East Cobb Politics & Elections

Cobb special elections scheduled as map dispute lingers

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Cobb commission special elections scheduled as dispute lingers
Cobb Commission Chairwoman Lisa Cupid said Tuesday “a great harm was done to Cobb County” with legislative-approved electoral maps.

The Cobb Board of Elections is moving ahead with special elections for commission races as a long-standing legal saga over redistricting continues elsewhere in county government.

The elections board on Monday approved two sets of special-election schedules for Cobb Commission races in Districts 2 and 4 for early 2025 after Cobb Superior Court Judge Kellie Hill vacated May primaries for those seats.

If there are December runoffs from the November general elections, those special commission elections would start on Jan. 20 and end on April 7.

If there are not runoffs, the two commission seats would be determined in voting from Feb. 12 through June 17.

The special-election dates coincide with previously scheduled municipal elections in Cobb County, but would come after the commission seats of current commissioners Jerica Richardson (District 2) and Monique Sheffield (District 4) expire on Dec. 31.

It’s not clear what might happen with two vacancies on the commission, which would go from a 3-2 Democratic majority to a 2-1 edge for Republicans.

On July 25, Hill ruled that May primaries using “home rule” maps approved by the Cobb Board of Commissioners’ Democratic majority for the two district commission elections were unconstitutional, because they weren’t adopted by the Georgia legislature.

Cobb commissioners redistricting resolution
Cobb commission District 2 boundaries (in pink) and District 3 (in yellow), as adopted by the county on the left, and the legislature on the right.

Hill was ruling on a petition by Alicia Adams, a Republican who was disqualified in District 2 because she lives in the boundaries set by the legislature.

She filed her complaint against the Cobb elections board, which was honoring the “home rule” maps. The board Democrats in October 2022 claimed the county had home rule powers under the Georgia Constitution to conduct redistricting, after the legislature ignored maps drawn up by the Cobb legislative delegation.

But Hill affirmed a January ruling by Cobb Superior Court Judge Ann Harris that the county had no authority to redraw its own political maps, saying it was solely the responsibility of the legislature.

Late last week, the Cobb County Attorney’s Office filed an emergency motion to intervene in the Adams case, even though the county was not named as a defendant (you can read the motion here).

On Tuesday morning, Commission Chairwoman Lisa Cupid defended the county’s decision to seek intervention, saying “a great harm was done to our county” when the Georgia legislature ignored the Cobb delegation maps.

Home rule powers were claimed by the three Democrats—Cupid, Richardson and Sheffield—in a bid to keep Richardson in office.

The first-term Democrat was drawn out of her East Cobb home in the legislative maps, which placed most of East Cobb in District 3, represented by Republican JoAnn Birrell.

“There has been no effort to circumvent the Constitution,” Cupid said in remarks at the commission’s regular meeting. “However, there has been an effort to circumvent the votes of many voters who voted for each one of us who are sitting here today.

“There has been an effort to circumvent on trusting what the local delegation in putting forward a map for the Board of Commissioners. That has been a process over the 12 years that I have been here. There has been very little objection or question about why that was circumvented.”

Her remarks followed continuing statements by Birrell and Gambrill, the board’s two Republicans, who were opposed to the decision to try to intervene in the Adams case.

The home rule challenge, Birrell said, has gone on nearly two years “at taxpayers’ expense and should never have been done to begin with. We all took an oath to uphold the Constitution of the United States, of the State of Georgia, and of Cobb County. Follow the law.”

Cobb GOP Chair Salleigh Grubbs

Gambrill—an original plaintiff in a related Cobb home rule case that reached the Georgia Supreme Court but was not decided on the merits—called Cobb’s action “the path of anarchy.”

In its emergency motion, the Cobb County Attorney’s Office noted that in addition to the “hundreds of thousands of dollars” in expenses that would be needed for special elections, Hill’s injunction “could potentially deprive half of Cobb County from having any representation on the BOC until June of 2025 at the earliest.”

Cobb Republican Party Chairwoman Salleigh Grubbs said during a public comment period earlier in Tuesday’s meeting that the county has only itself to blame for that.

“With the chaos you people have created, you’re going to make the taxpayers pay for that,” Grubbs said, “when it’s your responsibility and it’s your quest for power over Cobb County that has caused this situation.

“You refuse to acknowledge the fact that you violated your oath and Ms. Richardson should not be sitting on the dais. You have protected her at all costs in that seat so that you can have the majority.”

Richardson, who declined to seek a second term and instead launched an unsuccessful bid for Congress has not publicly commented on the matter.

Former Cobb school board member Jaha Howard won the Democratic primary in District 2 and Sheffield cruised in the Democratic primary in District 4.

Later in the meeting Tuesday, commissioners voted 4-1 to approve $2.4 million in additional spending for the 2024 elections due to costs associated with the presidential election, as well as one-time costs for technology and equipment, security at polling stations and seasonal personnel (poll workers).

Cobb elections director Tate Fall said that funding includes more than $624,000 that is being earmarked for the commission special elections.

Gambrill voted against the measure.

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Cobb to appeal court order for new commission elections

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Cobb County is appealing a recent court ruling ordering new commission elections, continuing a dispute over electoral maps at that’s nearly two years old.

The county issued a statement Tuesday saying it’s filed motions in Cobb Superior Court to become a party to a complaint filed in March against the Cobb Board of Elections and reverse an order by Judge Kellie Hill last month that invalidated primary elections for commission districts 2 and 4.

In the statement the county said its action is an attempt to reverse the order “to ensure proper legal procedures were followed and to protect the interests of Cobb County taxpayers.” The new action is asking that the May primary results stand.

The filings come several days after commissioners conducted an executive session that didn’t specify a reason.

Hill said that those elections were conducted using maps approved by the commission’s three Democrats and violated the Georgia Constitution.

The county maps were approved under a claim of home rule. But in her ruling, issued July 26, Hill backed up a January ruling by Cobb Superior Court Judge Ann Harris that only the Georgia legislature can conduct county reapportionment.

Kennesaw-area resident Alicia Adams had filed a complaint against the elections board—not the county—after being disqualified as a Republican candidate in District 2 under the home rule maps, which include some of East Cobb. She lives within the District 2 boundaries in the legislative maps.

“The Court, having ruled the Home Rule Map unconstitutional in the companion appeal finds the Plaintiff has a clear legal right to seek qualification for the Cobb County Commission, Post 2, using the Legislative Map, if qualified, to run for a special primary in that post,” Hill states in the ruling.

That decision invalidate the District 2 and 4 primaries until most likely after the November general elections. The terms of Democratic commissioners Jerica Richardson and Monique Sheffield, respectively, expire in December.

In its filings Monday, the county referenced the rights of voters in the two affected districts, saying new elections would be “disruptive and contrary to the public interest” to change the maps with the general election so close.

New elections could deprive voters in those areas of elected representation possibly in June of next year, and hit taxpayers with the cost of special elections, the county is now arguing.

“I am hopeful the judge in this matter can provide clarity in responding to our county attorney’s inquiries on behalf of our Board,” said Cobb Commission Chairwoman Lisa Cupid, a Democrat, in the county’s statement on Tuesday.

She’s on the November ballot seeking a second term. Sheffield won her District 4 Democratic primary easily, and would have been unopposed in November.

In District 2, former Cobb school board member Jaha Howard won the Democratic primary, and East Cobb resident Pamela Reardon qualified under the home rule maps. Hill’s order would disqualify Reardon.

Richardson, who was drawn out of her East Cobb home in District 2 under the legislative maps—triggering the long-drawn-out-dispute—decided not to seek re-election and ran unsuccessfully for 6th District Congress.

East Cobb News has left a message with Richardson seeking comment.

The two Republican commissioners, Keli Gambrill of North Cobb and JoAnn Birrell of District 3 in East Cobb, oppose the county’s new legal filings (their terms expire at the end of 2026).

Birrell was re-elected in 2022 under legislative maps that placed most of her district in East Cobb.

Both GOP representatives have filed statements at each board business meeting since January 2023 stating their objections to the home rule maps.

Cupid, Richardson and Sheffield voted in October 2022 to approve the home rule maps to conduct county business. The Cobb elections board decided earlier this year to follow those same maps for the primaries.

The county is no longer arguing for the validity of its maps, but the process for determining how two of its district commissioners will be chosen by voters.

“While the county agreed it would return to the state legislative map in a lawful and orderly manner, the motions were filed to ensure proper legal procedures were followed and to protect the interests of Cobb County taxpayers,” the county’s statement Tuesday states.

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New Cobb commission elections ordered in redistricting ruling

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New Cobb commission elections ordered in redistricting ruling
Alicia Adams speaking at a recent Cobb Board of Commissioners meeting.

New elections to fill two seats on the Cobb Board of Commissioners were ordered on Thursday by a Cobb Superior Court judge, who threw out recent primary results in deciding a long-standing electoral map dispute.

Judge Kellie Hill said in her ruling that the May 21 primaries as well as a June runoff for one of the seats were conducted using electoral maps that violate the Georgia Constitution.

She said the commission’s Democratic majority was not authorized to approve “home rule” maps in 2022 that were used by the Cobb Board of Elections and Registration this year because reapportionment is a function of the Georgia legislature.

Hill said that special primaries and special elections for seats in District 2—which had included some of East Cobb—and District 4 in South Cobb will be necessary following the November elections, using maps approved by the General Assembly in 2022.

She waited until after the Georgia Supreme Court threw out a separate lawsuit on a technicality in May to hear a different complaint against the Cobb elections board.

In her decision Thursday, Hill ruled on an appeal by a Republican candidate, Alicia Adams, who had been disqualified for the District 2 race under the home rule maps.

(You can read Hill’s ruling by clicking here.)

Adams lives within those boundaries under the legislative maps, but East Cobb resident Mindy Seger, a Democratic activist and ally of current District 2 Cobb Commissioner Jerica Richardson, challenged her qualification under the home rule maps.

The elections board ruled Adams didn’t qualify under the home rule maps.

Hill referenced a ruling in January by Cobb Superior Court Judge Ann Harris in another case that the home rule maps were unconstitutional.

“The Court, having ruled the Home Rule Map unconstitutional in the companion appeal finds the Plaintiff has a clear legal right to seek qualification for the Cobb County Commission, Post 2, using the Legislative Map, if qualified, to run for a special primary in that post,” Hill states in the ruling.

“The Court finds that the Plantiff is entitled to a writ of mandamus requiring the Cobb BOER to cease using the Home Rule Map for future elections and qualification purposes” as well as requiring the special elections.

The Cobb elections board said in a statement Friday that it would schedule those elections “as soon as practicable afterwards” but didn’t indicate when that might be.

Proposed Cobb commission redistricting map
The Cobb “home rule” maps included some of East Cobb in District 2 (in pink) in an election that was on the May primary ballot.

Most voters in East Cobb who cast ballots in the District 2 primary and runoff will not be able to do so in the special elections because the legislative-approved maps are now in force.

Democrat Jaha Howard, a former member of the Cobb Board of Education, won a Democratic runoff in District 2. The only Republican on the primary ballot was Pamela Reardon of East Cobb.

But Reardon won’t be able to run in the special election because she lives in District 3 under the legislative maps.

The legislative maps have most of East Cobb in District 3, represented by Republican JoAnn Birrell. District 2 includes most of the Cumberland-Smyrna-Vinings area, as well as the I-75 corridor north to Marietta and the Town Center area.

 

The commission Democrats decided to test the home rule provision after Cobb Republican legislators ignored maps drawn up by the Democrat-led county legislative delegation that would have kept Jerica Richardson, one of those Democrats, in her seat.

The legislative maps drew Richardson out of her home in East Cobb, and commissioners voted 3-2 along partisan lines in October 2022 to follow the delegation maps.

Cobb GOP BOC redistricting map
Cobb commission maps passed by the Georgia legislature include most of East Cobb in District 3 (gold).

In a statement issued Friday, the Cobb elections board said that Hill’s order “confirmed the Board of Elections’ long stated position that it did not have authority to declare the Home Rule Map resolution unconstitutional of its own accord.”

With the legal issues pending, Richardson ran for Congress in May, but lost in the Democratic primary to U.S. Rep. Lucy McBath in the 6th District.

Howard was one of five Democrats running in the primary to succeed Richardson, along with former State Rep. Erick Allen, who drew up what became known as the home rule maps.

In District 4, current first-term Democratic commissioner Monique Sheffield won the May primary, and was facing no Republican opposition in November.

But she’ll have to qualify and run again in the new special primary and election for that seat.

Those are the only two district seats up this year. The race for Cobb Commission Chair is unaffected, since it’s countywide. Democratic Chairwoman Lisa Cupid is seeking a second term against Republican Kay Morgan in November.

The terms of the commission’s two Republicans, Birrell and Keli Gambrill—an initial plaintiff in the lawsuit thrown out by the Georgia Supreme Court—run through 2026.

Cupid said in a statement on Friday that “I respect the judge’s ruling and we are assessing how to move forward.”

Cobb government spokesman Ross Cavitt told East Cobb News later Friday in response to a question if the county would appeal by saying that “there has been no discussion at this point about any further legal action.”

It remains unclear what would happen when the District 2 and District 4 terms expire at the end of the year, since elections are unlikely to be called before then.

And it’s also uncertain if Richardson will have to step down before her term expires at the end of the year, since district commissioners must reside within those boundaries.

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Cobb warns of text scam to apply for an absentee ballot

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Cobb County government sent out this message on Wednesday afternoon:Cobb warns of text scam to apply for an absentee ballot

Several people have contacted Cobb’s Elections Department, saying they received text messages urging them to apply for an absentee ballot. The text messages appear to be coming from a Cobb Elections phone number and point recipients to the Secretary of State’s absentee ballot request page.

While the link is legitimate, the text messages are NOT from Cobb Elections, and the phone number is a spoof.  Cobb County Elections currently does not send out unsolicited voting information via text messages.

The incident has been reported to the state, and Cobb Information Technology Services (ITS) and others are investigating.

Important Safety Tips:

Do not click on links in emails or texts unless you know the sender’s identity.

Spoof websites can look identical to the real ones. Always verify by typing the URL directly into your browser.

Read more about spoofing, scams, and other cyber security here: https://www.cobbcounty.org/police/news/technology-scamsinformation

Stay vigilant and protect your personal information!

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Trump campaign volunteer group opens East Cobb office

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A new voter initiative by the presidential campaign of former President Donald Trump, Trump Force 47, opened an office in East Cobb this week.Trump campaign volunteer group opening East Cobb office

An opening event took place Wednesday at the office, located at 2440 Sandy Plains Road, Building 10.

Trump Force 47 is a canvassing effort to mobilize volunteers to get out the vote for Trump in key battleground states. A similar field office is opening this week in Woodstock, and others are rolling out in other states where the presidential race is expected to be competitive.

The statewide Trump Force 47 effort is organized by the Republican National Committee and the Georgia Republican Party.

The Trump Force 47 organization was created after Trump’s guilty verdict in a hush-money trial in New York last month. One estimate by the campaign claimed it raised $35 million after the conviction.

Trump has been lagging behind Biden’s campaign in fundraising, but a recent report says the Trump campaign now has more cash on hand.

The Cobb field office for Trump opens shortly after the Biden campaign opened a Cobb office near Kennestone Hospital in Marietta.

Georgia is expected to be a decisive factor in presidential voting, especially metro Atlanta suburbs that once were strongly Republican. The candidates held their first debate Wednesday in Atlanta in an event organized by CNN.

Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris has been campaigning frequently in Georgia in recent weeks, and polls released last week had Trump leading Biden 45-41 percent in the state.

Cobb has been a focal point, after being strongly Republican since the 1980s. Hillary Clinton and Biden have won the county in 2016 and 2020, with parts of East Cobb and West Cobb favoring Trump.

Biden defeated Trump in Georgia in 2020 by fewer than 12,000 votes, according to certified results. But Trump and some Georgia Republicans have disputed those figures, claiming election fraud.

Trump and other defendants have been indicted in Fulton County on charges of racketeering activities to attempt to illegally overturn the Georgia results.

Trump is trying to get Fulton District Attorney Fani Willis disqualified, and his case has been put on hold temporarily.

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Cobb Commissioner District 2 Democratic runoff results

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Cobb Commissioner District 2 Democratic runoff results

Updated, 10:24 pm:

According to final, unofficial results, Howard received 73 percent of the vote with all 37 precincts reporting.

Howard tallied 1,738 votes to 641 for Whorton, and he won 35 of the 37 precincts.

The Georgia Secretary of State’s Office has updated results at this link. They must be certified by the Cobb Board of Elections.

Howard advances to the November general election, but it is unclear what the District 2 boundaries will look like and who the Republican candidate may be.

For the primary and runoff, District 2 included a good portion of East Cobb, but the electoral maps are under a legal dispute that could change them.

There was a hearing Thursday in Cobb Superior Court before Judge Kellie Hill on that matter. Afterwards, the Cobb Board of Elections asked for a delay in the District 2 and District 4 commission general elections slated for November, until after the matter is resolved in the courts.

Democratic first-term Commissioner Jerica Richardson was drawn out of her seat during legislative reapportionment in 2022, and she and her Democratic colleagues are observing maps drawn by the Cobb delegation, citing “home rule” powers that apply to local governments.

Most of East Cobb was included in the legislative maps in District 3, which is represented by Republican JoAnn Birrell, who was re-elected to a fourth term in 2022.

Richardson opted to run for the 6th Congressional District, but was routed in the May 21 primary by incumbent Democrat Lucy McBath.

In the District 2 maps being observed by the Cobb commissioners and Cobb Elections Board, the only Republican to qualify is Pamela Reardon, a local GOP activist.

In the legislative map, Reardon lives in District 3 and could be disqualified if those boundaries change.

But another Republican, Alicia Adams of the Kennesaw area, is challenging the county-observed maps after being disqualified. She filed to run according to the District 2 legislative maps.

But East Cobb Democratic activist Mindy Seger challenged her qualification based on residency requirements, and the Cobb Elections Board concurred.

Adams has appealed that decision in Cobb Superior Court. Hill asked for oral arguments following a recent decision by the Georgia Supreme Court to dismiss a lawsuit filed by two Cobb residents against the county “home rule” maps.

Another Cobb judge, Ann Harris, ruled in January that the county maps were unconstitutional, saying only the legislature can conduct reapportionment, and that home rule powers do not include redistricting.

The county appealed the Harris ruling, and the state’s high court reversed it, concluding that the plaintiffs didn’t have standing.

Near the end of its ruling, the Supreme Court did acknowledge that there are “very serious Constitutional issues” with the county commission Democrats’ adoption of the “home rule” maps.

But Adams’ legal challenge could prompt a ruling on the legal merits of the county “home rule” maps, possibly before the general election.

It’s possible the District 2 primary and runoff results could be thrown out and new elections ordered before November.

Original post:

The polls have closed in Tuesday’s runoff elections that includes the Democratic Party race for District 2 on the Board of Commissioners.

Jaha Howard and Taniesha Whorton were vying for the right to earn a spot on the November ballot.

Democrats hold a 3-2 edge on the commission. Chairwoman Lisa Cupid and Commissioner Monique Sheffield, both Democrats, are up for re-election in November.

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Ex-Cobb school board member eyes county commission seat

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Ex-Cobb school board member eyes county commission seat
“People still say they appreciate me,” Jaha Howard said. “Conflict is connected to real solutions.”

After turning heads—and occasionally clashing with his colleagues and school district leaders—during his single term on the Cobb Board of Education, Jaha Howard is sounding a more low-key tone as he campaigns for an open seat on the Cobb Board of Commissioners.

Howard finished first in a five-way Democratic primary with 33 percent of the vote on May 21, and will be facing first-time candidate Taniesha Whorton (previous story here) in Tuesday’s runoff election.

(Here’s Howard’s campaign website.)

Both live in the Smyrna area of District 2, whose boundaries are being disputed in the courts following a reapportionment battle that drew incumbent Jerica Richardson out of her seat.

And both are actively seeking votes in East Cobb in the early hot summer amid low turnout.

Howard sees it as an opportunity to do some serious ground-level retail campaigning.

“There’s a lot of direct connection with voters who tend to vote,” he said in an interview with East Cobb News earlier this week. “We’re having the most success calling voters in East Cobb.”

He said the personal conversations have been fruitful, and his campaign has been targeting seniors with direct mail.

“People in East Cobb were paying a lot of attention over the last few years,” Howard said, referring to his school board tenure, which lasted from 2019-2022.

A precinct map shows polling stations won by Howard in Green, Whorton in brown, Allen in blue and Kevin Redmon in turquoise. Click here to see precinct details. .

“They appreciated that we were asking questions that they wanted answers to.”

Howard—whose school board campaign for Post 2 in the Smyrna area was managed by Richardson—was a central figure in a number of controversies, including demands for greater equity and diversity initiatives in the Cobb County School District, the district’s COVID response and racial disparities.

In 2021, Howard and the board’s two other Democrats, include Charisse Davis—who represented the Walton and Wheeler clusters—requested a special review from the district’s accrediting agency (which ultimately reversed its findings).

That set off several more months of open sparring during 2022, during which Howard gave up his seat and ran unsuccessfully for Georgia School Superintendent.

In reflecting on his school board tenure, Howard said that the political change that’s come to Cobb in recent years has been difficult for some.

(Republican dominance in local government since the late 1980s is now down to a single seat on the school board.)

“For people who did not want to hear honest conversations, it was divisive,” Howard said. “It depends on how you see it.”

He said that on the other hand, he’s been told that he and his Democratic school board upstarts “were a breath of fresh air. People still say that they appreciate me. Conflict is connected to real solutions.”

Howard said his campaign priorities for commissioner are public safety and economic development.

“The people who take care of us,” he said in reference to first responders, “need to be taken care of” in terms of salaries, housing and health services and related resources.

As for local small business growth, Howard—whose pediatric dentistry practice in Vinings has grown from 3 to 20 employees—said “we need to make sure entrepreneurs have what they need.”

He didn’t outline specifics for those areas, or for other hot-button issues that have galvanized citizens recently.

After leaving the school board, Howard was appointed to the Cobb Transit Advisory Board by Chairwoman Lisa Cupid.

Howard said he supports expanding transit, but was initially concerned about the 30-year length of the transit tax referendum that’s being put on the November ballot. But that length was necessary to qualify for federal funding.

“I’m a big fan of investing in our infrastructure,” he said. “What we need to have are better and clearer communications about our vision—what the projects are, and how it benefits us.”

Howard said other issues he’s stressing as he campaigns are the effects of inflation as they pertain to county employees.

“We have to be able to keep up with that,” he said, referencing the county’s challenge of hiring and retaining personnel.

“That’s going to come at a cost.”

But as citizens continue to grapple with rising property tax assessments—those bills just went out a few weeks ago—Howard acknowledged  that it’s “one of the first things that comes up. It’s a shock, how rapidly” assessments have gone up over the last 2-3 years.

When asked if he favors rolling back the millage rate to offset those increases, Howard said that “we have to put all options on the table” with the objective “to put the least burden on homeowners.”

Commissioners delayed voting on a proposed stormwater tax until August after community opposition. Howard said he understands the pain taxpayers are feeling on a number of fronts, but “we’ve kicked the can down the road” for far too long to address a stormwater system that needs to be upgraded.

“At some p0int, we’re going to have to deal with it,” he said. “There’s no easy way out of a shared responsibility.”

While the partisan squabbles on the commission have taken on a different dynamic than the school board, Howard believes there’s nothing wrong with a healthy difference of opinion.

“Some people might see doom and gloom” when observing those open disputes, he said, but it’s good to “hear them out loud in a constructive way.”

But he asserts the priority should be for the board to determine “what’s right and what’s best for our county.”

Howard admitted that regardless of the issues, including housing affordability and zoning and development, that “people still want Cobb to thrive.”

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District 2 Cobb Commission Democratic runoff decided Tuesday

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District 2 Cobb Commission Democratic runoff decided Tuesday
The District 2 map with precincts identified by code. For a larger view, click here.

Voters in East Cobb will help determine the Democratic Party candidate for District 2 on the Cobb Board of Commissioners in Tuesday’s runoff election.

Voters will cast ballots at their regular precincts from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. They must provide a photo or other official form of identification when they get to the polls.

The candidates are Jaha Howard, a former member of the Cobb Board of Education, and Taniesha Whorton, a former administrative assistant with the Cobb County Police Department.

They finished first and second, respectively, in a five-way primary on May 21.

Turnout has been light, with fewer than 1,000 casting votes in the advance voting period for the runoff last week.

District 2 is an open seat after current first-term Democrat Jerica Richardson decided to run for Congress.

She finished far behind current U.S. Rep. Lucy McBath in the Democratic primary for the 6th District.

Richardson was drawn out of her commission seat during reapportionment. She and the other two Democratic commissioners approved other maps that would place most of East Cobb in District 3.

It’s unclear at the moment who else will be running in District 2 in the general election in November.

Republican Alicia Adams filed to run in District 2 under the legislative maps, but was disqualified due to the map disputes.

She is challenging her disqualification in Cobb Superior Court, and a hearing is scheduled next Thursday before Judge Kellie Hill.

Cobb Republican activist Pamela Reardon qualified to run in the District 2 boundaries that are being observed for the Democratic Party.

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Cobb voters to decide on 30-year transit sales tax in November

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Cobb voters to decide on 30-year transit sales tax in November
“Let’s give the voters the opportunity to decide,” Cobb Commission Chairwoman Lisa Cupid said.

Cobb commissioners voted along party lines Tuesday to place a long-term transit sales tax referendum on the November general election ballot.

It will be up to voters to decide if they want to tax themselves for 30 years and collect nearly $11 billion to build out a comprehensive bus-centered system, including restoration of previous routes in East Cobb that were eliminated more than a decade ago.

The commission’s three Democrats voted in favor of putting the Special-Purpose Local-Option Sales Tax on the ballot, while the two Republicans voted against.

If approved, the one-percent tax would increase the amount of sales taxes paid in Cobb from six to seven percent. Cobb DOT would build out a countywide bus transit system, including high-capacity routes and transfer stations, adding 108 miles.

Here’s how the referendum will be worded on the November ballot:

The Atlanta Regional Commission estimates that Cobb’s population in 2025 will approach one million.

Those in favor of the tax say that relieving congestion and providing transportation for those without vehicles is necessary for economic and quality of life, especially seniors and those who are financially challenged.

Among the priorities is re-establishing a bus route through the heart of East Cobb, from Marietta and along Roswell Road to the Johnson Ferry Road area, where a transit center would be built.

Bus routes to Roswell and the MARTA Dunwoody Station would link with the East Cobb transit center in the Merchants Walk area, according to the project list (you can read it here).

Chairwoman Lisa Cupid, in calling the opportunity to expand public transportation in Cobb “transformational,” implored her colleagues to let citizens decide their future.

“What it comes down to is do we perceive that the future is worth it?” Cupid said. “That the opportunity is worth it?  Yes, the details do matter, but the opportunity and the vision also matter.”

But Commissioner JoAnn Birrell of District 3 in East Cobb repeated her objection to the duration of the tax, compared to other Cobb SPLOST collections ranging from four to six years.

“I can’t support binding not just future boards for 30 years but citizens, kids and grandchildren,” she said. “They’ll be paying that.”

Cobb DOT Director Drew Raessler explained that the 30-year length of the cost is due to the substantial operational costs that will be involved, and that the longer collection period would qualify for federal matching funds.

In order to provide “sustainable funding,” he said, a transit program needs “to have that consistent resource,” Raessler said.

If the tax is approved, Cobb would take out revenue bonds totalling $11 billion to get the program started. Once the collections roll in, the major routes would be built out and the bonds be repaid. With federal funds, Cobb could spend nearly $15 billion overall for the transit expansion.

Raessler estimated that most of that work would be finished within the first decade. Cobb would be able to fund all transit operations with the sales tax, instead of paying for the Cobb Community Transit system costs as it does now, through the county’s general fund.

Earlier this year, the MDJ reported that ridership across the overall Cobb bus system has plummeted from 3.7 million annual trips in 2014 to just under 1 million trips in 2022, and that the decline began well before COVID-19.

The county estimates that average daily ridership on the transit system could surpass 40,000 by 2025, near the end of the sales tax period. Currently, that figure is only around 3,000 riders a day.

Citizens spoke in public comment periods on both sides of the issue, but most of the supporters addressed the board before the vote, and opponents against (commissioners hold two separate public comment periods, and speakers speak in order of when they sign up).

Jim Kerr of East Cobb, who has lived in a home near Wheeler High School for 52 years, said “it’s time to think long-term about transportation in Cobb County.”

He said that while he will benefit little from a decision to approve a sales tax for transit, “I know that Cobb is becoming older and more diverse and that’s not going to change . . . Not in my backyard fails to recognize that we are all in this together. ”

Kennesaw resident Alicia Adams said a 30-year tax poses too much uncertainty, especially for people struggling to pay their bills now.

Alicia Adams of Kennesaw, who is legally challenging her disqualification for the District 2 commission race, said wasn’t speaking for or against the tax, but sympathized with citizens who are struggling with those making ends meet.

“Right now, there are a lot of families that can barely make their rent and pay for groceries,” she said. “And you’re asking them to pay additional money.

“Do I care about those who can’t get around? The seniors? Yes, I care,” she said. “But we’ve got to do it in a way that’s not invasive.

“Are we willing to put our children, our future at stake for 30 years of uncertainty?”

Cobb DOT officials will soon roll out public information and “education” sessions before the referendum. It also must provide a ridership survey ahead of the vote, as directed by the ATL, the Atlanta-Region Transit Link Authority.

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Advance voting in Cobb commission runoff through Friday

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From Cobb County government:East Cobb advance voting

Advance in-person voting starts today, Monday, June 10, for the General and Nonpartisan runoff election. Three voting locations will be open 7 a.m. – 7 p.m. Monday -Friday, June 10-14:

  • Elections Main Headquarters, 995 Roswell Street NE, Marietta
  • East Cobb Government Center, 4400 Lower Roswell Road, Marietta
  • Ben Robertson Community Center, 2753 Watts Drive, Kennesaw

The May election resulted in two runoffs in the Democratic contest:

The runoff date is Tuesday, June 18.<
Only those who voted using the Democratic ballot in the May 21 race, voted nonpartisan, or did not cast a ballot in the May 21 election are eligible to vote in this runoff.

Click https://bit.ly/2LE9WAH for more information.

Last week East Cobb News profiled Taniesha Whorton, one of the Commission District 2 Democratic runoff candidates. Shortly we’ll be posting our interview with her opponent, Jaha Howard.

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Cobb commission candidate qualifies for runoff in surprise

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Cobb commission candidate qualifies for runoff in surprise
Taniesha Whorton said she’s focusing her campaign efforts on the East Cobb area of District 2 in the June 18 runoff.

There were only a few upsets in Cobb results in the May 21 primary elections, and Taniesha Whorton’s finish in a five-way race for an open seat on the Cobb Board of Commissioners was among them.

A former administrative assistant in the Cobb County Police Department, the Smyrna-area resident finished second in the Democratic race for District 2 in her first-ever political campaign.

She outpolled former State Rep. Erick Allen and will face former Cobb school board member Jaha Howard in the runoff, which culminates on June 18.

The District 2 boundaries that are being observed by the Cobb Board of Elections include some of East Cobb, and are those adopted by Cobb’s Democratic commissioners in a home-rule dispute that continues in the courts.

Here’s Whorton’s campaign website; East Cobb News also has arranged an interview with Howard through his campaign and will be publishing that next week.

Advance runoff voting begins next week, and Whorton was out campaigning on Sunday at East Cobb Park, handing out fliers and meeting with potential voters during a concert.

In the primary, she won several East Cobb precincts, including Roswell 1, Hightower 1, Sewell Mill 1, Sewell Mill 3, Sope Creek 1, Sope Creek 2, Fullers Park 1, Mt. Bethel 4, Powers Ferry 1, Terrell Mill 1 and Chattahoochee 1.

You can view the full results by clicking here.

Cobb commission candidate qualifies for runoff in surprise
A precinct map shows polling stations won by Howard in Green, Whorton in brown, Allen in blue and Kevin Redmon in turquoise. Click here to see precinct details. 

Whorton said she worked on political campaigns in her native Michigan. An ordained minister, she moved to Georgia in 2016 to work with the Faith Christian Center Church in Austell, and also got involved in the Cobb Police Athletic League.

Now a senior executive with Bader Scott Injury Lawyers, Whorton—who holds an economics degree as well as an MBA and a master’s in government affairs—said she decided to get out from a behind-the-scenes role in a campaign and offer up herself as a candidate.

“People have told me that I have a lot to offer the county,” Whorton said. “I wanted to step out of the shadows.”

Whorton ran a bare-bones campaign in the primary, raising less than $3,000 (with nearly half of that sum a loan from herself).

Fewer than 12,00 votes were cast in District 2. Howard got 33 percent of the vote, and Whorton edged Allen with 25 percent, to his 23 percent.

She didn’t have the name recognition of Howard and Allen (who drew the disputed District 2 maps that are being used).

But low turnout may have helped some of the other candidates who upset incumbents, including Cobb legislative delegation chairwoman Teri Anulewicz, who was defeated in a Smyrna State House race.

Whorton said that based on some interactions with voters, “I think people related to me. I get up and got to work every day, and I know how to stretch my resources.”

What she said she’s hearing from voters are frustrations over stormwater issues (a proposed fee was delayed by commissioners until August after citizen opposition) and transit issues.

As for the former, Whorton said she favors “a sustainable plan where residents are not bearing all the burden.”

Whorton has lived in Detroit, Dallas and Chicago, and said she appreciates that mobility concerns are important in some parts of Cobb.

She didn’t offer an opinion on the proposed Cobb Mobility Transit Tax referendum that could be on the November ballot.

Cobb Commission Chairwoman Lisa Cupid favors a 30-year, one-percent sales tax that would generate an estimated $11 billion.

Whorton said she “hasn’t dug into the issue to see if it could be shorter” and admitted that a 30-year tax might be regarded as being too long.

She said she’s focusing on reaching out to voters in East Cobb, mindful that the boundaries could still be in limbo.

Current District 2 commissioner Jerica Richardson was drawn out during reapportionment and decided to run for Congress (losing to U.S. Rep. Lucy McBath in the 6th District Democratic primary).

The only Republican candidate to qualify is Pam Reardon, but she resides in the District 3 that was redistricted by the legislature. Another GOP hopeful, Alicia Adams, is challenging her disqualification by the Cobb Elections Board, also based on the disputed maps.

Whorton—who like Howard resides in District 2 either way—said she hopes the matter will be resolved by November.

“It will be good for the voters” to have some clarity when they go to the polls, she said.

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Fundraiser set for Republican Cobb school board candidates

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Fundraiser set for Republican Cobb school board candidates
John Cristadoro

U.S. Rep. Barry Loudermilk and local legislators are the hosts of a fundraiser next week for three Republicans running for the Cobb Board of Education.

According to a “Cobb County School Board Town Hall Newsletter” sent out Monday by GOP school board member David Chastain, the event, dubbed “Keeping Cobb Schools Strong,” will take place Monday, June 10, at the 1885 Grill (4975 North Main Street, Acworth) from 6:30-8 p.m.

The host committee includes State Sens. Kay Kirkpatrick and John Albers (who have East Cobb constituencies) and Ed Setzler, as well as State Reps. Ginny Ehrhart and Devan Seabaugh.

Chastain is not up for re-election, but the other three school board seats held by Republicans are. The GOP has held a 4-3 majority since 2019 as partisan antagonisms have grown on a number of issues.

That includes Post 5 in East Cobb, where four-term incumbent David Banks is retiring from office. The lone Republican to qualify for the Nov. 8 election is Walton cluster parent John Cristadoro.

Cristadoro will face Democrat Laura Judge, also a Walton parent. Both are first-time candidates and declared their intent to run last spring.

In the May 21 primary, in which they were both unopposed, Cristadoro received 6,369 votes to 5,262 for Judge.

Until the 2018 elections, Republicans held a firm grip on local control in Cobb County government and the school board (6-1 majority) as well as the Cobb legislative delegation.

But the school board is all the GOP controls today.

Monday’s e-mail message from Chastain (from a Google e-mail address outside of the Cobb school district and referencing his Post 4 in Northeast Cobb) alluded to what’s at stake.

Cristadoro appeared in a short video thanking supporters for campaign contributions and noting the legislators who will be in attendance, especially Loudermilk, whose 11th District includes East Cobb.

“We’re bringing out the big guns,” Cristadoro said. “Why? They truly believe, as do I, of the importance of our schools, and what the future holds for our youngsters. That needs to be protected.

“There are lots of outside influences, national groups, that are going to come in and push their political agenda. It’s already being seen.”

He didn’t specify the groups or what those issues might be (East Cobb News has left a message seeking comment), but similar charges were made in 2022 when Chastain defeated Democrat Catherine Pozniak in a bitter campaign.

Two GOP incumbents are seeking re-election. Chairman Randy Scamihorn of Post 1 in North Cobb is being opposed by Vickie Benson in a rematch from the 2020 election, and he received only 96 more votes in their unopposed primary.

Brad Wheeler of Post 7 in West Cobb had a close re-election in 2020. His foe is Democrat Andrew Cole, and in their unopposed primary, Cole 6,637 votes to 5,602 for Wheeler.

Cole is a member of the Cobb Community Care Coalition that is highly critical of the Republican majority and Cobb County School District Superintendent Chris Ragsdale.

Scamihorn, a former Cobb educator who is completing his third term, is pledging his commitment to “keeping our students safe” as well as “keeping inappropriate books out of schools.”

That’s a reference to several books that were removed from Cobb school libraries during the 2023-24 school year due to sexually explicit content.

Wheeler, also a former Cobb teacher, is touting the same priorities.

The only Democrat on the November ballot is Post 3 incumbent Tre’ Hutchins, who is unopposed and had no primary opposition.

In his e-mail Monday, Chastain said that “I urge you to support leaders who embody common sense and a steadfast commitment to our community’s well-being.”

For information and to RSVP contact KeepStrongSchools4Cobb@gmail.com.

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East Cobb Votes: District Attorney upset; Commission runoff

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East Cobb Votes: District Attorney upset; Commission runoff
L-R: Lisa Cupid; Flynn Broady; Jaha Howard

UPDATED, TUESDAY, 10:10 A.M.:

Cobb Commission Chairwoman Lisa Cupid easily won her Democratic Party Primary on Tuesday, defeating Shelia Edwards with more than 69 percent of the vote.

(View results here)

In November, Cupid will face Kay Morgan, the only Republican to qualify.

The Democratic runoff in District 2, which includes some of East Cobb, will feature former Cobb school board member Jaha Howard and Taniesha Whorton, who edged out former State Rep. Erick Allen.

(View results here)

In District 4, first-term incumbent Democrat Monique Sheffield earned a second term, defeating Yashica Marshall with 73 percent of the vote. No Republicans qualified for the seat that includes South Cobb.

Coming later this week, we’ll have more results and breakdowns of the primary elections, including Congress, the Georgia legislature and judicial races.

Updated 10:45 p.m.:

With 97 percent of the vote reporting, Sonya Allen has defeated Cobb District Attorney Flynn Broady in the Democratic primary.

Allen, a deputy district attorney in Fulton County, has 24,303 votes to 20,164 for Broady, a first term incumbent who prevailed in several East Cobb precincts.

No Republican qualified for the general election.

The Democratic primary for Cobb Commission District 2 is going to a June 18 runoff.

Former Cobb school board member Jaha Howard has 32 percent of the vote with all 39 precincts reporting.

Taniesha Whorton has 25 percent of the vote and former State Rep. Erick Allen has 23 percent.

More details and full results will be posted on Wednesday.

Updated 9:50 pm:

Most Cobb incumbents in contested primaries are enjoying comfortable margins in early returns.

The exception is District Attorney Flynn Broady, who is in a tight race in the Democratic primary with Sonya Allen.

The Democratic primary for Cobb Board of Commissioners District 2, which includes some of East Cobb, appears headed for a runoff.

Former Cobb Board of Education member Jaha Howard has around 32 per of the vote, with former State Rep. Erick Allen and Taniesha Whorton competing for second.

Original Report:

The polls have closed in Georgia, and the counting has begun for the 2024 primary elections.

East Cobb News will continuously update this post all evening with results, reaction and more coverage.

You can find all Cobb results, including contested primaries for Cobb Commission chair, district attorney, Sheriff, Superior Court Clerk, tax commissioner, District 2 Cobb commission and others, at this link.

Those others appearing on the ballots of East Cobb voters include the 11th U.S. Congressional District, legislative seats and a number of contested judicial races.

You also can track all results around the state compiled by the Georgia Secretary of State’s Office by clicking here.

(Here’s our election day set-up post that breaks down key races and candidates at the local, state and federal level.

Typically early voting and absentee figures are tallied first, followed by same-day voting results and more recent absentee votes.

Earlier absentee ballots are expected to be counted rather quickly, as they have been processed to prepare for tabulation when the polls close.

While we await full results, we’ll post early voting and absentee figures as they are revealed.

Cobb Elections estimates the turnout Tuesday was around 10 percent.

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East Cobb 2024 primary election day voters guide and info

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Georgia runoff elections

Voters in East Cobb and throughout Georgia are voting today in the 2024 primary elections, choosing party candidates in a number of local, state and federal races, as well as non-partisan judicial seats.

The polls are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., and registered voters must to their designated precincts to cast a ballot (consolidated countywide sample ballots here).

There is a detour to reach the Murdock 01 precinct this morning, due to a road closure because of a gas main break.

You can find a list of contested primary races by clicking here; some may be decided in runoff elections to culminate June 18.

To check your polling station and which races will be on your ballot, visit the Georgia Secretary of State’s GA My Voter Page.

All voters must go to the polls with proof of identification (details here).

Absentee ballots also must be received at the Cobb Elections office, either in person or via mail, by 7 p.m. on Tuesday.

Cobb Elections officials estimate that around 29,000 votes were cast during the advance voting period the last three weeks.

East Cobb News will be providing coverage of Tuesday’s returns in a separate post to be published after 7 p.m.

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2024 Cobb primary election day preview: Candidates, ballots, more

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Georgia runoff elections

Advance voting is over in Cobb County and Georgia for the 2024 primaries, and on Tuesday will continue with election-day in-person voting at precincts.

Voters will chose Democratic, Republican or non-partisan ballots (consolidated countywide sample ballots here) in a variety of federal, state legislative and local races.

The polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., and voters standing in line by the time the polls close will be allowed to vote.

To check your polling station and which races will be on your ballot, visit the Georgia Secretary of State’s GA My Voter Page.

All voters must go to the polls with proof of identification (details here).

Here are the key contested races on the ballot for East Cobb voters; they do not include candidates who are running unopposed and will be on the general election ballot in November:

Cobb Commission Chairwoman (Democrat)

  • Lisa Cupid (incumbent), Shelia Edwards

Cobb Commission District 2 (Democrat)

  • Erick Allen, William Costa, Jaha Howard, Kevin Redmon, Taniesha Worton

Cobb District Attorney (Democrat)

  • Sonya Allen, Flynn Broady (incumbent)

Cobb Sheriff (Democrat)

  • Greg Gilstrap, Craig Owens (Democrat)

Cobb Sheriff (Republican)

  • David Cavender, Antaney Hogan, Ricci Mason

Cobb Superior Court Clerk (Democrat)

  • Brunessa Drayton, Carole Melton, Nick Simpson, Connie Taylor (incumbent)

Cobb Tax Commissioner (Democrat)

  • Jan Becker, Carla Jackson (incumbent)

U.S. House District 11 (Republican)

  • Barry Loudermilk (incumbent), Lori Pesta, Michael Pons

U.S. House District 11 (Democrat)

  • Antonio Daza, Katy Stamper

State Senate District 32 (Republican)

  • Ben Fremer, Kay Kirkpatrick (incumbent)

State Senate District 33 (Democrat)

  • Euriel Hemmerly, Michael “Doc” Rhett (incumbent)

Georgia Supreme Court (Non-Partisan)

  • John Barrow, Andrew Prinson (incumbent)

Georgia Court of Appeals (Non-Partisan)

  • Jeff Davis, Tabitha Ponder

Cobb Superior Court Judge (Non-Partisan)

  • Sylvia Goldman, Julie Jacobs (incumbent)

Cobb State Court Judge, Post 7 (Non-Partisan)

  • Carl Bowers (incumbent), Matt McMaster, Crystal Stevens McElrath

Cobb Probate Court Judge (Non-Partisan)

  • Rebecca Keaton, Kellie Wolk (incumbent)

The two major parties also will have a number of party questions on their ballots that are non-binding: Democrat and Republican.

Please Note: Voters who ask for a non-partisan ballot will not be able to vote for either Democratic or Republican candidates. The non-partisan ballot contains only state and local judicial candidates.

Primaries that are not decided on Tuesday will go to a runoff to be concluded on June 18.

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Cobb redistricting lawsuit dismissed by Ga. Supreme Court

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Lower Roswell Road project delayed again
Jerica Richardson

As early voting in the Georgia primaries continues, the Georgia Supreme Court gave some clarity about how Cobb Board of Commissioners electoral maps will look—for the time being.

In a unanimous ruling issued Thursday, the high court dismissed a lawsuit by a Cobb married couple challenging the county’s assertion of home rule powers in drawing commission maps.

But the court, which struck down concerns by David and Catherine Floam over the uncertainty of which commission district they live in, didn’t address their underlying claim—that the three Democrats on the Cobb commission violated the Georgia Constitution.

That’s an issue that apparently will have be addressed in a future legal action.

With the primary election set for May 21 and the general election in November, it appears that the county “home rule” maps will be used this year.

That includes keeping a portion of East Cobb (see map below) in District 2, which is one of three commission seats on the ballot in 2024.

“No declaratory relief lies here,” the court concluded in its ruling (which you can read here).

The Floams live in an area of North Cobb that had been in District 3 (represented by Northeast Cobb Republican JoAnn Birrell). Maps approved in 2022 by the Georgia legislature would have kept them there, and included most of East Cobb in District 3 (yellow on the map below).

But the three Democratic commissioners, in trying to keep first-term Democrat Jerica Richardson in her East Cobb home in District 2, decided on a novel challenge in October 2022 to use maps drawn up by then-State Rep. Erick Allen, at the time the head of the Cobb legislative delegation.

Proposed Cobb commission redistricting map
Cobb commission District 2 (in pink) for the time being includes parts of East Cobb.

Those maps put the Floams in District 1, represented by Republican commissioner Keli Gambrill.

Gambrill was a plaintiff in the original lawsuit filed in early 2023, claiming that the state Constitution authorizes only the legislature to conduct political reapportionment at the county level.

In January, Cobb Superior Court Judge Ann Harris—who dismissed Gambrill as a plaintiff, saying she lacked standing—ruled with the Floams, but the county appealed. The Supreme Court heard oral arguments in April, and ultimately decided they also didn’t have standing.

“The Floams may be uncertain as to whether they lawfully reside in District 1 or District 3, but this uncertainty, without more, is insufficient to support a declaration,” the Supreme Court ruled.

“The Floams must allege that they are at risk of taking some undirected future action incident to their rights and that such action might jeopardize their interests. They have failed to do so.

“By asking for a declaration that the BOC Amendment [the home rule vote] was illegal, the Floams are merely attempting to enforce rights that had already accrued and attempting to direct the future actions of the County, which is insufficient to state a claim for declaratory relief.”

Near the end of its ruling, the court did acknowledge that there are “very serious Constitutional issues with the BOC Amendment.”

Justice Charles Bethel, in a concurring opinion, noted his concern “about the possible effect of further delay” in determining the merits of Cobb’s decision.

“A delayed loss by Cobb could give rise to calamitous consequences inflicting serious expense and practical hardship on its citizens,” Bethel wrote. “Accordingly, I urge Cobb to act with all dispatch in obtaining a final answer on the legal merits of its chosen path.”

Bethel further speculated that “depending on the timeline of any future litigation, it would not be inconceivable for Cobb to find itself with three vacant Commission seats and the Commission unable to form a quorum, leaving its citizens without duly elected representation.”

He concluded his opinion by urging Cobb officials “to act with all due haste in securing finality.”

In a response issued by Cobb County Government, Cobb Commission Chairwoman Lisa Cupid said only that “I am pleased that the County has prevailed in our appeal.”

Richardson, who claimed the legislative maps were an “unprecedented” action in unseating an incumbent in mid-term, declared her run for the 6th Congressional District before the Supreme Court hearing.

She has not commented publicly on Thursday’s ruling.

But a hopeful seeking to succeed her, East Cobb Democrat Kevin Redmon, said Thursday that “we are relieved that the Georgia Supreme Court unanimously dismissed the lawsuit challenging the District 2 map based on standing.”

He’s a former member of Richardson’s “community cabinet” who is in a five-way primary. Among the other hopefuls is former Cobb Board of Education member Jaha Howard and Allen, who drew up the “home rule” maps that for the time being are official.

The only Republican seeking the District 2 seat is Pamela Reardon of East Cobb.

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Cobb commission candidates campaigning amid map confusion

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Pamela Reardon

Pamela Reardon doesn’t have another Republican to run against in her campaign for the District 2 seat on the Cobb Board of Commissioners.

Not after the Cobb Board of Elections disqualified another GOP hopeful for living outside the map boundaries that are being used for the May 21 primary.

Reardon, a retired real estate agent who’s active in local Republican politics, knows her name also could be scratched from the general election ballot if a long-running legal dispute over commission electoral maps is decided before November.

But she’s campaigning anyway, as two courts are mulling over where commission districts might be formed that affect the East Cobb area in particular.

“Until something changes, this is how it is,” Reardon told East Cobb News on Monday, as advance primary voting got underway. “I’m not going to take a chance and not be on the ballot.”

She lives in the East Cobb portion of the current District 2 boundaries that are being observed by Cobb Elections for the primary. The district also includes the Smyrna-Vinings-Cumberland area.

They’re roughly the same boundaries that make up the area Democrat Jerica Richardson has represented since 2021.

But the Georgia legislature drew Richardson out of her seat during reapportionment in 2022, prompting an unprecedented maneuver by the commission’s three Democrats to claim home rule authority in redistricting.

Their vote in October 2022 challenges a long-held Georgia Constitutional provision that only the legislature can conduct redistricting. A Cobb Superior Court judge recently ruled the Cobb action unconstitutional, but the county has appealed to the Georgia Supreme Court, and hearings were conducted earlier this month.

Another Cobb judge recently heard the appeal of Alicia Adams, a Republican who lives in what the legislature drew to be District 3, comprising most of East Cobb and part of the Kennesaw area, and who was disqualified from the primary.

In 2022, East Cobb voters found the District 3 race on their ballots, and Republican incumbent JoAnn Birrell was re-elected to a fourth term.

Cobb commissioners redistricting resolution
At left, maps recognized by Cobb Democratic commissioners, with District 2 in pink and District 3 in yellow. At right, maps approved in 2022 by the Republican-majority Georgia legislature.

While plenty of confusion abounds, Reardon thinks there’s more to come. She doesn’t believe either legal case will be decided before the primary, if at all.

“Are they really going to stop the primary? Do you really think that’s going to happen? No,” she said.

Five Democrats qualified for the District 2 seat after Richardson announced her candidacy for the 6th Congressional District.

Among them are two East Cobb residents, Will Costa and Kevin Redmon, the latter a former member of Richardson’s “community cabinet.” Another Democratic candidate is Taniesha Whorton, who lives in the Powers Ferry Road area that’s also in the county-recognized District 2.

They also could be affected by a court ruling along residency lines. Two other Democrats were disqualified by the Cobb Democratic Party for similar reasons: former Marietta City Council member Reggie Copeland and Marietta resident Donald Barth.

East Cobb News has left messages with Costa, Redmon and Whorton seeking comment.

Redmon’s campaign said in an e-mail response that “the courts have taken the posture of taking their time to get this right and we will respect their decision. As it stands today, the Home Rule map is what Cobb is operating under and what the Cobb Board of Elections is using for this election.

Richardson advisor declares intent for Cobb commission campaign
Kevin Redmon

“We’re out in the community at public and private events, knocking doors, meeting for coffee doing what it takes to show up for District 2,” the statement said. “[Redmon] will stand up for District 2 when elected. We encourage folks to vote on or before May 21.”

The other Democrats are in the Smyrna area that would be in District 2 either way: former Cobb Board of Education member Jaha Howard, and former State Rep. Erick Allen, who as Cobb legislative delegation chairman drew the maps the county is following.

Reardon finds it ironic that Cobb Democrats are fighting to redraw District 2 lines that include East Cobb. Richardson barely edged GOP nominee Fitz Johnson in 2020 with similar boundaries.

Reardon said she thinks District 2 as is and which previously was held for three terms by Republican Bob Ott, is “red.”

In the meantime, Reardon said she continues to canvass, not just in her own race but with other Republicans. She’s against the 30-year proposed Cobb transit tax that’s on the November ballot, wants the property tax millage rate to be rolled back, opposes a proposed stormwater impact fee and thinks the county needs to rein in spending.

“I’m not going to be devastated if they change the maps,” Reardon said, referring to what she calls “Home Rule 2,” adding that she’s considering a run in District 3 in 2026 (Redmon has filed a similar declaration of intent).

“I want to help give our citizens and the ordinary people of Cobb County a voice.”

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2024 advance primary voting in Cobb: Races; wait times; more

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Advance voting is underway in Cobb County in the 2024 Georgia primaries, and will continue for another three weeks.East Cobb advance voting

The locations include two in East Cobb, at the East Cobb Government Services Center (4400 Lower Roswell Road) and the Tim D. Lee Senior Center (3332 Sandy Plains Road).

Their hours are as follows:

  • April 29-May 3 from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
  • Saturday, May 4 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
  • May 6-10 from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
  • Saturday, May 11 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
  • May 13-17 from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.

The East Cobb Government Service Center will have a dropbox available on those dates, during those voting hours. Early voters also may go there for the two Sundays of advance voting, May 5 and May 12, from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m.

There several locations in the county where voters can cast their ballots ahead of the formal election day, May 21, and you can go to any location you choose.

You can get the latest updates on estimated wait-times at those polling locations by clicking here.

A we noted previously, there are a number of contested primaries involving incumbents at the federal, state and local levels.

They include Democratic races for Cobb Commission Chair, Cobb District Attorney, Cobb Sheriff, Cobb Superior Court Clerk and Cobb Tax Commissioner.

Incumbent Republican U.S. Rep. Barry Loudermilk also has primary opposition, as do some local legislative office-holders.

The Cobb Comission District 2 race has several Democratic hopefuls and a Republican seeking to replace incumbent Jerica Richardson, who’s running for Congress.

But the Georgia Supreme Court is expected to rule soon on contested redistricting lines for that seat. It recently heard an appeal by Cobb County, whose Democratic commissioners approved “home rule” maps that include some of East Cobb in District 2.

A Cobb Superior Court judge ruled that the county must abide by maps approved by the legislature in 2021 that put East Cobb almost entirely within District 3, drawing Richardson out of her seat.

A Republican candidate for District 2 is appealing a decision by the Cobb Board of Elections to disqualify her, based on the county-approved maps.

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Cobb school board Post 5 candidates receive endorsements

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Cobb school board candidate reports nearly $30K in fundraising

The two hopefuls for the open Post 5 seat on the Cobb Board of Education don’t have opponents in the upcoming primaries, but they’re picking up endorsements.

Last week the Southern Poverty Law Center’s Action Fund endorsed Democrat Laura Judge as part of a slate of endorsements in metro Atlanta school board and county commission races.

And on Tuesday, Republican John Cristadoro announced he had received the endorsement of Educators First, a teachers’ organization.

Post 5, which includes the Walton and Pope and some of the Wheeler attendance zones, is being vacated by four-term Republican David Banks.

According to its website, the SPLC Action Fund “is focused on lifting up communities of color, particularly in the Deep South, who face systemic oppression, poverty and structural racism. To overcome these injustices, the organization is committed to reimagining the political, economic and social systems that sustain them to create a world where all people can thrive. ”

Judge, a Walton-area parent, noted in a social media posting that she got the endorsement “on a day that I spoke out at the school board meeting for a student in my Post who had to deal with racial discrimination in one of our schools.

“I will continue to advocate for the safety of our students, stand up against hate within our district, and empower our community to use their voice.”

Judge also has received endorsements from Cobb school board member Becky Sayler of Post 2 in Smyrna, Democratic State Rep. Lisa Campbell of Cobb, the Georgia Working Families Party, the Progressive Change Campaign Committee and the 3.14 Action Fund, which supports Democratic female candidates with science backgrounds.

Educators First represents professional teachers as an alternative to older organizations such as the Georgia Association of Educators.

Educators First says it offers “all the advantages of a traditional union, but without the high costs and partisan politics.”

Based in Kennesaw, Educators First was founded in 2011 and its CEO and co-founder is John Adams, a former Cobb County School District deputy superintendent.

“I am honored to have received the Educators First endorsement,” Cristadoro said in a statement Tuesday. “Educators First’s endorsement in my campaign clearly demonstrates the wide appeal and local grassroots support of our campaign.”

According to his latest campaign disclosure report in February, Cristadoro has raised more than $33,000 and has more than $28,000 in cash on hand.

Judge also filed a financial disclosure report in February listing more than $18,000 in contributions and more than $2,000 in cash on hand.

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Cobb advance voting for 2024 primaries starts Monday

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Advance voting in the 2024 Georgia primaries starts Monday and continues through May 17.Georgia runoff elections

Voters will chose Democratic, Republican or non-partisan ballots (consolidated countywide sample ballots here) in a variety of federal, state legislative and local races.

Contested primaries (our previous qualifying story)  include Cobb Commission Chair (Democrat) and U.S. House District 11 (Republican).

In Cobb County, voters can cast their ballots early in-person at nine locations, or via a dropbox at six venues during regular business hours.

Those locations include the East Cobb Government Services Center (4400 Lower Roswell Road) and the Tim D. Lee Senior Center (3332 Sandy Plains Road).

Both of those East Cobb locations will have extensive advance voting hours:

  • April 29-May 3 from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
  • Saturday, May 4 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
  • May 6-10 from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
  • Saturday, May 11 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
  • May 13-17 from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.

The East Cobb Government Service Center will have a dropbox available on those dates, during those voting hours. Early voters also may go there for the two Sundays of advance voting, May 5 and May 12, from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m.

Advance voters can vote at any advance voting location in the county. More information can be found by clicking here.

No voting will take place from May 18-20, and on primary day, Tuesday, May 21, voters will go their assigned precincts between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m.

To check your polling station and which races will be on your ballot, visit the Georgia Secretary of State’s GA My Voter Page.

All voters must go to the polls with proof of identification (details here).

Cobb Elections also is seeking poll workers to staff 148 precincts on primary day.  Visit https://bit.ly/CobbPollWorker to learn more and apply today.

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