In countywide races, Democrats swept out incumbent Republicans across the board in Cobb County general elections this week. (see previous ECN election-night post).
Commissioner Lisa Cupid defeated incumbent Republican Mike Boyce in the Cobb Commission Chair race, becoming the first woman and the first African-American to hold the position.
She received 203,738 votes, or 53 percent to Boyce’s 179,375 votes or 47 percent.
Cupid led from the outset, as Democrats across the county at all levels enjoyed early and absentee voting advantages, and Boyce could never get closer than the final margin.
On Wednesday morning he conceded on his Facebook page, saying he called Cupid with a congratulatory message, “expressing my appreciation for running an issues-based campaign, and wishing her all the best in the future.
“Thank all of you for your support during my term as Chairman. It has been an honor to have served the people of Cobb County.”
Boyce was elected in 2016 after defeating then-incumbent Tim Lee in the Republican primary, but was caught up on an historic wave of Democratic support across Cobb.
Cupid also congratulated Boyce on running a “respectful” campaign and called him a “respectful colleague.”
She told supporters that “this was a campaign about moving Cobb forward together. Whether you voted for me or didn’t, whether you voted at all, my aim is to serve everyone the same. My goal is to move the whole county forward and make this an ever better place to live for everyone.”
Cupid said announcements will be forthcoming “as we begin the collaborative process of embarking on this new chapter in Cobb’s history.”
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The Democratic wave also swept out of office Republican Cobb Sheriff Neil Warren, who lost to Cobb Police Major Craig Owens.
Owens got 202,272 votes, or 54 percent, to 167,472 votes, or 45 percent for Warren, who has been in office since 1994. But recently he came under fire for a series of deaths at the Cobb County Jail that have prompted an investigation by the Cobb District Attorney’s Office.
That office will have a new top prosecutor after the elections. Republican Joyette Holmes, who was appointed last year to succeed current GBI director Vic Reynolds, lost to Democrat Flynn Broady, an assistant Cobb solicitor.
Broady, who ran unsuccessfully for the 11th Congressional District seat in 2018, edged Holmes by a 187,708-180,990 vote count, or 51-49 percent.
Early Wednesday morning Broady said in a statement that “I will use restorative practices, not punitive, while acting as District Attorney for Cobb County and I will ensure the fair treatment of all people.”
In the final weeks before the campaign, he had pushed for Holmes to investigate the death of Vincent Truitt, a 17-year-old who was shot in the back and killed by a Cobb police officer in July.
Democrats also claimed victory for Cobb Superior Court Clerk. Connie Taylor defeated Republican incumbent Rebecca Keaton 51-48 percent.
Cobb voters overwhelmingly approved another Cobb Special-Purpose Local-Option Sales Tax with 66 percent of the vote. The new sales tax period will begin in 2022 and will last for six years.
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