Atlanta Progressive News

(APN) ATLANTA — David Holder, a community activist who placed third out of four candidates for the Democratic nomination for Fulton County Board of Commissioners, District 6, has endorsed Keisha Waites in the Run-off.

Waites came in first during the Democratic Primary, receiving 42 percent of the vote, or 3,576 votes.

Joan Garner came in second, receiving 39 percent, or 3,408 votes.

David Holder came in third, receiving 9.7 percent, or 837 votes. Sally Smith came in fourth place with 9.35 percent, or 807 votes.

Holder told Atlanta Progressive News that he sat down and had meetings with both Waites and Garner after the Primary Election was over.

Holder says that he came away from his meeting with Garner both disappointed and uncomfortable, noting that she was not familiar with any of the issues he raised of concern to him in Fulton County.

“She kept saying, ‘I’ll have to get back to you on that,'” Holder said.

Holder said that Garner was not familiar with the redevelopment of the Turner Field area, adding that Fulton County has a role because the County owns parcels of land out in that area.

Holder compared the redevelopment of the Turner Field area to that of Atlantic Station or Fort McPherson.

Holder said Garner was not familiar with the City of Atlanta and Fulton County Recreation Authority (AFCRA), which oversees Turner Field, Zoo Atlanta, and Phillips Arena.

Holder also said that Garner was not familiar with the senior bus service that Fulton County provides.

“These are the kinds of things you could learn about on FGTV evert day,” Holder said, adding that he did considerable research about the responsibilities of a Fulton County Commissioner before deciding to enter the race.

Holder said that when he asked Waites about the same issues, that she was knowledgeable and able to take positions and answer questions.

“I thought… her [Waites’s] skill set was a little bit more. She has great leadership skills and will fight to create jobs within our community,” Holder said.

“Keisha was out in the community and served on Boards, whereas Joan, her background was more non-profit,” Holder said.

Holder also said he was concerned that Garner has not articulated her platform of issue priorities.

Indeed, a review of Garner’s website reveals that there is no “Issues” section made available to potential voters.

Waites, on the other hand, has a section on “Priorities” on her website and puts issues front and center on the homepage.

Holder said he posted a message announcing his support “on Twitter and Facebook and got pretty good responses from people. A lot of them, voters and supporters, are backing me, whatever decision I make,” Holder said.

“I am honored and humbled to have the support of David, which serves an important function for the new generation of progressive leaders,” Waites said in a press release.

Holder is currently the President of the Mechanicsville Civic Association (MCA). Some of his initiatives in Mechanicsville are for safer and cleaner streets and branding Mechanicsville as a destination of choice for the citizens of Atlanta and its visitors.

Holder serves on the TADAC Advisory Board for Turner Field Redevelopment, is an Executive Officer in Atlanta’s Neighborhood Planning Unit-V (NPU-V), and a graduate of Atlanta’s Weed & Seed.

Holder’s experience meeting with Garner closely mirrored that of Atlanta Progressive News. As previously reported, Garner declined to take a position on either the privatization of Grady Hospital or funding for the Metro Atlanta Task Force for the Homeless in her interview with APN.

APN’s Board of Directors also announced its endorsement of Waites last month, for reasons similar to those cited more recently by Holder.

Garner has received numerous organizational endorsements, including the Atlanta Board of Realtors, the Atlanta-North Georgia Labor Council AFL-CIO, Atlanta Stonewall Democrats, Georgia Equality, and the Victory Fund.

Waites has criticized some of these groups for issuing endorsements prior to the qualifying deadline. She also noted that she received the endorsement of all three of the GLBT organizations when she previously ran for the State House in 2008.

(END/2010)

About the author:

Matthew Cardinale is the News Editor for The Atlanta Progressive News and is reachable at matthew@atlantaprogressivenews.com.

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