Former Cobb Superior Court Clerk candidate seeking same office

Nick Simpson, who ran for Cobb Superior Court Clerk in 2020, is seeking the same office in 2024 under very different circumstances.

A Democrat who lives in Acworth, Simpson said he is running for the seat held by Democratic incumbent Connie Taylor and is holding listening sessions.

He said in a release Tuesday that he’s doing this in part “to discuss the need for transparency and accountability in light of current fiscal practices at the clerk’s office that have been highlighted in recent news reports.”

(Here’s his campaign website.)

Taylor has come under fire for personally pocketing more than $400,000 in passport fees—which are legal—but far beyond her salary of $170,000.

A former whistleblower in her office has accused Taylor—who last year agreed to refund some of the extra money—of ordering her to destroy records about passport application fees.

In addition to maintaining court records and providing passport services, the Superior Court Clerk also is the custodian of real estate records and is one of four county elected officials whose position is created by the Georgia Constitution.

Simpson, who graduated from North Cobb High School and attended Powers Ferry Elementary School and Daniell Middle School, is a former chief operating officer of the Cobb Superior Court Clerk’s office.

In his release Tuesday, Simpson said he “seeks to prepare the Clerk’s office to meet the demands of the future by addressing technological needs caused by the proliferation of cyber and property fraud, and the county’s strong population growth and real estate market.”

In 2020, he finished third in the Democratic primary and endorsed Taylor in the runoff.

In announcing his 2024 campaign, Simpson said he supports the clerk having to transfer all fees from processing passport applications to the county treasury.

His other priorities include installing a in-house property fraud detection system to “detect incidents of fraud in real-time and not after a phony document has been sent to an outside party for review.”

Simpson was a coordinator for a family law information center in Fulton Superior Court and held government positions in New York before returning to Cobb.

He earned a bachelor’s degree from Howard University and a master’s degree in public administration from Columbia University.

Simpson also founded a consultancy to advise clients on implementing secure document control systems and procedures.

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