Democrats Win Special Elections in House Districts 117 And 119, With Clarke County Voters Dominating

***Reverses Republican Redistricting***

Oconee County voters turned out in big numbers on election day, with a plurality picking Democrat Jonathan Wallace to represent voters in Georgia House District 119 and a majority picking Houston Gaines to represent voters in Georgia House District 117.

Wallace won strongly in the Clarke County part of the evenly split 119th District, ending with 56.7 percent of the votes in the unofficial tally--enough to avoid a runoff on Dec. 5.

Democrat Deborah Gonzalez dominated voting in Clarke County, giving her 53.1 percent of the votes in the 117th, which, in addition to Clarke County and Oconee County, includes parts of Barrow and Jackson counties.

Oconee County Commissioners Being Asked To Consider Slab Construction For Malcom Bridge Road Subdivision

***Rejected In 2007***

The Oconee County Board of Commissioners tomorrow (Tuesday) night will be asked to decide if it wants to modify its 2007 rezone for a 100-acre subdivision on Malcom Bridge Road to accommodate the request of the developer to allow construction on raised slabs.

The Board of Commissioners in 2007 specifically stated that all houses constructed within the development were to be built using a crawl space or basement foundation, and the current land owners are asking the Board to overturn that decision.

Individual Sessions Held For Four Candidates For Georgia House District 119 Offer Insights Into Their Characteristics

***Spread Across Campaign***

In individual sessions held with the Oconee County Area Republicans in recent weeks, the three Republican candidates in the special election on Tuesday for Georgia House District 119 have shown rather different characteristics.

Tom Lord took few firm stands in a session with a small number of Republicans gathered on Sept. 30, using the 50 minutes given him instead to get feedback and suggestions from those who turned out to meet him. He focused on his trustworthiness and his conservative values.

Early Voting Ends With Fewer Than 5,000 Voters Casting Ballots In House District 117 And House District 119 Races

***Few Barrow And Jackson Voters***

A total of 4,798 voters cast ballots in early voting that ended today (Friday) for the special elections for Georgia House District 117 and Georgia House District 119.

House District 117, which includes parts of Barrow, Clarke, Jackson and Oconee counties, had 2,165 voters, while House District 119, split equally between Clarke and Oconee counties, had 2,633 votes cast.

Work On Oconee County Comprehensive Plan Update For 2018 Moves Into Final Stages

***Some Issues Unresolved***

Planner Justin Crighton, having completed meetings in the last two weeks with the three subcommittees working on the update to the Oconee County Comprehensive Plan, now has the task of assembling the citizen input into a draft report.

Crighton, with the Northeast Georgia Regional Commission, has promised to present the draft to the full Stakeholders Committee on Nov. 20, but he’ll have to resolve some differences in opinion among the Committee members before that time.

Gaines Raises $200,000 Plus In Race For 117th House Seat, Outpacing Other Candidates In 117th and 119th Special Elections

***Has $140,000 To Spend***

Houston Gaines, running as a Republican in the special election for House District 117, has raised more than $200,000 for his campaign and, as of Oct. 25, had more than $140,000 in unspent funds.

All of the money Gaines has raised is in the form of contributions, with large amounts coming from the campaign funds of politicians and from corporate interests.

Early Voting Continues At A Low Pace in Special Elections in House District 117 and House District 119

***Only 3,000 Or 4,000 Voters?***

Voting continued at a low rate this second week of early voting for the special elections in House District 117 and House District 119, with an average of only 167 persons going to the polls per day in Clarke County and 97 going to the polls per day in Oconee County.

Voting was even lower in Barrow and Jackson counties, parts of which contribute to the 117th House District.