APN 2016 Qualifying Overview Part One: State House Races (UPDATE 1)
(APN) ATLANTA — Candidate qualifying for Political Party Candidates, Nonpartisan Candidates, Independent Candidates, and Political Body Candidates for Primary Elections and Nonpartisan Elections was held on March 07 through March 11, 2016.
A second round of qualifying for independent and political body [minor political party] candidates will begin June 27 and end July 01, 2016.
This article will be the first in a series providing a broad overview of the races. This part will look at State House races for districts that encompass parts of Fulton and/or DeKalb Counties.
APN has already sent out numerous questionnaires in competitive races and will be sending out more in the near future.
STATE HOUSE
DISTRICT 22
Incumbent State Rep. Wesley E. “Wes” Cantrell (R-Woodstock) will face Oscar “Asghar” Hajloo, a retiree and Democrat from Canton, during the General Election. This district includes a part of the City of Milton in Fulton County.
DISTRICT 25
State Rep. Mike Dudgeon (R-Johns Creek) is not seeking reelection.
http://www.forsythnews.com/section/1/article/29222/
There are two Republicans who will face off in the May Primary for District 25: D. Stuart Jones, a financial planner from Johns Creek; and Todd Jones, a technology executive from Cumming.
The winner of the Republican Primary will face no challenger in the General Election.
DISTRICT 40
Incumbent State Rep. Richard M. “Rich” Golick (R-Smyrna) will face Democratic challenger Erick E. Allen from Smyrna. This district includes a portion of Atlanta’s Buckhead neighborhood.
DISTRICT 45
Incumbent State Rep. Matt Dollar (R-Marietta) has no challenger. This district includes part of Sandy Springs.
DISTRICT 47
Incumbent State Rep. Jan Jones (R-Milton) has no challenger.
DISTRICT 48
Incumbent State Rep. Betty Price (R-Roswell) will run unopposed.
DISTRICT 49
Incumbent State Rep. Chuck Martin Jr (R-Alpharetta) has no challenger.
DISTRICT 50
Incumbent State Rep. Brad Raffensperger (R-Johns Creek) will run unopposed.
DISTRICT 51
Incumbent State Rep. Wendell K. Willard (R-Sandy Springs) has no challenger.
DISTRICT 52
Incumbent State Rep. Joseph B. “Joe” Wilkinson (R-Atlanta) has two challengers in the Republican Primary: Deborah Silcox, an attorney from Sandy Springs, and Graham Elliot McDonald, an attorney from Sandy Springs.
An Atlanta Progressive News analysis found Wilkinson to be the most progressive Republican–or the least non-progressive Republican, as it were–in the Fulton and DeKalb delegations, followed by State Sen. Beth Beskin (R-Atlanta).
http://atlantaprogressivenews.com/2015/11/28/apn-issues-state-house-state-senate-scorecard-for-2015/
The winner of the Republican Primary will not face a Democratic challenger.
DISTRICT 53
Incumbent State Rep. Sheila Jones (D-Atlanta) has no challenger.
DISTRICT 54
Incumbent State Rep. Beth Beskin (R-Atlanta) will run against Democratic candidate Bob Gibeling, a marketing consultant, in the General Election. Gibeling ran against Beskin previously in 2014, receiving the support of Atlanta Progressive News.
While Beskin score second highest of all Republicans in the APN Scorecard for 2014 and 2015, Gibeling takes issue with several votes Beskin has taken since taking office.
DISTRICT 55
Incumbent State Rep. Marie Metze (D-Atlanta) has no challenger.
DISTRICT 56
Incumbent State Rep. “Able” Mable” Thomas (D-Atlanta) has two Democratic Primary challengers: Marckeith Dejesus, a healthcare professional from Atlanta; and Melodii “Mel” Peoples, a floor coordinator from Atlanta.
The winner of the Democratic Primary will not face a Republican challenger.
APN is currently looking into Dejesus’s residency, after noting he apparently included the mailing address of the Morosgo Drive post office in Atlanta as a purported street address. After the candidate refused to provide his residential address to APN in a phone interview, APN requested a copy of the candidate’s qualifying paperwork from the Secretary of State’s office. The candidate qualified with a residential address on Monroe Place NE, 30324.
DISTRICT 57
Incumbent State Rep. Pat Gardner (D-Atlanta) has no challenger.
DISTRICT 58
Incumbent State Rep. Park Cannon (D-Atlanta) has no challenger.
DISTRICT 59
There are three Democratic candidates running in the Democratic Primary to replace State Rep. Margaret Kaiser, who is considering a run for Mayor of Atlanta: David Dreyer, an attorney from Atlanta; Janine Brown, a retiree and former Union VP from Atlanta; and Josh Noblitt, a marriage and family therapist from Atlanta.
http://atlantaprogressivenews.com/2016/03/11/apn-candidate-qa-janine-brown-hd-59/
http://atlantaprogressivenews.com/2016/03/12/apn-candidate-qa-josh-noblitt-hd-59/
The winner of the Democratic Primary will not face a Republican challenger.
DISTRICT 60
Incumbent State Rep. Keisha Sean Waites (D-Atlanta) will face Republican Ralph Nobles, a truck driver from Forest Park, in the General Election.
DISTRICT 61
Incumbent State Rep. Roger Bruce (D-Atlanta) has no challenger.
DISTRICT 62
State Rep. LaDawn Blackett Jones (D-Atlanta) is not seeking reelection.
There are six Democratic candidates eying the seat: Aaron V. Johnson, the senior assistant for policy and external affairs for Fulton County Commission Chairman John Eaves (District 1); Joshua B. Butler IV, an entrepreneur and community volunteer from Atlanta; Larry “LPJ” Perkins Jr., a businessman; Rafer Johnson, a flight attendant and former Fulton County Housing Authority chair from Atlanta; Valerie V. Vie, an attorney from Douglasville; and William K. Boddie Jr., an attorney from Atlanta.
http://atlantaprogressivenews.com/2016/02/24/south-fulton-cityhood-advocates-seek-state-house-seats/
The winner of the Democratic Primary will not face a Republican challenger.
DISTRICT 63
State Rep. Ronnie Mabra (D-Fayetteville), one of the least progressive Democrats in the Fulton and DeKalb delegations, is not seeking reelection.
There are five Democratic candidates running for the District 63 seat: Debra Bazemore, a former Chief of Staff for a State Senator and a State Committee member for the Georgia Democratic Party from College Park; Jasmine Bowles, a real-estate agent from Atlanta; Kelli Hooper, an attorney from Fayetteville; Kenneth Kincaid, a retiree; and Linda Pritchett, a paralegal from Riverdale.
http://atlantaprogressivenews.com/2016/02/24/south-fulton-cityhood-advocates-seek-state-house-seats/
The winner for the Democratic Primary will not face a Republican challenger. This district includes part of College Park and unincorporated south Fulton
DISTRICT 64
State Rep. Virgil Fludd (D-Tyrone) is not seeking reelection.
There are three Democratic candidates seeking the District 64 seat: Derrick L. Jackson, a retired naval officer and now adjunct professor from Tyrone; Kathy Adams, a project coordinator; and Terry Williamson, a retired U.S. Department of State employee.
The winner of the Democratic Primary will not face a Republican challenger. This district includes part of College Park, Union City, and unincorporated south Fulton.
DISTRICT 65
Incumbent State Rep. Sharon Beasley-Teague (D-Red Oak) will face Sylvia Wafer, a contracts negotiator from Douglasville, in the Democratic Primary.
The winner of the Democratic Primary will face Republican challenger Gordon Rolle Jr., an educator from Fairburn, in the General Election.
This district includes part of Chattahoochee Hills, Union City, and unincorporated south Fulton.
DISTRICT 79
Incumbent State Rep. Thomas K. “Tom” Taylor (R-Dunwoody) will face Republican challenger Tom Owens, a retiree from Doraville, in the Primary. The Primary winner has no Democratic challenger in the General Election.
Owens previously ran for DeKalb County Commission District 1.
http://www.peachpundit.com/2014/10/06/tom-owens-man-amok/
DISTRICT 80
Incumbent State Rep. Taylor Bennett (D-Atlanta) will not face a Primary challenger.
There are three Republican candidates that will face off in the Primary: Catherine S. Bernard, an attorney from Atlanta; Meagan Hanson, an attorney from Atlanta; and Alan Cole, a retiree from Atlanta.
The winner of the Republican Primary will face Rep. Bennett in the General Election.
In 2015, APN endorsed Bernard in the Special Election.
This district includes part of Sandy Springs in Fulton and Brookhaven in DeKalb.
DISTRICT 95
State Rep. Tom Rice (R-Norcross) is not seeking reelection.
There are two Republican candidates seeking the District 95 seat: Jay Lowe, an entrepreneur and founder of the Peachtree Corners City Council from Peachtree Corners; and Scott Hilton, a banker from Peachtree Corners.
The winner of the Republican Primary will not face a Democratic challenger.
This district includes a sliver of Johns Creek in north Fulton.
DISTRICT 81
Incumbent State Rep. Scott Holcomb (D-Atlanta) will not face a Primary challenger.
There are three Republican candidates seeking the District 81 seat: Alexa Mendez Rourk, a businesswoman from Doraville; Jim Duffie a real-estate broker from Atlanta; and Lane Flynn, a business owner from Tucker.
The winner of the Republican Primary will face State Rep. Holcomb in the General.
DISTRICT 82
Incumbent State Rep. Mary Margaret Oliver (D-Atlanta) will face a Primary challenger, Brian Westlake, a public school teacher from Decatur.
http://atlantaprogressivenews.com/2016/03/04/apn-qa-brian-westlake-challenging-rep-oliver-hd-82/
The winner of the Democratic Primary will not face a Republican challenger.
DISTRICT 83
Incumbent State Rep. Howard Mosby (D-Atlanta) will run unopposed.
DISTRICT 84
Incumbent State Rep. Rahn Mayo (D-Decatur) will face a Primary challenger, Renitta Shannon, a medical sales representative from Decatur.
The winner of the Democratic Primary will not face a Republican challenger.
DISTRICT 85
Incumbent State Rep. Karla Drenner (D-Avondale) has no challenger.
DISTRICT 86
Incumbent State Rep. Michele Henson (D-Stone Mountain) will face Democratic challenger Joscelyn ONeil, a retiree from Decatur, in the Democratic Primary. The Democratic Primary winner has no Republican challenger.
DISTRICT 87
Incumbent State Rep. Earnest “Coach” Williams (D-Avondale) will face Democratic challenger businesswoman Ivy J. Green from Stone Mountain in the Democratic Primary. The Democratic winner of the Primary has no Republican challenger.
DISTRICT 88
Incumbent State Rep. Billy Mitchell (D-Stone Mountain) has no challenger.
DISTRICT 89
Incumbent State Rep. Stacey Abrams (D-Atlanta) has no challenger.
DISTRICT 90
Incumbent State Rep. Pamela S. Stephenson (D-Lithonia) has no challenger.
DISTRICT 91
State Rep. Dee Dawkins Haigler (D-Lithonia) is running for State Senate.
There are four Democratic candidates seeking her seat: Charles Hill, a small business owner from Decatur; David Neville, a retired educator; Rhonda S. Taylor, a consultant from Rockdale County; and former DeKalb County CEO Vernon Jones, a consultant from Lithonia, who in recent years has run unsuccessfully for DeKalb County Sheriff and U.S. Senate.
The winner of the Democratic Primary will face lone Republican Carl Anuszczyk, a CEO from Conyers, in the General Election.
DISTRICT 92
Incumbent State Rep. Doreen Carter (D-Lithonia) has no challenger.
DISTRICT 93
Incumbent State Rep. Darshun Nicole Kendrick (D-Lithonia) has no challenger.
DISTRICT 94
Incumbent State Rep. Karen Bennett (D-Stone Mountain) will run unopposed.
(END/2016)
UPDATE 1: See updated information above regarding residency issues in HD 56.