William the Conqueror, Duke of Normandy, invaded England on September 28, 1066.
Other sources say that the September 29, 1526 landing was in South Carolina and Vasquez de Ayllon established San Miguel de Gualdape on October 8, 1526.
General George Washington led continental troops into the siege of British forces under General Cornwallis at Yorktown, Virginia on September 28, 1781.
On September 28, 1863, two Union generals lost their commands after the Confederates routed federal forces at the Battle of Chickamauga.
On September 28, 1889, Georgia Governor John B. Gordon signed legislation designating January 19th a state holiday in honor of Robert E. Lee’s birthday. In 2015, Robert E. Lee’s birthday and Confederate Memorial Day were stricken from the Georgia calendar.
Georgia Politics, Campaigns, and Elections
Today is National Voter Registration Day, according to WTOC.
Tuesday, Sept. 28 is known as National Voter Registration Day, and there are events happening all across the country, including in Savannah and the South Carolina Lowcountry.
If you recently moved, changed your name, turned 18 or became an American citizen since the last election, you will need to register to vote.
The deadline to register for the upcoming Nov. 2 General Election is Oct. 4.
Georgia residents can sign in to the Secretary of State’s MVP website to check that your registration is correct and up-to-date.
Governor Brian Kemp yesterday announced that federal COVID relief funds will be used to pay bonuses to law enforcement and first responders, according to a press release:
Governor Brian P. Kemp [] announced a $1,000 pay supplement for all eligible sworn law enforcement officials and first responders in Georgia. Local governments and employers of public safety officials and first responders are encouraged to visit the Office of Planning and Budget’s grant funding opportunities website for more information on how to apply, receive, and distribute these funds. Applications will be accepted from October 1, 2021 through December 31, 2021.
“Our law enforcement officials and first responders answered the call of duty and bravely served on the front line of our fight against COVID-19, despite the unprecedented challenges thrown their way,” said Governor Brian Kemp. “Working with Speaker Ralston and the General Assembly, today, we are taking yet another step in supporting our men and women in uniform and first responders by providing this well-deserved bonus. Like they do every day, these heroic Georgians ran toward the COVID-19 crisis and put their lives on the line to protect others. My family and the state of Georgia deeply appreciate all they do. Thank you!”
“Georgia is a state that supports our law enforcement officers and first responders, and this $1,000 bonus is one way of showing our appreciation for their continued heroism through the darkest days of the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Speaker David Ralston. “Working with Governor Kemp and my colleagues in the General Assembly, we have made backing those who wear the badge and work on the frontlines a priority. Their selfless service keeps Georgia a great place to live, to work, and to raise a family, and for those efforts we are truly grateful.”
The State of Georgia will be utilizing funds made available by the American Rescue Plan Act to create this opportunity. Eligible categories of law enforcement officials and first responders include, but are not limited to, the following groups:
• State, Local, or Education Entity Sworn Law Enforcement
• Criminal Investigators and Detectives
• Probation and Parole Officers
• Career Firefighters
• Emergency Medical Technicians and Paramedics
• Sheriffs and Deputies
• Correctional and Jail Officers
• Bailiffs
• Fish and Game Wardens
• 911 Communications Officers or Dispatchers
“Our law enforcement officials and first responders, have been thrown challenge after challenge in the past year and a half. Civil unrest, a spike in violent crime, as well as the global pandemic,” Kemp said during the presser.
The money is coming from the State of Georgia’s Federal Coronavirus Relief Fund, Kemp explained.
Kemp encouraged local governments and employees of public safety officials and first responders to visit the Governer’s Office of Planning and Budget for more information on how to apply and receive the funds.
Kemp was joined by Speaker David Ralston, Attorney General Chris Carr, and other members of Congress for the press conference at 2 p.m. on the North Wing of the Georgia State Capitol.
“As long as I am governor … we will stand with our public safety officials, period,” Kemp stated. “They deserve to know that we have their back.”
Up to $100 million in bonuses will come out of federal COVID-19 relief funds that Democrats in Congress approved in March. Because Kemp has the legal authority to dole out the federal relief funds, law enforcement won’t have to wait until the General Assembly meets next year to consider the expenditure.
The Republican governor made the announcement at the Capitol with state House Speaker David Ralston, Attorney General Chris Carr and local law enforcement officers and firefighters in attendance.
More than 80,000 police and sheriffs’ employees, EMTs, dispatchers, state troopers and guards, full-time firefighters and others will be eligible for the bonuses. Volunteer first responders — mostly firefighters — will be eligible for $300 stipends.
The bonuses come two months after Ralston proposed a $75 million crime-fighting package that included bonuses for local police and sheriff’s deputies and jailers. On Monday, Kemp expanded on Ralston’s idea. Agencies will have to apply for the bonuses for their employees between Oct. 1 and Dec. 31.
The state used federal COVID-19 money earlier this year to give $1,000 bonuses to teachers and most state employees, including state law enforcement and prison guards. Some officers also received pay raises this year in hopes of stemming high turnover rates.
“These bonuses are thanks exclusively to the president and Georgia Democrats, who passed the COVID-19 relief package without a single Georgia Republican vote,” said Rhyan Lake, spokeswoman for the Democratic Party of Georgia.
Georgia has nearly $4.8 billion in federal COVID-19 aid that it’s deciding how to spend.
“I think it’s going to make a big difference in their lives,” Turner County Sheriff Andy Hester, also Georgia Sheriff’s Association president, said.
From the Valdosta Daily Times:
Lowndes County Sheriff Ashley Paulk said while his agency, like others, has experienced challenges in filling vacancies, the $1,000 supplement will be helpful in retaining his 240 employees.
“We’re still having trouble hiring people, there’s so many people getting paid to sit home. We’re seeing less applications than I’ve ever seen in my 22-year career,” said Paulk, noting nearly 20 vacant positions in the jail division. “The (supplement) certainly will be a help, especially employees coming close to the holidays. I think it’s a very good gesture.”
Turner County Sheriff Andy Hester is the current president of the Georgia Sheriffs Association. He says it’s a big help.
“Over 20,000 employees that work for the sheriffs — deputies, jailers, and dispatchers, I speak on their behalves, too. I think it’s going to make a big difference in their lives,” said Hester.
Former United States Senator Johnny Isakson (R-Cobb County) was celebrated at a fundraiser for the Isakson Initiative to fund research into Parkinson’s disease and other diseases, according to the Gwinnett Daily Post.
Isakson, a Republican who retired at the end of 2019, suffers from Parkinson’s disease. Monday’s tribute at the historic Piedmont Driving Club raised about $1 million to benefit The Isakson Initiative, a nonprofit he founded in May to raise awareness and funding for research related to Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s and related dementia.
The first Georgia politician to ever serve in the state House and Senate, the U.S. House and the U.S. Senate was feted as a leader who took a bipartisan approach toward public policy during an era of increasing polarization between Republicans and Democrats.
The first Georgia politician to ever serve in the state House and Senate, the U.S. House and the U.S. Senate was feted as a leader who took a bipartisan approach toward public policy during an era of increasing polarization between Republicans and Democrats.
“Johnny has always worked to get everyone at the table,” said Georgia House Speaker David Ralston, R-Blue Ridge.
“He represents the best our state and nation have to offer,” Gov. Brian Kemp added.
The contrast couldn’t have been more drastic. On Saturday, the far-right fringe of the Republican party showed up to the Georgia National Fairgrounds in Perry to cheer on former President Donald Trump as he wrongly claimed he won the last election and declared war on GOP leaders.
On Monday, the state’s Republican elite gathered at the Piedmont Driving Club to celebrate former U.S. Sen. Johnny Isakson. The emotional ceremony touted the former senator’s ability to build consensus and cooperation across party lines. And it raised nearly $1 million for the Isakson Initiative to combat Parkinson’s disease.
With all due respect to the AJC, I think the crowd as the Trump event probably included the far-right fringes of the GOP, but also represents a majority of Georgia Republican voters.
The first proposed Congressional map of the 2021 redistricting was unveiled yesterday, according to the Capitol Beat News Service via the Gwinnett Daily Post.
Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan, who presides over the Georgia Senate, and Sen. John Kennedy, chairman of the chamber’s Redistricting and Reapportionment Committee, put out a proposed congressional district map that would increase the size of districts in rural South Georgia to reflect losses in population during the last decade.
The plan crafted by the Senate’s Republican majority also appears to target U.S. Rep. Lucy McBath, D-Marietta, by shifting portions of the 6th Congressional District she represents into heavily Republican areas.
“This map not only meets principles of redistricting, but we are proud to present a map that regardless of political party, Georgians can be proud of,” the lieutenant governor said. “Ensuring that any maps we produce are fair, compact, and keep communities of interest together will continue to be of upmost importance.”
Georgia lawmakers redraw the state’s legislative and congressional districts once each decade to account for changes in population reflected in the U.S. Census. Special redistricting sessions usually take place during the late summer, but the process was delayed this year because of the impact the coronavirus pandemic has had on completing and releasing the census.
Democrat McBath captured the 6th Congressional District in Atlanta’s northern suburbs in 2018 after it had been in Republican hands for decades, then won reelection last year.
But holding the seat would become harder in 2022 under the Senate map, which would put all of heavily Republican Forsyth County inside the 6th District for the first time. The district would retain East Cobb and North Fulton but lose northern DeKalb County.
The special session will begin on Nov. 3 and is expected to run into the week of Thanksgiving.
It’s probably a coincidence that map creates a more-Republican 6th District by bringing in the Lt. Governor’s home county.
“Even given the delay of official Census numbers, the Senate Redistricting Committee has diligently worked to ensure that we hear from citizens across all regions of the state,” said Chairman John F. Kennedy. “Looking at this map, it is obvious that Georgians have been heard, and will continue to be heard.”
From the Associated Press via AccessWDUN:
It’s hard to tell how seriously to take the map. In any event, state House members will have their own proposals and the two GOP-led chambers will have to reach an agreement.
The state’s overall population rose nearly 10% to 10.7 million people over the last decade, but Census results showed uneven growth, with most new residents concentrated in the Atlanta area and around Savannah. Most rural areas lost population.
Republicans now have an 8-6 majority on Georgia’s current congressional map, down from 10-4 a decade ago after McBath captured suburban Atlanta’s 6th District and Bourdeaux captured suburban Atlanta’s 7th District.
For the first time in more than 50 years, Georgia starts redistricting without federal oversight. A Supreme Court ruling in 2013 removed mandatory federal approval of new maps for Georgia and all or parts of 15 other states with a history of discrimination in voting.
[Republican U.S. Representative Andrew] Clyde’s home in Jackson County is drawn out of the 9th District and into a reshaped 10th District that shifts northward to center much more on Athens. U.S. Representatives, unlike Georgia state lawmakers, aren’t required to live in the district they represent. The current representative of the 10th District, Republican Jody Hice, is stepping down to run for Secretary of State, making it easier for lawmakers to cut up his district if they choose.
The new 9th District, including parts of northern Gwinnett County, could be an open seat and heavily Republican.
”It’s a gerrymander to try to get back a congressional seat they lost in defiance of the votes of Georgia voters and in the interest of partisan gain,” Parent said. “But given how fast population trends are changing around metro Atlanta, this particular 6th might still be competitive.”
Though Parent said she opposes the draft, she said she’s grateful it was released well in advance of the state’s November redistricting session, allowing the public time to review it before legislators consider it.
“Just eyeballing it, it’s a tough district for Democrats,” Jordan said. “It’s pretty clear what they were trying to do. This may be a one-cycle or two-cycle win for Republicans, but they’re not going to be able to hold it for long.”
Several Republicans are already lined up to run against McBath, including Jake Evans, the former chairman of the Georgia ethics commission; Meagan Hanson, an attorney and former state legislator; and Harold Earls, a former Army captain.
With maps in flux through at least November, election directors across Georgia are asking the General Assembly to delay the state’s primary election date May 24 to June 28. It’s not immediately clear if there’s any appetite to do so among top lawmakers.
The election directors wrote in a resolution passed last month that they want a June to build in time to accommodate changes created by redistricting.
A former Idaho State Representative was arrested and is being held in Clayton County, Georgia on a warrant from his home state, according to WSAV.
Savannah Mayor Van Johnson is urging more residents to get vaccinated, according to WSAV.
“Chatham County is now leading the way in COVID vaccinations, although we’re leading right now on a team that’s not doing as well as we would like for it to do,” Johnson says. Chatham County has fully vaccinated nearly half of its population and 55% have received at least one dose, according to the Georgia Department of Public Health’s vaccine dashboard.
St. Joseph’s/Candler hospital recently posted a billboard that reads “We’re gaining patients. And losing our patience. Be a hero. Get vaccinated.” A sentiment that’s been echoed by some health care workers in hospitals around the country.
“The truth is often hurtful. You know, the time is over to play nice,” Johnson said, throwing support behind the hospital. “The stark truth of the reality is that our funeral homes are doing well, they’re doing much better because of COVID patients.”
Savannah announced it will restart some programs that were shut down by COVID, according to WSAV.
The City of Savannah announced plans to reopen cultural arts, resource and community centers for city programming on Monday, October 4.
The city says the community centers will require temperature checks, face masks, social distancing and capacity limits.
Georgia State Senator Sheila McNeill (R-Brunswick) will run for reelection, according to The Brunswick News.
The District 3 senator represents Brantley, Camden, Charlton, Glynn and McIntosh counties.
“We accomplished many things during the past legislative session but there is much more work to do,” said McNeill, who is serving her first term in the General Assembly after winning 63% of the vote in last year’s runoff election.
“The pandemic has posed many challenges for Georgia families, health care professionals, educators and business owners,” she said. “But working together, we will get through this. Our best days are in front of us, and I am fully committed to doing all that I can to help the citizens of our district.”
Democratic State Representative Renitta Shannon (Decatur) will run for Lieutenant Governor, according to the AJC.
Shannon said in a press release that she was running “because regressive policies have shaped a harsh reality for the majority of Georgians.”
“As a proven fighter, I will continue to bring my decisive leadership and bold action to the Capitol as a statewide officer,” she said.
Shannon said she will center her campaign on championing policies such as increasing the state’s minimum wage, expanding Medicaid — the public health program that provides care to the poor and disabled — and ending mass incarceration.
“The experiences of my life are the result of deliberate policies that have continued to fail all of us time and time again,” she said in the video. “We need leaders that will advance progressive policies that work for all of us.”
If elected, Shannon, who is bisexual, would be the first openly LGBTQ candidate and first Black woman to win a statewide election in Georgia.
Shannon is running for the office after Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan, a Republican, announced earlier this year that he would not seek a second term.
In the Democratic primary, Shannon will face state Rep. Erick Allen of Smyrna; Kolbey Gardner, a party strategist; state Rep. Derrick Jackson of Tyrone; and Bryan Miller, grandson of former Gov. Zell Miller.
Chatham County voters go to the polls on November 2d for the first elections under Senate Bill 202, the state’s new voting law, according to the Savannah Morning News.
This year, posts in Bloomingdale, Tybee Island, Thunderbolt, Port Wentworth and Garden City will be on the ballot. Every voter in Chatham County will have the opportunity to make their voice heard, but for those who live outside of these cities, there’ll only be one or two items to vote on.
One ballot item is the countywide ESPLOST extension, and those who reside in Georgia House District 165, which covers most of Savannah’s eastside neighborhoods, will choose a replacement for longtime Rep. Mickey Stephens, who died in August.
Additionally, the county’s tiniest municipality, Vernonburg, will have four council seats and their mayor-like intendant position on the ballot, though the town of under 200 people usually doesn’t hold a formal election unless seats are contested.
Julius Hall, who appealed his removal from the ballot for Port Wentworth Mayor, lost his appeal in Chatham County Superior Court, according to the Savannah Morning News.
Judge Lisa Colbert denied Hall’s appeal against his disqualification after a hearing on Friday, where attorneys representing Hall and the resident challenging his eligibility, Jodi Hawks, presented their case.
Hall said he plans to challenge Colbert’s denial by taking the case to the Georgia Supreme Court within the next 10 days.
Warner Robins City Council kept the same property tax millage rate as the prior year, but the city will generate additional revenue due to rising property values, according to 13WMAZ.
The vote split was 4-2; with Charlie Bibb, Keith Lauritsen, Kevin Lashley and Clifford Holmes voting in favor. Derek Mack and Larry Curtis voted no.
Valdosta City Council members agreed on a position for Service Delivery Strategy negotiations with Lowndes County, according to the Valdosta Daily Times.
Council unanimously voted to amend SDS language involving water and sewer, a final step in negotiations.
City Council will wait to hear back from the Lowndes County Commissioners as it is set to vote on SDS agreement language at the Sept. 28 meeting.
Savannah’s Nondiscrimination Ordinance is becoming a model for Augusta, according to the Savannah Morning News.
About a dozen Georgia cities have adopted bans against discrimination by local businesses based on race, gender, sexual identity and other characteristics. Augusta has been considering one for nearly a year.
At the request of commissioners and local activists, the city law department crafted an ordinance that routed public complaints through the city Compliance department, Civil and Magistrate Court, the Richmond County Marshal and Richmond County Solicitor’s Office.
Savannah’s ordinance bypasses most city departments. Complaints are sent to voluntary mediation and a hearing officer, who investigates the complaint and decides whether to fine the accused perpetrator.
Augusta Metro Chamber of Commerce President Sue Parr, an ordinance subcommittee member, said Augusta’s proposed involvement of the court system was “potentially very cumbersome for the business community,” and that a hearing officer was preferable.
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