Georgia Politics, Campaigns, and Elections for October 3, 2023

On October 3, 1863, President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed a national day of Thanksgiving to be observed on November 26, 1863 and on the fourth Thursday in November every succeeding year.

This announcement harkened back to when George Washington was in his first term as the first president in 1789 and the young American nation had only a few years earlier emerged from the American Revolution. At that time, George Washington called for an official celebratory “day of public thanksgiving and prayer.” While Congress overwhelmingly agreed to Washington’s suggestion, the holiday did not yet become an annual event.

Thomas Jefferson, the third president, felt that public demonstrations of piety to a higher power, like that celebrated at Thanksgiving, were inappropriate in a nation based in part on the separation of church and state. Subsequent presidents agreed with him. In fact, no official Thanksgiving proclamation was issued by any president between 1815 and the day Lincoln took the opportunity to thank the Union Army and God for a shift in the country’s fortunes on this day in 1863.

On October 3, 1922, Rebecca Latimer Felton was appointed to the United States Senate from Georgia following the death of Senator Tom Watson. After initially being rebuffed by the Senate, Felton was sworn-in on late in November, becoming the first woman to serve in the United States Senate.

On October 3, 1995, O.J. Simpson was acquitted of murder.

Georgia Politics, Campaigns, and Elections

Krispy Kreme announced yesterday that the Ponce De Leon store will reopen next week, according to the AJC.

The 4,000-square-foot facility, called “Shaq’s Shop,” will open Oct. 10, two years after the NBA legend gave his word that the popular doughnut store at 295 Ponce de Leon Avenue would “bounce back better than ever” after a series of bad luck.

“We made a promise to the Ponce community and all of Atlanta and we’re delivering on it,” Krispy Kreme Global Chief Brand Officer Dave Skena said in a statement.

The historic building was shuttered in February 2021 because of a fire, then demolished that summer after a second blaze in July. In December 2021, the company opened a temporary pop-up store at the location with a drive-thru and limited menu, the first sign that O’Neal and the company would deliver on their vow.

The new “Hot Light theater shop” will feature more than 70 employees, serving classic and limited-time offerings. While designed to be modern, it will still pay homage to Krispy Kreme’s history in the Atlanta community, as well as the original shop, which opened in 1965. It will again be open seven days a week and will also include a custom mural and plaque and a refurbishment of the distinctive heritage sign that dates to the 1960s.

During grand opening week, Krispy Kreme will award 120 people a “Celebration Ticket,” which will net them a dozen free glazed doughnuts every month for a year.

Congratulations and condolences to Shirley Worthy, who now serves as the new Mayor of Edison, according to WALB.

Shirley Worthy was named mayor in a small ceremony held on Monday morning, according to the city clerk’s office. No election was called as Worthy was the only candidate to qualify for the role.

The city’s new leadership comes after former mayor Reeves Lane resigned for health reasons in August after 31 years in the position.

Curtis Abrams was also sworn in during the same ceremony as city councilman for Post 2.

These developments come as the city’s leadership is seeking to correct course after the city amassed over $500,000 in debt.

The United States Department of Justice wants to join a lawsuit against the Houston County Sheriff’s Office, according to 13WMAZ.

The United States Justice Department is asking to join a legal battle between a transgender sheriff deputy and the Houston County Sheriff’s Office, according to a filing in the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals.

The case centers on Anna Lange, formerly a transgender sheriff deputy with the Houston County Sheriff’s Office who alleges that the office’s health insurance policy is discriminatory against transgender people.

Her doctors recommended “medically necessary” care for gender-reassignment surgery.

But the sheriff’s office’s health insurance policy explicitly excludes “services and supplies for a sex change and/or reversal of a sex change” and “drugs for sex change surgery,” according to the DOJ’s filings.

The procedure, which would have cost $20,000, was rejected by the county, the filings said. Over the course of the case, the county had paid $1 million in legal fees, according to Lange’s attorneys.

Now, Houston County is appealing that 2022 ruling and taking the case to U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit.

The Department of Justice asked to join the case as an amicus curiae — or friend of the court  —  and present oral arguments on Lange’s side.

In the court filings, the DOJ argues that since the policy specifically singles out gender transition and gender-affirming care, the policy is in violation of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Those laws ban sex discrimination in health programs that receive federal money.

They argue that the policy is in violation of the Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

“The case raises the question whether an employer violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964… if it denies health insurance coverage for medically necessary gender-affirming care, when the care would otherwise be covered if provided for some other medically necessary reason,” the Justice Department wrote in the motion to participate in Oral Arguments.

“Thus, given the ‘undisputed’ fact that the challenged provisions of the plan deny coverage ‘only for transgender members,’ the court held that the plan facially discriminates based on sex,” the DOJ wrote.

Attorneys for Lange and the Department of Justice point to how mastectomies  —  the surgery where a person’s breast is removed  —  are covered when the procedure is considered necessary in cancer treatment but not for gender-affirming care.

They also point to how the county’s health policy pays for hormone replacement therapy when it is for use in menopause but it would not cover the procedure for an employee’s gender transition.

Because of the decision to deny Lange coverage on the basis of her gender identity, the previous judge sided with her saying that the policy was discriminatory. Now, the county is hoping to overturn that decision in the Court of Appeal in the 11th Circuit.

In Chatham County, a man was indicted for allegedly shooting at someone who was canvassing door-to-door for Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-Atlanta), according to the Savannah Morning News.

The man charged with shooting a teenager who was campaigning for Raphael Warnock on Dec. 21, 2022, is claiming self-defense.

Defense attorney David Utter of the Claiborne Law Firm filed a motion for immunity for Jimmy Paiz on Sept. 12. A Chatham County grand jury charged Paiz with aggravated assault and battery in May of this year.

In the motion, Paiz claims that he felt threatened when the 15-year-old came to his Hartridge Street home to canvas for the Warnock campaign during the senator’s runoff against challenger Herschel Walker. In the motion, Paiz said he could see the teen on his porch using a Ring camera device, but because he did not know the young man, he did not answer the door after the teen knocked.

Paitz shot through his front door, hitting the teen in the leg.

Bulloch County Commissioners will consider a request by the Board of Election for $203k to purchase 52 Vote Center Hub lockable wheeled cabinets to house voting equipment, according to the Statesboro Herald.

Warner Robins Mayor LaRhonda Patrick discussed the city’s progress toward hiring a new Fire Chief, according to 13WMAZ.

Monday night in a pre-council meeting, Mayor LaRhonda Patrick said the city of Warner Robins has narrowed down their search for a permanent police chief to four candidates.

“It is still the goal to have this position going into 2024,” said Patrick referring to filling the Fire Chief position.

“It’s about 90 days for the vetting process and then you have to go into the interview process and all of that,” Patrick said.

Other than Fire and Police Chiefs, the city still needs a human resources director, building and inspection director, finance director and a city administrator, which are all filled temporarily.

Nuestra Georgia, an Hispanic GOP Outreach group, launched yesterday according to the AJC.

GOP Hispanic activists gathered at the state Capitol on Monday to launch Nuestra Georgia (“Our Georgia”), a new conservative voter mobilization organization, the AJC’s Mark Niesse reports.

State Rep. Rey Martinez, the Republican from Loganville who also co-founded the General Assembly’s Hispanic caucus, said Nuestra Georgia will focus on Hispanic voter registration, candidate recruitment and voter mobilization events ahead of the 2024 elections.

“While the world is watching from a distance, it pains me to wonder what the world is thinking about our nation, as they say to themselves, ‘Will America be great again?’” said [the group’s strategic director Carli] Eli, who is also state chairwoman for the Republican National Hispanic Assembly. “If Georgia falls, there goes the nation. And if the nation falls, there goes the world.”

Georgia’s Hispanic population is surging. Hispanic residents now make up 10.5% of Georgia’s population, according to the U.S. Census.

Georgia State Senator Ed Harbison (D-Columbus) visited a classroom to read to students, according to WTVM.

Georgia State Senator Ed Harbison visited Childcare Network on Hamilton Road Monday morning in celebration of the 13th annual Pre-K Week.

The week is designed to encourage state leaders to visit classrooms across the state to get a first-hand look at early childhood education.

Senator Harbison read a book to some of the students and talked to them about how vital it is to read and stay in school.

“The State of Georgia realizes that education is the ladder of upward mobility and if you learn the children starts very early, then clearly you are going to have a very productive citizen,” said Ed Harbison, Georgia State Senator District 15.

In Augusta, the DA’s office, the Solicitor General’s Office and others are working to provide second chances for offenders, according to WJBF.

The “Georgia Justice Project,” the District Attorney’s Office and the Solicitor General are working together on the “Augusta Second Chance Desk,” to provide free assistance to people regarding their criminal history.

When you have an arrest record it can be hard to get a good job, go to school and even find housing.

Second Chance Desk will help those people by restricting or sealing their records- if they are eligible.

“We have young people, who at a very early age can be branded as a criminal or as a felon and that follows you,” said Jared Williams, D.A., Richmond and Burke Counties.

“We see that there are just barriers that people are impacted by long after their sentence is done. Long after they have paid their debt and come back into society. We want to have a criminal justice system that doesn’t just hold people back, but instead propels them forward,” he explained.

The Augusta Second Chance Desk is a program where attorneys from the Georgia Justice Project will be available once a month to look over people’s criminal history and help them get their record cleared, again, if they are eligible.

“Most misdemeanors with the exception of things like DUI’s are restrict-able. If you have a felony conviction then you are not eligible for restriction,” said Williams. “However, there are some times where someone gets arrested for a felony and either the case does not get prosecuted, or instead it’s dismissed, that would be eligible for restriction…the arrest would be.”

Gwinnett County Commissioners will hold a bipartisan Town Hall in Suwanee on Thursday, according to the AJC.

Two Gwinnett County commissioners — one Democratic and one Republican — will hold a joint town hall Thursday evening at city hall in Suwanee, a city the commissioners split after last year’s redistricting.

Some of Suwanee is now in District 1, represented by Democrat Kirkland Carden, while the rest is in District 4 under Republican Matthew Holtkamp.

Murray County sole Commissioner Greg Hogan held a public meeting this morning, according to the Dalton Daily Citizen News.

White County Commissioners confirmed the appointment of Billy Pittard as County Manager, according to AccessWDUN.

Pittard will permanently oversee the day-to-day operations of White County government, work closely with county departments, and collaborate with the Board of Commissioners to develop and implement policies and initiatives that benefit the residents and businesses of the county.

Pittard has served as White County’s interim County Manager since May 2023. Prior to coming to White County, Pittard served as Barrow County Operations Manager and Interim County Manager. Prior to his Barrow County tenure, Pittard was the full-time, elected Chairman / CEO for the Oglethorpe County Board of Commissioners where he had also been the Public Works Director before being elected to Chair.

Pat Rossiter was endorsed for Savannah City Council District 2 (at-large) by the current Mayor and three former Mayors, according to the Savannah Morning News.

Current Mayor Van Johnson, and former mayors Eddie Deloach, Edna Jackson, and Otis Johnson provided statements of support for Rossiter in a campaign press release on Monday, calling him “thoughtful,” “reasonable,” and “trusted.”

The cache of Savannah leaders embody “effective leadership,” Rossiter said in an interview with the Savannah Morning News about the endorsement.

“I know that’s what we’ve got to get back to to move this city forward,” Rossiter said, adding that earning these endorsements was a goal starting back when he announced in February.

Alderwoman Alicia Miller Blakely, the incumbent being challenged by Rossiter, told the Savannah Morning News she had no comment on the announcement.

Pooler City Council member Karen Williams is running for Mayor, according to the Savannah Morning News.

“It’s not so much city government as it is serving,” Williams said. “My whole life, I’ve been a servant, all those years in the military, I was involved in everything possible. No matter what I’m doing, it’s serving and that’s what gives me satisfaction.”

“I started going to planning and zoning and City Council and just fell in love with it, and I knew that’s what I needed to do,” Williams said. “So, I ran for election, and I won, and this is my first term, but I’ve had so much community engagement and support for me to run for mayor, so I chose to continue to serve residents and businesses by going to the next level as mayor.”

Councilmember Aaron Higgins has known Williams for seven years. The two connected because they live in the same neighborhood and identified problems that needed addressing, and their friendship grew from there. They also ran together with Tom Hutcherson in the 2019 City Council elections.

“Karen is highly engaged and she loves to hear other people’s opinions and she wants what is best for as many people as possible,” Higgins said. “She’s certainly one who is known to listen, and she truly cares about the city and wants what’s best for everybody.”

Amber Brantley announced she is running for Augusta Judicial Circuit District Attorney, according to the Augusta Chronicle.

Amber Brantley currently works as a senior assistant district attorney for the Columbia Judicial Circuit. She held a formal campaign launch Sunday.

“I’m not just a lawyer; I’m a member of this community, and my heart is deeply invested in its well-being,” Brantley was quoted as saying in the announcement of her launch. “I understand justice is a nuanced field that requires balancing convictions and compassion.”

The election will be held next year with a primary election in the spring and a general election in November.