Oconee County, GA Politics

Things sure got interesting this afternoon in the wonderful world of Oconee County politics. State Representative Hank Huckaby gets appointed to the Chancellor of the University System of Georgia, and now Oconee County Board of Commissioners chair G. Melvin Davis is "seriously considering" running for the 113th slot formerly occupied by Bob Smith. "Lot of things to think about" said Chairman Davis.

Who will announce first to run to replace soon-to-be-former State Representative Bob Smith in the 113th district of for the Georgia House of Representatives? Whatever happens, it should provide plenty of fodder for my writings at the very least. My guesses, based on nothing but who I would like to see run and current political reality, include current Board of Commissioners member Chuck Horton, Watkinsville city council member Brian Brodrick and possibly a wild card like one of the Williams brothers, or possibly someone who has lost to Smith in the past like like Tom Griffith or Doug Dickens; or perhaps one of the "announced" candidates for another seat like Esther Porter. Golden Pantry scion Griffith lost a very contentious run off against Smith a dozen years ago. Former Watkinsville Mayor Jim Luken has been stone cold recently against any such further forays into politics at the State Level, but it is truly his seat to ignore should he choose to not seek office again.  ...

Once upon a time not all that long ago in the midst of a recent political season I confided two bits of supposed political wisdom upon a local elected official piling signs out of an automobile. These two axioms of dubious wisdom and quality were as follows: Political Rule #1 Never run against a Fireman Political Rule #2 Never run against a Fireman's wife. This alone should convince Esther Porter she has no chance whatsoever to beat Margaret Hale in the 2010 Republican Primary and de facto General Election for the Oconee County Board of Commissioners. Margaret has had a health scare recently but in no way should this effect her ability to govern, although she did miss the most recent Board of Commissioners meeting.  I suppose Porter could be hedging her bet against Hale's health worsening, but even the most cynical political observer would not want their opponent to get more sick in order to win. In the insular world of whisper campaigns as loud as dynamite locally, this...