Top Stories

1. How to win a local election

2. SD 14 candidate cleared for election

3. Balfour back for Session?

4. Tom Brown v. Hank Johnson in CD4

5. Dr. Ben Carson in Columbus

How to win a local election

If the last election to the seat you’re running for counted voters in the hundreds, you absolutely should make door-to-door campaigning the centerpiece of your campaign. At the state legislative level and below, door-to-door should be a major part of your strategy, though you’ll probably have to target who you can reach in the time alloted.

Erick Erickson made this point in an Op-Ed for the Macon Telegraph this weekend:

On one personal twist, I changed my vote to Mallory Jones in the runoff. Let this be a lesson to every local politician. Jones showed up on my doorstep. We had a very nice conversation. He certainly earned my vote. He took the time, even knowing I had supported his opponent, to stop by and chat. If Jones puts even half the energy into office that he put into running for office, we will all be well served.

If you’re running for local office and you’re not going door-to-door, I know you’re not a serious candidate.

Macon recount changes nothing

The recount in the Macon-Bibb District 2 Commission race between Macon City Council members Henry Ficklin and Larry Schlesinger has been completed and Schlesinger held a 26-vote margin for the win. According to the Macon Telegraph,

Ficklin said he didn’t accuse local election officials of any wrongdoing, but that he questioned the fairness of a glitch-ridden process set up by the state. He repeated the claim, also made during his campaign, that District 2 lines were drawn specifically to make his election difficult.

Ficklin said he will decide later whether to pursue any further challenge based on allegations of district residents who weren’t allowed to vote in the race, or non-residents who were, based on faulty district maps.

Senate District 14 candidates qualified

Georgia Secretary of State Brian Kemp issued decisions in the qualification challenges against candidates in the Senate District 14 race to replace Barry Loundermilk. Matt Laughridge and Christopher NeSmith both remain on the ballot; Dean Sheridan withdrew from the race, confirmed Kemp. From the Ledger-News

Kemp’s office received complaints last month from Garrett Jamieson, a Canton resident, along with another complaint filed with the Cherokee County Elections Office by community activist Linda Flory and referred by that office to the state.

Among Jamieson’s complaints against the three candidates, he claimed that Nesmith had not paid his 2012 Bartow County property taxes and that, “The Georgia Constitution deems a person ineligible to hold office who ‘is a defaulter for any federal, state, county, municipal, or school system taxes required of such officeholder or candidate if such person has been finally adjudicated by a court of competent jurisdiction to owe those taxes.’”

Nesmith said he did owe the taxes; however, added that they are getting paid and contended that he would continue his campaign. Kemp, on Oct. 17, signed a final decision authorizing Nesmith’s eligibility after the petitioner withdrew his request for a hearing.

Similarly, Kemp concluded that Laughridge also is qualified to be a candidate for the District 14 race despite a complaint that he had not lived in the district long enough to meet residency requirements, which state he must live in the district for one year prior to the Nov. 5 election.

Laughridge told the Ledger-News at the time of the complaint that he has lived in the district for almost two years.

In the Cherokee County portion of the District, a second early voting location will open next week.

Kelly Marlow facing suspension

Cherokee County Board of Education member Kelly Marlow may face suspension from office after being indicted recently.

According to state law, once an elected official is indicted on felony charges and the prosecuting district attorney submits a certified copy of the indictment to the governor’s office, the elected official has 14 days to put him/herself on suspension, according to Sasha Dlugolenski, press secretary for Gov. Nathan Deal.

Cherokee County District Attorney Shannon Wallace said Oct. 16 that she has “complied with OCGA 45-5-6 and sent the governor a certified copy of the indictment against Ms. Marlow.”

Dlugolenski confirmed to the Ledger-News that the governor’s office received the certified copy of the indictment Oct 16, starting the 14-day period.

The commission will have 14 days to look into the matter and determine whether or not the felony indictment directly relates to Marlow’s ability to do her job as the District 1 school board member. If the commission recommends suspension, the governor accepts the recommendation and suspends the elected official, Dlugolenski said. That suspension lasts until the end of the term or the final disposition of the case, whichever comes first.

Balfour back before Session?

The last sentence of that previous story will determine whether Senator Don Balfour, if suspended after his indictment, will have the suspension lifted before the opening of the 2014 Session of the Georgia General Assembly. Fulton County is unique in the state, as far as I know, in that it has much shorter Terms of Court than most. Under the local rules for Fulton County Superior Court, where Balfour’s indictment was handed down, the next term begins on the first Monday in November.

Towery: GOP should worry about 2014

Matt Towery, CEO of InsiderAdvantage and on-air political analyst for Fox 5 Atlanta, wrote with Gary Reese yesterday at InsiderAdvantage.com that Georgia Republicans should be careful headed into a 2014 election cycle that could hold unwelcome challenges come November.

So what will be “the story” by Election Day in Georgia November 2014? Will it be one of an “ultraconservative Republican” U.S. Senate nominee who is tied to past comments about “legitimate rape?” Or how about a storyline about a right-wing element of the state GOP feuding with the party’s own soon-to-be-senior member of the U.S. Senate, Johnny Isakson?

Would not one or both of these stories create the narrative of a party so out of touch with women voters that independent women would have little choice but to do what they haven’t done in well over a decade…vote Democrat?

Keep primed with TV ads the perception that Georgia has an ethically challenged governor who can’t save children’s lives because of the administrative negligence and ineptitude of the executive branch. Then add into the mix stories and ads about Republican legislators wanting to regulate, license and control everything from bikes to tykes, and with tragic results for the latter.

Drip, drip, drip, and then splash! Both Republican heavyweights are stunned by a stream of negative themes, a mantra that becomes fact, and the weight of dollars that flow to Democrats from around the nation.

We aren’t saying that any of this is going to happen. We learned long ago to stop predicting contests too far out. But if we were forced to judge possibilities based purely by what we read in newspapers and see on TV, we would say that the elements for a perfect storm clearly exist.

Ben Carson in Columbus

Dr. Ben Carson spoke to a group in Columbus, Ga this weekend,

“It’s not my intention, but I don’t believe in political correctness and, in fact, I think it’s one of the most destructive forces in American society,” he added. “I think our (forefathers) would probably turn over in their graves if they could see what was going on. … You have people trying to drive wedges in every crack in our society, be it age, be it race, be it income, be it gender, it doesn’t matter.”

The head of the local NAACP then illustrated Carson’s complaint, by trying to drive a wedge between the renowned conservative neurosurgeon and African-Americans.

Carson, a nationally known black conservative who is the descendant of slaves, has been in the media spotlight since February when he criticized President Barack Obama’s health care plan at the National Prayer Breakfast. Last weekend, Carson set off another controversy at the conservative Values Voter Summit, when he said Obamacare is the worst thing that has happened to the country since slavery.

Sanderson and NAACP national board member Edward DuBose, a Columbus resident and former president of the organization’s Georgia chapter, took exception to Carson’s political stance.

“I encourage people not to attend tonight,” DuBose said. “I am very curious to know who is in that room. This is supposed to be about servant leadership.”

Asked if he was going, DuBose was quick to respond. “I would not dare go.”

Sympathy for the Deputy

Some poor sap is hoping that he’ll be suspended for a couple days after inadvertantly emailing to everyone in Southwest Georgia information intended for the Department’s bulletproof vest vendor information related to fitting measurements for every gun-toting female deputy in the department. Imagine having 15 to 20 armed deputies angry at you, regardless of their gender or the reason why.

Bourbon on the rocks, case of beer to go?

World of Beer in Savannah, a bar, is applying for a license to make retail package sales at the same location. Interim Police Chief Julie Tolbert opposes granting the license.

Tolbert said in her memo dated October 11 that the city has a longstanding practice of not allowing bars to also possess a package sales license and that ending that practice increases the potential for numerous problems.

Allowing customers to leave with cans and bottles will make it easier for them to continue drinking, increase the potential for underage drinking and result in a “deluge” of similar requests from other bars throughout the city, Tolbert said.

I erroneously assumed that retail package sales at bars was prohibited as a matter of state law.

Purcell receives award

Former State Rep. and current GDOT Board member Anne Purcell was awarded the Cross of the Order of Merit by Federal Republic of Germany for her work on economic development between the two countries.

Jobs Deal

Governor Nathan Deal continued his streak of new job announcement with the notice that Parkdale Mills is expanding its presence in Rabun Gap, Ga and creating 210 new jobs.

Erratum
Yesterday, I wrote that Judge Mike Boggs of the Georgia Court of Appeals served in the Georgia House as a Republican and I was incorrect. He was elected in 2000 and 2002 as a Democrat, back when South Georgia still had conservative Democrats. For whatever it’s worth, I’ll vote for him next time he’s on the ballot.

iPad Air announced

Yesterday, Apple announced a new iPad Air that is 20% thinner than the previous model, which remains on sale, and has faster processors and wireless connections. The only upgrade from Apple I’m really waiting for is an iPhone with a battery that can get me past noon without having to recharge.

Date Book

All of the Republican candidate for US Senate except Derrick Grayson have confirmed for this Saturday’s Gwinnett County Republican Rumble Chili Cookoff from 11 AM to 2 PM at Thrasher Park in Norcross, Ga.

Rachel Little, Chairman of the Gwinnett GOP, said “Gwinnett is ground zero in the battle to be the next US Senator from the State of Georgia.” She went on to say, “We are excited that all the candidates will be appearing together for the first time in Gwinnett County at this fun, community-wide, event. It is important that voters have the opportunity to meet the candidates and hear directly from them on issues important to Gwinnett County.”

Tickets are $10 for Adults and $5 Children 12 and Under and can be purchased online. You can also visit the Facebook event page.

The date of a campaign fundraiser for Angelic Moore, who is running in next year’s Republican Primary to replace State Rep. Ed Lindsey, has been changed to November 21, 2013. The event features legendary Buckhead restauranteurs Pano Karatassos and Hal Nowak and will be held Thursday November 21st, 2013 from 5 to 6 PM at 103 W Paces Ferry Road – Atlanta, GA 30305.