Linda Dunikoski asked for a show of hands whether any among them wished to serve on the jury, initially none rose. Finally, one earnest-looking young man in a suit and tie raised a hand to show interest in serving on the jury.

When Judge Timothy Walmsley asked whether any among them was “completely neutral” regarding the case, only one person raised a hand.

In answer to another question, half indicated they had already formed an opinion on the case. In response to a question from defense attorney Jason Sheffield, more than half indicated negative feelings regarding the three defendants.

Glynn County Commissioners will consider overtime pay associated with the trial for some employees, according to The Brunswick News.

County commissioners Thursday will consider overtime pay for certain employees normally exempt for getting paid overtime for more than a 40-hour work week who are specifically assigned to the work in the incident command during the trial.

The time-and-a-half overtime pay will continue until the high-profile trial ends.

Those who will not get overtime pay include the county manager, county attorney, assistant county manager, director of public works, director of community development, police chief, fire chief, chief financial officer, director of human resources, finance manager, director of information technology, director of recreation, internal auditor, director of emergency management and homeland security, and any elected or appointed official.

United States Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Extreme Northwest Georgia) has a huge fundraising lead over her erstwhile opponents, according to the Capitol Beat News Service via the Gwinnett Daily Post.

Greene, who was stripped of her committee assignments by majority Democrats last February during her first weeks in office for inflammatory remarks and social media postings, raised $6.3 million toward her reelection bid through the end of last month, according to a report filed with the Federal Election Commission.

Only U.S. Army combat veteran Marcus Flowers, a Democrat challenging Greene, is even in the same ballpark when it comes to fundraising. His campaign brought in more than $3.3 million during the first nine months of this year and reported nearly $1.1 million cash on hand as of Sept. 30.

None of the other Democrats vying for a chance to challenge Greene has raised $1 million. Holly McCormack, an insurance agent, came closest with just less than $700,000.

While Greene is dominating her potential challengers in fundraising, she hardly needs the cash in light of the free publicity she has been attracting.

The over/under for MTG in November 2022 starts at 70% of votes cast.

United States Representative Carolyn Bourdeaux (D-Gwinnett) raised slightly more campaign donations than her GOP opponent, according to the Gwinnett Daily Post.

U.S. Rep. Carolyn Bourdeaux raised more than $733,000 during the third quarter, the Suwanee Democrat’s campaign reported Friday.

Combined with earlier fund-raising, that brought her total to more $2 million for this election cycle and left her campaign with $1.7 million cash on hand as of Sept. 30, according to a report filed with the Federal Election Commission.

Bourdeaux defeated Republican Dr. Rich McCormick for an open 7th District seat last year, winning 51.4% of the vote to 48.6%.

McCormick, a former Marine helicopter pilot and emergency medicine physician, is seeking a rematch in 2022. His campaign raised $600,000 in July, August and September, putting him past the $1.1 million mark for the election cycle.

Three state legislators are asking Macon-Bibb County Mayor Lester Miller to roll back property taxes, according to 13WMAZ.

In May, Governor Brian Kemp signed a bill, allowing Macon-Bibb County to vote on whether to pay more in sales tax in return for cutting property taxes.

Essentially, OLOST will tack on a penny on the dollar on taxable items, and in turn, drop property taxes, so in instead of paying seven cents on the dollar, you’d pay eight cents.

That extra money would help the county fund the new pay scale for deputies and other first responders.

“Our community has said public safety is important for them. Public safety matters. We wanted to take that brave step to let them know we want to retain and recruit the very best people, but we have to have OLOST as a safety net every year,” Miller said.

The OLOST is expected to trigger one of the largest property tax cuts in state history. Miller says the advantage to Bibb County homeowners is that majority of sales tax revenue collected is from visitors and workers who do not live in the county.

However, Rep. Dale Washburn, who helped to write and pass the law through the General Assembly, says the county is holding the vote earlier than he and other lawmakers expected. He says because of this, means the county will collect money tax money than expected.

If OLOST passes, Bibb County would see that sales tax increase in January, but property owners won’t get their millage rate cut until 2023.

“If all that money is taken and spent like that, that’s the equivalent of raising taxes by 8 mills,” Washburn said.

“I don’t think that $44 million is appropriate. We would have never agreed to that. I would have never agreed to that,” Washburn said, referring to supporting the bill in the General Assembly last session.

On Friday, Washburn, Representative Danny Mathis, and Rep. Robert Dickey wrote to Mayor Lester Miller and commissioners. They asked them to roll back the millage rate by 5 mills next year–sooner than planned.

The Georgia Department of Labor is working to reopen career centers previously closed by COVID, according to WRDW.

Throughout the pandemic, the Georgia Department of Labor provided services virtually. Now, career centers across the state are working on scheduling in-person appointments at their sites based on personnel availability and security.

“This is on a rolling basis. We don’t have any specific dates for each one. Eventually across the state we’ll have them all open to in-person appointments,” said Lori Frazier Bearden, Deputy Commissioner of Economic and Workforce Development for the GDOL.

Lori Frazier Bearden is the Deputy Commissioner of Economic and Workforce Development for the GDOL. She says there’s not a specific date for when the centers will reopen and not all centers will open at the same time.

The Chatham County Legislative Gang Prevention and Intervention Commission announced an initiative to combat gang violence, according to WTOC.

The initiative will officially launch on November 6. The commission is chaired by State Representative Carl Gilliard, who says that they are working with the Chatham County District Attorney’s office to regulate the GBI’s criminal database.

“You can’t put these people in a [data] base for life. That’s very unfair because if that child is 15 and they get put in the database for something that they did at 15 and then they are 30 years old and they can’t even raise their family because their in a base,” said Rep. Gilliard.

Columbus landlords complained about a possible post-eviction cleanup cost, according to WTVM.

Landlords in Columbus may soon have to clean up their own properties after they evict someone.

“Where is the protection for the landlords, where is the incentives for the landlord to provide clean safe housing,” asked Michael Powell, landlord and property manager in Columbus.

He said the additional cost to clean up eviction waste will burden landlords who may already be struggling.

“We are already paying the fee to file the eviction, we are paying four people to help conduct the eviction and typically you don’t get any of your money back,” Powell said.

Tom Calhoun with Flournoy and Calhoun Realtors said the change isn’t only going to impact landlords but also tenants.