Oconee County, GA Politics

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Please attend this meeting, especially if you have an interest in running for the Democratic nomination for the 113th Statehouse district in what was the old Bob Smith slot (OK he is still currently in it for a few more days of this session). Woven brightly,  Daniel J. Matthews, Jr. From: oconee@yahoogroups.com To: oconee@yahoogroups.com Date: Mon, 12 Apr 2010 22:57:31 +0000 Subject: [oconee] Oconee Democrats Regular Monthly Meeting, 4/15/2010, 7:00 pm Reminder from: oconee Yahoo! Group Title: Oconee Democrats Regular Monthly Meeting Date: Thursday April 15, 2010 Time: 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm Repeats: This event repeats every month on the third Thursday. Location: Oconee County Government Annex ...

Saturday, 10 April – The 1st Annual Anti-tax Rally & Pancake Supper, sponsored by the Oglethorpe County Republican Party, will be held in the Crawford Baptist Church Fellowship Hall. The rally begins at 3:00 p.m., with an all-you-can-eat pancake supper to follow at 4:00 p.m. Tickets for the pancake supper are $5 each. Contact Kirk Shook for tickets or more information. Speakers include Nathan Deal, Austin Scott, Gerry Purcell, Harold Logsdon, Melvin Everson, Gary Black, Darwin Carter, Roger Hines, Richard Woods, and all the State Senate District 47 candidates. Bring your (tasteful) protest signs Monday, 12 April – The CCRC’s regular monthly meeting is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. on Monday, 12 April. Speakers for the evening will be candidate for Governor Karen Handel, candidate for Attorney General Max Wood, and candidate for Insurance and Fire Safety Commissioner Gerry Purcell. The meeting takes place at CCRC Headquarters, located at 445 North Milledge Avenue. R...

Despite the numerous signs saying no campaigning on Rocket Field, guess which Chairman of the Board of Commissioners chose to ignore this and was glad handing everyone he could? We bought our usual dinosaur bone from the Karwoskis and did the candle melt thing and saw lots of big hair being done. The yard sale seemed to be going well except for lack of yard signs. More photos here and here

Morning all, Well, after a two week delay, I finally have the video from the June 4th Board of Education candidate forum uploaded to our second Vimeo channel, www.vimeo.com/OconeeCounty. My apologies. Time and technology were both obstacles that had to be overcome. [cue the Rocky theme] The video of the Chamber of Commerce forums (last night and tonight) will be available within a day or two. The learning curve is flattening out. Pass the word along. Regards, Tony Glenn Part 1 of 2: June 4th Candidate Forum for Oconee County Board of Education from Lee Becker on Vimeo . Part 2 of 2: June 4th Candidate Forum for Oconee County Board of Education from Lee Becker on Vimeo .

I am looking forward to hearing the candidates for Post 3 of the Oconee County Board of Education at next week's forum sponsored by a consortium of groups at the Library on Experiment Station Road Wednesday. I listened intently to Tim Bryant's interview with GBI agent Carter Brank today on his News Maker Friday show on News Talk 1340 WGAU. Brank kind of sank in my estimation when he talked about how he might want to consider raising taxes and repeated the mantra about not knowing enough about the Charter School system. I hope some candidate will tell me what they know about the Charter School and it seems that David Weeks is already chair-designate and is willing to explore the possibility of changing the whole system over like they have somewhere near Augusta (Westboro?). I understand Kim Argo is skipping the event at the library so we do not get to hear from all the candidates.

Former (and future?) Mayor Nedra Johnson did not invite me this year, but the twice a year Bishop town supper is always an interesting gathering of political candidates and townspeople in the sleepy little municipality. It was kind of interesting how she decided not to invite Board of Education candidates except Ashely Hood (who is a Bishop resident) and have Congressional candidates. A few years back I tried to get a few U.S. Senate and Georgia Governor candidates there, and she was having none of that. Current Mayor and former Athens-Clarke County Fire Marshall Johnny Pritchett is running for the Board of Commissioners and based merely on the fact that he has put sidewalks in the city to honor one time council member and recovering Athens-Clarke County police officer Courtney Gale is reason enough to support Pritchett in the upcoming GOP primary. I almost always support firemen such as Mike Link or John Walsh, Jr. on the Watkinsville City Council. Athens Banner-Herald reporter Adam...

Obviously I am not the most objective person to make this assessment, but I concur with Blake Aued's article here , but if the Oconee Democratic Committee is more concerned with bike rides and district member mapping matters, than say, ACTUAL CANDIDATES FOR OFFICE , then they have no hope to ever regain even a toehold on local political matters. The Republicans such as Jim Ivey and Melvin Davis are making things easier for Oconee County Democrats, but if no real candidates come forward soon, then the local Democrats can have all the book clubs and meetings without any real or tangible success. They need to have someone more active, serious and better organized than the last-minute and extremely poorly run campaign of their current chairperson against the current state legislator last time around.

Saw Oconee County Board of Commissioners member Don Norris at the downtown Athens post office this morning and he sounded initially just as confused as I was about which of the four seats on the Oconee County Board of Commissioners will be up for election in 2008. After a couple of early morning mistakes, he thought that Post 2 and 3 will be up for election in November of 2008 (and in June if we need a primary, a much more likely scenario on the Republican side than the Democratic side in heavily G.O.P. Oconee County). That would be for the Bogart's Norris and Farmington's Margaret Hale currently occupied slots in the election. No word from him or Margaret if they are going to seek re-election or not. Norris did seem somewhat puzzled when I told him Jay Hanley had formed an exploratory committee. "For what?," he puzzled before engaging someone else in line. Turns out according to the Oconee County Board of Elections that all four seats are up for election, so this i...

The ground zero of political discontent in Oconee County is now in tiny town North High Shoals, where a dozen votes can swing an election. That is only place this side of Bogart where we have a contested election in the county tomorrow. While the election is for a whole lot more than just smart growth versus overgrown development, the debate does essentially boil down to that simple calculus . Steve Holzman is running against silent incumbent and brother of the Mayor Wade Thomas. In the many years of going to meetings in North High Shoals, I do not believe I have ever heard the council member Thomas ever open his mouth during a meeting, while his brother the mayor seldom closes his. Small town politics are an interesting and engaging situation where everybody knowns every one else business before they do. North High Shoals name has been dragged through the mud with various charges of impropriety in campaigning and the tiny town in under investigation from the state for these electoral ...