Georgia Politics, Campaigns, and Elections for September 23, 2025

John Paul Jones, at the helm of US ship Bonhomme Richard, won a naval battle off the coast of England on September 23, 1779.

After inflicting considerable damage to the Bonhomme Richard, Richard Pearson, the captain of the Serapis, asked Jones if he had struck his colors, the naval sign indicating surrender. From his disabled ship, Jones replied, “I have not yet begun to fight,” and after three more hours of furious fighting the Serapis and Countess of Scarborough surrendered to him.

Meriwether Lewis and William Clark returned to St. Louis Missouri from their exploratory trip to the Pacific coast on September 23, 1806.

On September 23, 1944, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt was speaking at a dinner with the Teamsters union and addressed attacks that had been made by Republicans, including the allegation that after leaving his dog, Fala, behind in the Aleutian Islands, he sent a Navy destroyer to fetch the dog. This would become known as the “Fala speech.”

These Republican leaders have not been content with attacks on me, or my wife, or on my sons. No, not content with that, they now include my little dog, Fala. Well, of course, I don’t resent attacks, and my family don’t resent attacks, but Fala does resent them. You know, Fala is Scotch, and being a Scottie, as soon as he learned that the Republican fiction writers in Congress and out had concocted a story that I’d left him behind on an Aleutian island and had sent a destroyer back to find him—at a cost to the taxpayers of two or three, or eight or twenty million dollars—his Scotch soul was furious. He has not been the same dog since. I am accustomed to hearing malicious falsehoods about myself … But I think I have a right to resent, to object, to libelous statements about my dog.

The idea for the joke was given to FDR by Orson Welles. The political lesson here is that any time you get an audience laughing at your opponent, you are winning.

A statue of former Georgia Governor Eugene Talmadge on the grounds of the Georgia State Capitol was unveiled on September 23, 1949, the 65th anniversary of Talmadge’s birth near Forsyth, Georgia in 1884.

On September 23, 1952, Senator Richard M. Nixon was under fire for allegedly accepting $18,000 and using it for personal expenses. To salvage his place as the Vice Presidential candidate on Eisenhower’s Republican ticket, Nixon took to the airwaves in the first nationally-televised address and delivered what came to be known as the “Checkers Speech. From The Atlantic:”

[A] 1999 poll of leading communication scholars ranked the address as the sixth most important American speech of the 20th century — close behind the soaring addresses of Martin Luther King, Jr., John F. Kennedy and Franklin Delano Roosevelt.

The “Checkers” speech wins this high rank for one stand-out reason: It marked the beginning of the television age in American politics. It also salvaged Nixon’s career, plucking a last-second success from the jaws of abject humiliation, and profoundly shaped Nixon’s personal and professional outlook, convincing him that television was a way to do an end-run around the press and the political “establishment.”

Click here for the full text of the “Checkers Speech.”

The last game played in Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium took place on September 23, 1996.

The pilot of The West Wing was first aired on September 22, 1999.

Georgia Politics, Campaigns, and Elections

Voters are going to the polls today in the Special Runoff Election for Senate District 21, according to Atlanta News First via WALB.

National Democrats are paying a lot of attention to Tuesday’s special election runoff for a lone Georgia Senate seat.

One of the reasons? It’s because a Democrat finished first weeks ago in a seat that has been historically GOP strong.

Either Democrat Debra Shigley or Republican Jason Dickerson will replace Brandon Beach, who was appointed U.S. Treasurer by President Donald Trump back in March. Beach, a Republican, was first elected to the seat in 2013 and most recently won re-election last November.

On Aug. 26, seven candidates — six Republicans and one Democrat — vied for the seat. Shigley shocked many political reporters and pundits when she received a little more than 39% of the vote in a heavily Republican district. Because no candidate got more than 50% of the vote, the election was set for a runoff.

Shigley is a Milton, Georgia attorney and small business owner. Her platform focuses on improving affordability for families, strengthening public school systems, and expanding access to healthcare.

Dickerson is a resident of Cherokee County and the president of a private investment firm. He has positioned himself as a political outsider and prioritizes property tax relief and improving access to affordable housing for seniors.

District 21 includes much of Cherokee County and a significant chunk of north Fulton.

Republicans have a 33-23 advantage over Democrats in the state Senate.

Beach is the first Georgian to serve as U.S. treasurer, a position which was created in 1775, before the country was founded. He has joined former Georgia Sen. Kelly Loeffler, who now runs the Small Business Administration, and former Georgia Rep. Doug Collins, who now runs the Veterans Affairs Department, in Trump’s administration.

From GPB News:

Over 16,000 voters have already cast their ballot early. Polls in the district are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 23.

From the AJC:

Republicans are confident about Dickerson’s chances in the district, where former state Sen. Brandon Beach captured the seat with 70% of the vote in November before stepping down for a post in the Trump administration.

Veteran strategists in both parties say the dynamics clearly favor Dickerson. Still, Democrats have treated the race as a proving ground for grassroots organizing, voter messaging and campaign strategy in the heart of President Donald Trump’s exurban strongholds.

Shigley is campaigning on lowering health care costs, expanding affordable housing and strengthening public schools. Though she doesn’t focus directly on Trump, she casts herself as a voice for Democrats eager to channel their frustration with the president.

She’s enlisted party heavyweights to help make her case, including two-time gubernatorial nominee Stacey Abrams and U.S. Rep. Lucy McBath — both of whom showed Democrats can compete in metro Atlanta’s vote-rich suburbs.

Dickerson, meanwhile, is running a low-key campaign with a familiar playbook. He’s tied himself to Trump and denounced “woke” Democrats while largely avoiding major public events and media interviews.

He’s also loaned himself $750,000, according to a tally by the AJC’s Michelle Baruchman, with outside GOP groups launching their own efforts to guard against an upset that could hand Democrats momentum heading into 2026.

Early voting trends point to an edge for Dickerson, analysts from both parties say. To score a victory, Shigley must pile up votes in Milton and Alpharetta — the district’s bluer pockets — while cutting GOP margins in Ball Ground, Canton and Waleska.

Atlanta City Clerk Corrine Lindo disqualified two city council candidates, according to the AJC.

[B]oth Keith Andre Lewis, Jr. and Sherry B. Williams were accused of living outside of District 11 by resident Donna Cook, who questioned the addresses listed on their voting records.

The clerk’s office held administrative hearings last week for each of the candidates, who both argued the out-of-district addresses were linked to family homes in which they haven’t lived for years.

City Clerk Corrine Lindo told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution that the vague state residency statute leaves room for interpretation.

“It just says you have to establish residency — and what is residency?” she said. “So it becomes a question that law has to help me review.”

The city’s law department ultimately determined that utility bills and lease agreements were not enough to overcome the candidates’ voter registrations and driver’s licenses which still listed the old address. The ruling also said there was “insufficient evidence” that they lived within District 11 for the required amount of time before the general election.

The decision leaves eight candidates in the crowded race for the District 11 seat that was left open when Council member Marci Collier Overstreet decided to run for the council president position.

Both Lewis and Williams are able to appeal the outcome in Fulton County Superior Court.

Georgia will soon host the largest ICE detention facility in the nation, according to the Savannah Morning News.

The Folkston ICE Processing Center in Charlton County will soon be equipped with nearly 3,000 beds, up from its current 1,100. County and federal government officials awarded The Geo Group a $47 million contract in June to merge the nearby correctional facility with the immigrant processing center.

The GEO Group, one of the largest for-profit companies operating ICE detention centers, is currently involved in a class-action lawsuit set to be heard by the U.S. Supreme Court. The case alleges that immigrant detainees in Colorado were forced to work eight-hours a day while being paid just $1 per day.

Now, the Trump Administration has increased funding for ICE. The “Big, Beautiful Bill” allows for an additional $75 billion for ICE to expand its detention centers and for its arrest and deportation efforts.

More on Governor Kemp’s upcoming trip to Korea, from the Capitol Beat News Service.

Gov. Brian Kemp’s upcoming trip to the Republic of Korea was planned “well before” the federal immigration raid on Georgia’s Hyundai electric vehicle battery plant west of Savannah, his office said, indicating the two are unrelated.

“Governor Kemp and First Lady Marty Kemp will travel to Japan and the Republic of Korea this fall on a mission focused on strengthening economic ties with two key partners,” Kemp’s office said Sunday. “This travel, as with any economic development mission, was scheduled well before the events of Sept. 4, with the logistics required to organize such a mission taking months to finalize.”

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security executed a search warrant after investigating allegations of unlawful employment practices at the battery plant, detaining 475 workers Sept. 4.

The action provoked complaints from the Republic of Korea, a major economic partner with Georgia.

Kemp will visit the country for a third time as governor, during his trip to next month’s Southeast U.S./Japan Association (SEUS-Japan) Joint Meeting in Japan.

Governor Kemp previously issued a Proclamation designating September 22, 2025 as “Georgia Reads Day.” From WJBF via WSAV:

Hundreds of students gathered at the College Football Hall of Fame in Atlanta Monday morning to hear from former University of Georgia and NFL player Malcolm Mitchell, who shared his passion for reading and stressed the importance of starting young.

Governor Brian Kemp officially proclaimed the day as Georgia Reads Day, part of a statewide push to raise literacy rates and make reading a priority inside and outside classrooms.

Earlier this year, state lawmakers approved $18 million for the Georgia Council of Literacy, funding 265 literacy coaches across Georgia. Sixty of those coaches will work directly with schools through a continuous improvement program aimed at helping students — particularly in elementary grades — strengthen reading skills.

“We had to do something to address our literacy problem in Georgia,” said Scott Johnson, chairman of the Georgia Council of Literacy. “We can’t afford for our children not to be reading proficiently when they leave third grade and go into fourth grade.”

Data from Georgia Milestones shows nearly one-third of third graders read below grade level. Leaders say screening for dyslexia and other early challenges is key to preventing lifelong learning struggles.

Mitchell, who grew up in Valdosta and now leads the Share the Magic Foundation, told students that literacy is a gateway to opportunity.

“I believe if students work hard and dream, they can do amazing things,” Mitchell said. “Improving literacy rates is the only sustainable way forward.”

The literacy council is also reviewing curriculum, teaching strategies, and ways to better support low-income and minority families.

Earlier this year, the state recognized ten communities with the Georgia Reads Community Awards for improving literacy outcomes, with more awards planned for 2026.

Parents and teachers can also access new resources through the Georgia Reads Toolkit, available online at GeorgiaReads.org

The State House Blue-Ribbon Study Committee on Georgia’s Medical Marijuana and Hemp Policies meets Thursday, 25 September 2025 at 10 AM in the President’s Dining Room, Mercer University, 1501 Mercer University Drive, Macon, GA 31207. From 13WMAZ:

Georgia lawmakers will gather Thursday to consider expanding the state’s restrictive medical cannabis program beyond terminal patients, a change that could open access to thousands of Georgians with chronic conditions.

The House Blue-Ribbon Study Committee on Medical Marijuana and Hemp Policies will meet at Mercer University to hear public testimony and review proposed legislation that failed to pass during the most recent session.

“The big difference last year was trying to remove the end of life,” said Rep. Robert Dickey, who represents District 145 in Bibb and Crawford Counties. “So patients have conditions, and it’s maybe not life-threatening or end of their life that didn’t have a use for medical cannabis for whatever conditions — expand that a little bit.”

Georgia’s current medical cannabis law, known as the HOPE Act, requires patients to have terminal conditions and obtain prescriptions from licensed physicians. Products can only be purchased from state-licensed dispensaries and must be non-smokable forms like tinctures, edibles and topical lotions.

The push for expansion began with families affected by autism. Doctors worked with parents whose children with severe autism benefited from cannabis products, according to Dickey.

“Allen Peake from Macon, he had patients, young patients who had autism, and this product helped those young students and young people with their severe autism,” Dickey said. “And that is the impetus of this bill, but I think it has multiple other uses.”

Dickey, who chairs the House Agriculture and Consumer Affairs Committee, said many patients and doctors remain unaware of current legal options. Meanwhile, hemp-derived CBD products sold at smoke shops and convenience stores operate with minimal regulation.

“So on the medical side, very regulated, but as you see with all our smoke shops and convenience stores selling a lot of other health products, it’s the wild west,” Dickey said. “And so we’re trying to find a middle ground on both of those issues.”

At Fine Fettle in Macon, one of Georgia’s licensed medical cannabis facilities, General Manager Will Kacheris said the company has prepared for potential expansion by building significant unused capacity into its 118,000-square-foot facility.

“We have the capacity, as you can see, this room is 5,000 square feet. We need a capacity for about 1,600 plants in this room,” Kacheris said, showing our cameras around the facility. “We have three rooms exactly like this. We have another room that we can start all these plants in.”

The facility currently transforms cannabis plants into high-THC oil through distillation, creating products that are 90% to 98% pure THC. State law prohibits smokable flower products.

“That is currently not allowed to sell smokable flower,” Kacheris said. “The only thing that can be sold by us to our medical patients is consumable edible consumables, things like soft drops, tinctures.”

Kacheris expressed confidence that Georgia will eventually follow other states in expanding medical cannabis access, citing patient demand and potential tax revenue.

“We’ve seen it in medical state after medical state that as more and more citizens of those states realize the extreme benefits of utilizing this plant medicinally,” Kacheris said. “We’ve seen that legislators eventually realize that it’s in the best interest of these patients to get better treatment.”

The study committee was formed after neither House nor Senate versions of expansion legislation passed during the most recent session. Committee members plan to gather testimony statewide before making recommendations for the 2026 legislative session.

Thursday’s meeting begins at 10 a.m. in the President’s Dining Room at Mercer University, 1501 Mercer University Drive. The hearing is open to the public and will be livestreamed. Chairman Mark Newton, a physician from Augusta, will lead the proceedings.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) announced additional resources for Hurricane relief, according to WJBF.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) announced Monday that an additional $49 million has been approved for 111 state and local projects in Georgia to help restoration efforts after Hurricanes Helene and Debby.

FEMA said Monday the funding helps with road repair, infrastructure restoration, debris removal and other emergency actions taken to protect life and property following the storm.

Savannah Economic Development Authority (SEDA) President and CEO Trip Tollison spoke about the Hyundai metaplant and the ICE raid, according to WSAV.

SEDA President and CEO Trip Tollison said he and his colleagues were surprised to hear about the raid and have been frustrated since.

“It’s a setback. No question about it,” Tollison told WSAV News 3.

Nearly 500 construction workers were detained at the battery plant, located on the Hyundai megasite in Ellabell on September 4, following allegations of illegal labor. Many of those who were put in handcuffs were skilled workers, according to Tollison.

According to officials, those workers from outside of the U.S. were hired by subcontractors to complete the battery plant.

“It’s very proprietary technology, and there’s only certain spots in the world that actually have it,” Tollison said. “It’s important that those folks are here installing the equipment… very sophisticated activities are going on. More importantly, they’re going to be here to train Americans on how to use it once it’s installed.”

Tollison is unsure exactly how many people had or did not have temporary work visas. Regardless, he said the project is now delayed three months.

“The White House has given us lease to the company, and the Foreign Ministry of South Korea have been doing everything they can to streamline the process and get them back as quickly as they can,” Tollison said.

According to Tollison, the site is the largest project in Georgia history. SEDA is the lead agency behind the $1.6 billion dollar incentive package to bring Hyundai here, including tax credits.

According to Tollison, there are currently 3,129 Americans filling those permanent jobs, and this raid doesn’t impact them or the future permanent jobs onsite. He shared that he hopes this issue can be prevented in the future.

“When it comes to construction and when it comes to contractors, subcontractors, sub-sub subcontractors, we don’t drill down. We expect that they follow the law. We expect that they’re here, and they’re doing what they’re supposed to be doing,” Tollison said.

News 3 asked Tollison if this operation has impacted relationships or partnerships Hyundai might have, and he said it’s quite the opposite. Just last week, Hyundai announced a phase two expansion of the metaplant, creating 3,000 more jobs in the area.

“I think that that solidifies or definitely highlights how important the partnership is between the state and Hyundai for them to come back to the table and basically, for lack of a better word, double down on what they’re doing here after the raid,” Tollison said. “It’s a very telling moment for us, because they want to be here. They want to continue the partnership. They want to grow.”

Cairo, Georgia is buying their own voting machines, according to WALB.

The city of Cairo is buying its very own voting machines for the first time – a decision those at the county level say was unwarranted.

City manager Booker Gainor said in an email to WCTV that the city purchased voting machines from Dominion Voting Systems because their agreement to use the county equipment was coming to an end.

According to the Grady County elections board, that agreement cost the city nothing to use and was extendable.

The city says they are buying the machines to be fully prepared for future elections. Meanwhile, county leaders like Sam Carnline, vice chair of the Grady County election board, said the purchase is a waste of $30,000.

“We feel like that considering the city taxpayer already has an agreement with the county and it’s costing them zero, not one penny, unless they break it to use the Grady County’s equipment, then we feel like it’s a waste of taxpayer dollars,” Carnline said.

The city stated that its new voting machines will comply with a new Senate bill that would eliminate the use of QR codes.

The city is holding a commission meeting Monday night, with the topic of purchasing voting machines on the agenda. This article will be updated with details from that meeting.

Bryan County Commissioners rolled back the property tax millage rate fully, according to the Savannah Morning News.

Bryan County Commissioners have rolled back the millage rate to 5.770 mills. The new rate was adopted at the commissioners meeting Sept. 9. For nine consecutive years, the rate has been reduced. In 2016, the rate was 9.185 mills.

“Maintaining a reduced millage rate reflects our Board’s dedication to balancing fiscal responsibility with community needs,” said Bryan County Chair Carter Infinger in a press release. “We are proud to have rolled back the millage rate for nine consecutive years, easing the burden on taxpayers while continuing to invest in the services that protect and enhance quality of life in Bryan County.”

“The ability to maintain a reduced millage rate is due in part to SPLOST and TSPLOST funding. These are local 1% sales taxes collected on purchases made within Bryan County. Because visitors and non-residents also contribute to these funds, they provide an equitable way to invest in community needs,” reads the press release.

The city of Richmond Hill also adopted a new millage rate. City Council rolled back the millage rate earlier this month from 4.132 mills to 3.981 mills, returning $188,736 to taxpayers.

“This is about being good stewards of the public’s money and a direct result of our proactive fiscal planning,” said Mayor Russ Carpenter in a press release. “We are committed to balancing the delivery of top-tier city services with a tax rate that is both fair and sustainable for our residents. This decision reflects our commitment to a transparent and responsive government and a dedication to building a strong foundation for the future.”

Colquitt County Commissioners will soon adopt a property tax millage rate, according to the Moultrie Observer.

As October draws closer, Colquitt County residents may be thinking about their property tax bills that they should be getting in their mailboxes sometime during next month. The county commission and the school board, however, need to set their millage rates first.

Neither entity, at the time of publication, have done it yet, as their millage rates are based on the tax digest, which they have not received as of last week’s county commission meeting.

The tax digest is a listing of all of the properties within the county with their assessed values. Local governments use it to set their annual millage rate. The Colquitt County Board of Tax Assessors sets the tax digest and then, the state Department of Revenue reviews and approves it.

The tax digest is a listing of all of the properties within the county with their assessed values. Local governments use it to set their annual millage rate. The Colquitt County Board of Tax Assessors sets the tax digest and then, the state Department of Revenue reviews and approves it.

It appears that the departure, this summer, of Jim Mac Booth, who was the chief tax appraiser, has delayed the preparation of the tax digest.

County Administrator Chas Cannon told commissioners at a recent, meeting they needed to be prepared for a special called meeting to set the millage rate. It would be before their next regular meeting, Oct. 7.

The City of Moultrie is raising fees for some municipal services, according to the Moultrie Observer.

The City of Moultrie gets its operating revenue from two main sources: property taxes and various fees charged for services like electricity or garbage pick-up.

At the August meeting of the Moultrie City Council, City Manager Peter Dillard told councilmen he expected no increase to property taxes this year, but the budget under consideration would call for increases in some fees.

The council gave preliminary approval to the budget at its September meeting Sept. 16, and Dillard’s prediction was at least half right. The budget includes small increases in what the city charges for electricity, water and sewer, natural gas and solid waste collection.

Muscogee County Sheriff Greg Countryman spoke about the need for a new jail, according to the Ledger-Enquirer.

Muscogee County Sheriff Greg Countryman addressed a security incident at the Muscogee County Jail that led to this month’s arrest of a medical worker under contract at the jail and talked about the need for a new jail.

He said video showed the inmate manipulating the lock on the cell from the inside to let the nurse into the cell.

“This was a serious security breach,” Countryman said.

The jail has had locks pop open in that area when the power failed from “extremely bad weather,” Countryman said. “We were able to get everybody back into their cell dorms,” he said.

Countryman said other inmates have manipulated the locks in the jail.

Countryman said the jail comprises a portion built in 2004 and another portion built in 198.

“This jail, in my personal opinion, it has a poor design to it,” he said. “It does not meet the needs of 2025 and beyond.”

Countryman said the jail has an outdated system that would be “very costly” to change.

“We have outgrown this jail years and years and years ago,” Countryman said, “and we have to have something that’s gonna be modern.”

 

 

 

United States Senator Jon Ossoff (D-Atlanta) continues working to create a national park in Georgia, according to the Macon Telegraph.

Speaking at the Macon Rotary Club on Monday, Sen. Jon Ossoff (D-GA) said he remains “cautiously optimistic” that a bipartisan bill to make the Ocmulgee Mounds Georgia’s first national park will succeed.

Advocates hoped the measure would pass through both the House and Senate last year, but it stalled as the U.S. government shifted its focus toward Hurricane Helene relief funding, according to Seth Clark, Macon’s mayor pro tem and the executive director for Ocmulgee National Park and Preserve Initiative. It was part of a public lands package of legislation, which Clark said got shelved for more pressing issues during last year’s Congress.

“I think we still have the wind in our sails this year,” Ossoff said. “In fact, I think it’s likely that the Committee on Environment and Natural Resources will hold a hearing to consider, once again, this proposal in the weeks to come, and building on the momentum that we gathered last Congress, I’m cautiously optimistic we can make yet more progress.”

That same committee passed the bill last year, paving the way for it to be considered by the full Senate.

Last year, a bill to ark the mounds as a national park was introduced to each chamber of Congress Both bills were reintroduced in March this year.

By May, 13 of Georgia’s 14 U.S. House members had signed onto the House bill, while both U.S. senators signed on the Senate version.

Ossoff is leading the effort, along with Rep. Austin Scott (R-GA), making it a bipartisan priority.

Sam Couvillon, current Mayor of Gainesville, running for Congress, spoke about his campaign, according to AccessWDUN.

“It’s hard to believe that I announced six, seven months ago, and have been out working hard, trying to get my name out, meeting people,” Couvillon said. “I took this very seriously when I was getting into the race.”

Couvillon is going to be a part of a crowded primary, with incumbent Andrew Clyde and Hall County Commissioner for District 3 Gregg Poole also in the race.

Couvillon announced he would be running back in January, and he spoke on WDUN’s “The Martha Zoller Show” in February.

During that conversation, he brought up Rep. Clyde voting against farm aid in the wake of Hurricane Helene.

In response, Rep. Clyde told AccessWDUN in February that he supports farmers, but he wants to be fiscally responsible.

“I totally support farmers,” Clyde said. “But we have to be fiscally responsible as well. That bill was a part of the big Omnibus CR at the end of last year, which was chock full of other priorities.”

Couvillon said on Monday that farmers did not feel supported by the December 2024 decision.

“They feel like they were not supported,” Couvillon said. “Farming is our number one industry in the state of Georgia … our congressman voted no on that, that is not a good feeling.”

Couvillon also added that he has been traveling around the district recently, being in Habersham County with the Habersham and White County Chambers of Commerce, in Rabun County with the Rabun County GOP last Saturday, the Hall County GOP the same day, and was also in Union County to meet with their GOP this past weekend.

He left from there to go to the 9th District golf tournament and finished his Saturday at Clermont Days.

“It’s been very busy,” Couvillon said. “I feel like things have been well-received out there.”

Couvillon also spoke about fundraising, with Federal Election Commission (FEC) data showing that he has raised over $436,000 from January 1 to June 30, over two-and-a-half times the over $165,000 that Clyde has raised through two quarters. The mayor said on the show that he has raised $465,000, but the third quarter’s data won’t be available until around Oct. 15.

“In order to get out to 900,000 people, you’ve got to have money to be able to do mailers, to do advertising …85-90% of my money has come from inside the district,” Couvillon said. “I do think that is … an endorsement of sorts that people are getting behind me.”

Candidates for Rome City Board of Education will meet in a forum on October 2, 2025, according to WRGA News.

The nine candidates are Toni Blanchard, Brenda Boyd, Pascha Burge, Will Byington, Faith Collins, Marquita Davis, Karl Gyden, Alvin Jackson, and Ron Roach.