The race to replace Gloria Tinubu in House District 60 is over. Keisha Sean Waites won with 54.2% of the vote.

The will be a runoff in House District 107 between Paul Smith and Tom Kirby. Smith garnered 41.9% of the vote to Kirby’s 23.7%. Len Walker is the former Rep. in 107. The runoff will take place on Tuesday March 6th, Super Tuesday.

Rick Austin, who faces John Wilkinson in a December 6th runoff for Senate District 50 has challenged Wilkinson to a debate in each county in the district.

(Demorest) – Republican State Representative Dr. Rick Austin, who earned a commanding first place finish in last night’s special election, challenges his runoff opponent, John Wilkinson to a series of debates in each county of the 50th District today. Austin asks that each newspaper in each county host an armchair debate in the weeks leading up to the December 6th special election runoff.

Said Austin, “My schedule is open. I am asking each newspaper or local radio station to join together and host a straightforward armchair debate in their county before the December 6th special election. Each candidate should have 5 minutes to explain their background and vision. The press can then ask a series of open ended questions for each of us to answer and counter in a professional, free-flowing, and friendly format. The families and hardworking citizens of northeast Georgia deserve nothing less than an open and frank discussion of the issues. They deserve to see who we are and who is ready to lead for them. I hope my opponent will join me for these important discussions.”

Discuss.

Full disclosure: I donated money to Rick Austin.

The Georgia Senate has been fairly quiet for the past few months, but January is only a couple of months away. The Senate will have a slightly different make-up. The 1st session ended in a deadlock where the Senate GOP Caucus was basically split into Pro-Cagle and Anti-Cagle factions. That could potentially change in a few days when voters in the 50th senate district elect a new senator to fill the balance of Sen. Jim Butterworth’s term as well as Sen. Mitch Seabaugh’s now-vacated seat in the 28th district.

Battle lines are being drawn between Rep. Rick Austin, who is known for bucking GOP leadership and would probably do the same in the senate, and John Wilkinson, who is an apparent Pro-Cagle candidate. I’m sure Lt. Gov. Cagle and his allies are looking to hold on to the stalemate (and even shift the balance of power in favor of the LG since Sen. Mitch Seabaugh has left as well) in the senate.

Come January, we’ll see a power-shift in the senate either towards the LG and his allies or towards Sen. Chip Rogers and his allies or just a repeat of the 2011 session. It could be the “Fight of the Century”…or not. Have your popcorn ready!

Voters in House District 43 will select a replacement for the late Bobby Franklin. Republicans John Carson and Robert Lamutt square off in a runoff today. According to the East Cobb Patch:

There were 155 mailed ballots and 103 in-office ballots totaling 258 total votes cast during last week’s early voting, according to the Board of Elections.

Registered voters may cast ballots in Tuesday’s runoff even if they skipped the special election last month.

Discuss.

Qualifying ended yesterday for the Special Elections for House Districts 10 and 25 and Senate District 50. House District 10 was previously held by Rick Austin, who is now running for Senate District 50 which was previously held by Jim Butterworth who left to run the Georgia National Guard. House District 25 was previously held by James Mills who was appointed by Governor Deal to the Board of Pardons and Paroles.

The Special Election for all three races, as well as for Senate District 28 previously held by Mitch Seabaugh, will be Tuesday November 8. Qualifying for the Senate District 28 Special Election has not yet taken place.

Here are there candidates who qualified for theses Special Election:

House District 10:
J. Bruce Harkness, Sr., Republican from Demorest
Lori Duke Jones, Republican from Mt. Airy
Terry Rogers, Republican from Clarkesville

House District 25:
Bobby Banks, Republican from Oakwood
Emory West Dunahoo, Jr., Republican from Gainesville
Dominic Ottaviano, Republican from Flowery Branch
Todd W. Reed, Republican from Oakwood
William “Sonny” Sykes, Republican from Flowery Branch
Kris Yardley, Republican from Flowery Branch
Paul Godfrey, Democrat from Flowery Branch

Senate District 50
Rick Austin, Republican from Demorest
Curtis Burger, Republican from Lavonia
David R. Strickland, Republican from Royston
John K. Wilkinson, Republican from Toccoa
Mary Beth Focer, Democrat from Hartwell

The Gainesville Times has an article about House 25 and Senate 50:

In line to succeed [Mills] are six Republicans.

Among them are a former member of the Hall County Board of Commissioners, Bobby Banks; a local attorney, William “Sonny” Sykes; a local builder, Todd Reed; and two businessmen, Emory Dunahoo and Dominic Ottaviano.

Kris Yardley quit his Flowery Branch City Council post to qualify for the seat.

The council will meet at 6 tonight to consider holding a March 6 special election to replace him. That’s the same day as the presidential preference primary.

One Democrat, Paul Godfrey, is also seeking Mills’[s] seat.

Democrat Mary Beth Focer of Hartwell and Republican Curtis Burger of Lavonia signed up for the Senate race [and]  join three other Republican hopefuls to complete Butterworth’s term in the state Senate: former Rep. Rick Austin of Demorest, John Wilkinson of Toccoa and David Strickland of Royston.

Currently, the 50th Senate District he left behind includes all of Banks, Franklin, Habersham, Hart, Rabun, Stephens and Towns counties as well as a portion of White County.

Ah yes, there’s nothing like the smell of napalm special elections in the morning. There are yet more special elections scheduled, according to Georgia’s Secretary of State Brian Kemp.

Atlanta – Georgia Secretary of State Brian Kemp today announced receipt of Governor Nathan Deal’s Writ of Election setting Tuesday, November 8, 2011 as the date for the special elections to fill the vacancies in State Senate District 50, State House District 25 and State House District 10.

Secretary Kemp set candidate qualifying for Monday, October 3, 2011 through Wednesday, October 5, 2011. Qualifying on Monday will run from 9:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m.; on Tuesday from 8:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m.; and on Wednesday from 8:00 a.m. until 12:00 noon. Candidates will qualify in the Elections Division of the Office of Secretary of State, 802 West Tower, 2 Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive, SE, Atlanta, Georgia 30334. The qualifying fee is $400.

The election for State Senate District 50 will occur in Banks, Franklin, Habersham, Hart, Rabun, Stephens and Towns Counties and a portion of White County. The election for State House District 25 will occur in a portion of Hall County. The election for State House District 10 will occur in Habersham County and a portion of White County.

The elections are non-partisan special elections with no party primaries. However, each candidate’s party affiliation, if any, will be listed on the ballot. Run-off elections, if needed, will be held Tuesday, December 6, 2011.

I’m still trying to find a way to make money off of special elections, but we’ve had so many lately, I fear I’m a step behind. Anyway, fulfill your duty as a citizen if you can legally vote in any of these races.

To restate some of what I wrote yesterday in my post entitled “10 Most Vulnerable Republican Districts”:

There are a hundred ways to determine how vulnerable a legislative district is for a takeover by the opposing political Party.

Just because a district or a legislator appears on this list does not mean that they are in political trouble.  It does generally mean that the legislators who represent these districts must be able to find ways of winning over voters from the opposing Party.

These rankings are not a statement about the legislator who represents them. This ranking is simply a mathematical formula that determines how strong or weak a district is compared to all the other districts in the state.

The following is a list of Democratic House members representing districts in which Republicans can win a majority, or a significant percentage, of the vote. Of all the Democratic-held districts in Georgia, these 10 Democratic-held districts have the highest capacity for Republicans to win votes, a figure that is stated in the right column: The Democratic Ideal.

The Republican Ideal is the average of multiple election results within each district for the best-performing statewide (non-Presidential) Republican candidates in 2006, 2008 or 2010.

Thanks to Mike Seigle, Gabriel Sterling, Mark Pettitt and Andrew Pantino here at Landmark for researching and contributing to this targeting report. Doing a report like this requires hundreds of man-hours, accumulating thousands of pieces of information including election results, voter history, and geographic and demographic information.

Rank            District            Democrat Incumbent                   Republican Average Ideal

#1.            16                        Rick Crawford                                         72.84%

#2.            12                        Barbara Massey Reece                          72.44%

#3.            137                      Debbie Buckner                                       56.41%

#4.            81                        Elena Parent/Scott Holcomb             55.32%

#5.            145                      Rusty Kidd                                                 54.30%

#6.            132                      Carl Von Epps                                         53.49%

#7.            41                         Terry Johnson                                         53.19%

#8.            96                         Pedro Marin                                            51.25%

#9.           64                         Virgil Fludd                                             46.00%

#10.            128                    Sistie Hudson/Mack Jackson            45.31%

For those who watch legislative elections closely, it may be a bit of a surprise to see Fludd on the list. His district, while partly South Fulton, is also has significant parts of Northern Fayette. Because this is a “Top Ten” List we include the district, but the Republican Average Ideal vote is below 50% and is not actually very vulnerable at this point.

Some of these districts are clearly vulnerable to being won by Republicans — will likely do so in 2012. Others less so.

As mentioned in other rankings, there are a hundred ways to determine how vulnerable a legislative district is for a takeover by the opposing political Party.

Just because a district or a legislator appears on this list does not mean that they are in political trouble.  It does generally mean that the legislators who represent these districts must be able to find ways of winning over voters from the opposing Party.

These rankings are not a statement about the legislator who represents them. This ranking is simply a mathematical formula that determines how strong or weak a district is compared to all the other districts in the state.

The following is a list of Republican House members representing districts in which Democrats can win a majority, or a significant percentage, of the vote. Of all the Republican-held districts in Georgia, these 10 Republican-held districts have the highest capacity for Democrats to win votes, a figure that is stated in the right column: The Democratic Ideal.

The Democratic Ideal is the average of multiple election results within each district for the best-performing statewide (non-Presidential) Democratic candidates in 2006, 2008 or 2010.

Thanks to Mike Seigle, Gabriel Sterling, Mark Pettitt and Andrew Pantino here at Landmark for researching and contributing to this targeting report. Doing a report like this requires hundreds of man-hours, accumulating thousands of pieces of information including election results, voter history, and geographic and demographic information.

Tomorrow we’ll release the Top Ten List of Most Vulnerable Democratic Districts.

Rank        District               GOP Incumbent                              Democratic Ideal

#1.            151                       Bob Hanner/Gerald Greene        66.57%

#2.            171                       Jay Powell                                           59.46%

#3.            138                      Mike Cheokas                                     59.43%

#4.            117                       Doug McKillip                                    58.05%

#5.            119                       Chuck Williams                                  56.08%

#6.            158                       Butch Parrish                                     56.02%

#7.            13                         Katie Dempsey                                  55.88%

#8.            40                        Rich Golick                                           55.39%

#9.            149                       Jimmy Pruett                                     54.58%

#10.          164                       Ron Stephens                                    54.03%

Common characteristics of Vulnerable Districts:

Only 1 of the 10 are in metro Atlanta (Golick). 9 of 10 are outside of Metro Atlanta;

2 of the 10 are in the Athens area (McKillip and Williams).

Only 1 of the 10 are in North Georgia (Dempey). Most of the House Districts where Democrats can still muster a majority are in South Georgia.

**Tomorrow morning we’ll release the Top 10 List of Most Vulnerable Democratic Districts.

It’s not 100% official yet as it has to get the Feds’ approval, but those of us in Northwest Georgia did get our wish to become our own congressional district and gain the label of the 14th Congressional District. I would have liked to keep Gilmer, Fannin, and all of Pickens in exchange for a couple of counties to the south of us near Atlanta, but I believe this will work just fine. With all due respect to the fine folks in Hall County and others in the eastern side of the 9th district, but it’s nice to have a district in the same general geographic area.

The new 9th District will have to go through the electorial gyrations of another primary election and subsequent run-off (wouldn’t they technically be the new 14th?). Congressman Tom Graves has said that he would run in the 14th District come 2012, but he’ll have some primary opposition from Steve Tarvin, a businessman and former city councilman and city school board member from Chickamauga in Walker County. So far, I haven’t heard of any other Republicans eyeing a primary run against Congressman Graves, but it’s certainly a possibility given that it’s a new district with new area. A Democratic challenger in November wouldn’t surprise me either.

Ultimately, some of my friends and colleagues in today’s 9th district will have to contend with an open congressional seat…again, but look a the bright side…at least it will be 3 elections rather than 5 back in 2010.

Congressional races are fun to talk about because they’re big and important, but what about the state house races? Especially after taking a gander at Mark’s round-up of the top 10 state house districts with the greatest swing votes. The “new” 14th district will have at least one Democratic incumbent, Representative Barbara Massey-Reece from Menlo (Chattooga County). North Georgia is very Republican, but Chattooga County is one of the stronger Democrat areas of Northwest Georgia. It will be a tough race to win…especially since more Democratic ballots were cast than Republican ballots during the 2010 gubernatorial primary election. However, if we work hard and have a decent, principled Republican candidate, I believe we can win that seat. Rep. Rick Crawford is another one that will be on the radar, but I don’t know too much about that area. Looking at last year’s election numbers, I believe that Republicans can run hard in that district and potentially win it.

Oh, there will be much fun to be had with these new districts come next year’s election.

It is the end of an era in Georgia that will hopefully pass with little notice other than a smile. David Lucas, the longest serving black member of the Georgia General Assembly, has been defeated by Miriam Paris, the former President of the Macon City Council.

Lucas tried to paint Miriam Paris as a Republican in the majority-minority district formerly held by State Senator Robert Brown. Paris never took the bait and campaigned as a proud Democrat, but she also convinced Republican heavy North Macon to turn out to repudiate David Lucas and his wife, Elaine. Elaine Lucas just narrowly won re-election to Macon’s City Council.

Interestingly, Mayor Robert Reichert won re-election by about 500 votes against former Mayor C. Jack Ellis. In North Macon, David Lucas got more votes than Ellis, but only a few more.

The most interesting thing about the Macon mayoral election and this special election for Senate District 26 is that the heavily marginalized Bibb County Republican Party turned itself into an effective block to decide the election in a Democratic Primary. Neither Reichert nor Paris would have won without them.

The big winner of the night is State Representative Allen Peake who defied a number of vocal members of the Bibb County Republican Party and actively encouraged Republicans to vote in the Democratic Primary. His gamble paid off and now he’ll have a more reasonable Democrat in the State Senate than either David Lucas or Robert Brown would ever be.

And if the Republican redistricting effort goes off without a hitch, instead of seeing the local delegation in the Senate be one Democrat and one Republican, the GOP will control it 2 to 1. Finally, Macon and Bibb County can maturely consider consolidation.

Three Special Elections were held today for two open House seats and an open Senate Seat. According to the Secretary of State’s website, Republican Chuck Williams defeated Democrat Dan Matthews in House District 113, and in District 139, Dem. James Beverly defeated Dem. Anissa Jones.

Democrats Miriam Paris and David Lucas will face each other in a runoff. Paris finished first with 44.6% to Lucas’ 39.4%. Can we expect more of this in the runoff?

For State Senate district 26 to replace Robert Brown:

The General Assembly is not City Council. Believe it or not, they carry bigger knives than council members, and in order to see to it that Bibb County and the other counties in the district are represented, it is imperative experience is at the table…..We endorse David Lucas.

For State House district 139 to replace David Lucas:

This race has been run in a friendly matter for the most part, but (Anissa) Jones broke the peace by accusing (James) Beverly of not living in the district, a charge that was deemed unfounded. So much for classmate camaraderie. In the end, the voters in District 139 have two good choices, an option rarely seen in today’s politics. We like them both.

Entire article here.

The election for both these seats is next Tuesday, July 19th.

State State Minority Leader Robert Brown qualified to run for Mayor of Macon this morning. Because the term begins before his Senate term ends, the state constitution says Senator Brown automatically renders his state senate seat vacant. The specific provision of the state constitution states that “the office of any state, county, or municipal elected official shall be declared vacant upon such elected official qualifying” for the new office “if the term of the office for which such official is qualifying for begins more than 30 days prior to the expiration of such official’s present term of office.”

That means, simply by virtue of qualifying, Brown’s Senate District 26 is now empty and a special election must be called. I would assume, given the timing, that the Governor will set the special election for the November general election to save money. That’d also give ample time for qualifying.

Right now, State Representative David Lucas and Macon City Council President Miriam Paris intend to run for Brown’s seat.

*By the way, the municipal primary will be in mid-July. If the Governor expedites things, he could coincide to that point. The upside is that it could negatively impact David Lucas’s ability to quickly build name id outside his state house district. This would be a help to Miriam Paris who potentially could get huge support elsewhere. Likewise, it’d make the November SPLOST vote in Bibb County easier for the chamber of commerce, etc. to manage.

There are two special elections being held today to fill vacant Georgia House seats.

  HD136 is to replace Tony Sellier who passed away and HD178 is to replace Mark Williams who Governor Deal appointed to head the Department of Natural Resources.

Anyone have anything we should discuss about these races?

The Warner Robins Patriot is reporting that Sharon Howard will suspend her campaign in the special election to replace the late Tony Sellier.  Howard was the lone proclaimed Democrat in the non-partisan election.

The remaining candidates are Sellier’s wife, Judy, and Robert Dickey, both Republicans.  The election is set for Tuesday, February 15th.

The Representative from Athens is a crass opportunist. A crass opportunist when it comes to providing the best possible representation for his constituents.

You certainly can’t call him a political opportunist. Representing part of a county that voted overwhelmingly voted for President Obama (he won 22 of 24 precincts in 08) is risky business for someone who has now switched from Democrat to Republican. It is in all-likelihood that in 2012 his seat will be the most hotly contested one in Georgia.

However, I would challenge the constituents of GA-115 to look deeper.

In a one and a half hour discussion at Depalma’s Grill, I saw nothing but a Representative who loves Athens and wants to do right by his district. To the Republicans who would like to primary him in 2012, I say give the man a chance. Challenging him in a primary is the best possible option if you want to lose the district. To outraged Democrats, I say use common sense. Given the current climate in Georgia, I think it is safe to say that McKillip’s constituents will see a tremendous increase in the quality of their representation in Atlanta. The Democratic Party of Georgia is in shambles and seems content with a leadership that toes the Washington line while offering no solutions of their own; only complaints, divisive remarks and no calls for the resignation of Robert Brown.

Doug McKillip wants more than that for the people of his district and the people of Georgia.

Furthermore, how truly surprising was his switch? I won’t say I predicted it, or even thought it, but McKillip’s switch was something that you could guess was coming if you paid attention (and cared).  Here are McKillip’s votes on some major bills that passed in 2010:

HB 948: 2011 Budget: McKillip/O’Neal/Peake: Yes

HB 277: Transportation Funding: McKillip/O’Neal/Peake: Yes

HB 1023: Capital Gains Reduction: McKillip/O’Neal/Peake: Yes

HB 908: Class Size Flexibility: McKillip/O’Neal/Peake: Yes

HB 244: GEFA Loan Sale: McKillip/O’Neal/Peake: Yes

HB 1055: Fees for State Services: McKillip/O’Neal/Peake: Yes

Former House Minority Leader Dubose Porter voted “No” on all of these except HB 1023.

McKillip’s switch, and these votes, has a lot to do with being practical in light of the economic times in Georgia. Additionally, he has a great relationship with Speaker Ralston. The Speaker was the chair of McKillip’s sub-committee in Judiciary during the 2009 session. I’ve often heard that they got along very well and often chewed over bills alone together prior to the start of committee meetings.

My guess is that McKillip will be given a fair number of Republican bills to carry through the process to shore up any “switcher” problems with the Republican base back home, and continue to have the full backing of leadership (proven by his fundraiser on Jan. 4^th- co-hosted by all of them- which raised over $12,000). In addition to Judiciary, Appropriations, and Natural Resources, he was just appointed Secretary of Reapportionment.

McKillip is a hard worker who wants to get things done for GA-115 and for Georgia. Speaker Ralston sees the big picture and recognizes that the Republican Party is the “big tent” party in Georgia. Having people like McKillip in the GOP is great practically and politically. In both senses it opens the door for more voices, ideas and solutions to be heard.

I stand with Doug McKillip. I hope you do too.

Got this through the email:

(Fort Valley)—Judye Sellier will seek to fulfill the unexpired term of her late husband, State Rep. Tony Sellier, during a special election in early 2011.

Voters in Crawford and parts of Bibb, Houston, Lamar, Monroe, Peach and Upson Counties will report to their polling places on Feb. 15 for the special-called election.  Tony Sellier died unexpectedly on Nov. 30 after having won his re-election bid in the fall.

Sellier, who is a Republican, said she determined to qualify for the seat only after consulting with her family, friends and her husband’s colleagues.

“Tony’s service to the families of Middle Georgia was his calling, and he took that responsibility seriously,” Sellier said.  “I share Tony’s same solid commitment to those that elected him.  I’m dedicated to continuing his hard work and providing leadership for our community.”

Sellier has served in elected office as a member of the Crawford County Board of Education.  Her peers elected her as board chair, a role she maintained for six years. She said her own service and her time with her husband have uniquely prepared her for the State House.

“I am ready to help us tackle the issues of taxes, spending and education from the start of this session,” Sellier said.  “I am asking for the support of voters to allow me to serve them.  Our family has been overwhelmed with the kindnesses already shown to us; I am asking for that support to continue through this special election.”

Judye Hutto Sellier is a native of Crawford County.  She has three grown children – Rodney, Heather and Amy – and 11 grandchildren.

Mrs. Sellier is, to my knowledge, the first candidate to officially announce for this open House seat.  Another name that is flying about the rumor mill this afternoon is Robert Dickey of Dickey Farms.  I’m sure more official announcements will be forthcoming in the next few days.

Just into the Peach Pundit Command Center:

Governor Sonny Perdue announced today that he has issued two writs of special election to fill the vacancies of House District 136 due to the passing of Rep. Tony Sellier and House District 178 due to Rep. Mark Williams’ approval as commissioner the Department of Natural Resources.

Qualifying dates for both offices will be set by the Secretary of State’s office.

[UPDATE] In the comments, it’s noted that the Blackshear Times is reporting, “Sandra Boatright of the Board of Elections says March or June of 2011 would be the next available dates for an election.” So, where did I get the press release? It was forwarded to me. But I note that it isn’t on Governor Doofus’ website yet, either. So, what should we all make of this? I could care less. But here are a few salient thoughts:

[YET ANOTHER TEDIOUS UPDATE] The widely read Warner Robins Patriot backs us up. My level of caring, however, remains at record lows.

Many of you remember that I ran for State House district 81 against Jill Chambers.  Jill fights dirty every year to keep her seat, and didn’t much appreciate it in 2008 when I fought back, instead relishing her previous few elections where she ceded her opponents the high ground from the start.

Needless to say, I have respect for Jill (she does what it takes to win) but little sympathy.  Today I got the first mail piece of the 2010 campaign and learned that:

• Jill’s family business has collapsed
• It caused multiple lawsuits and tax disputes
• She separated from her husband
• Jill did not pay her taxes on time
• (Although after she paid them late she got a small refund)
• She is upbeat and excited about new opportunities coming her way

Wow, I guess the new candidate running against her this year learned some lessons from me about how to lay it all out there in the mailbox.  What you may be surprised to learn is that Jill Chambers authorized her own campaign to tell the voters all about this stuff, presumably to “head off” anyone else telling you this stuff.  After all it’s so easy to “distort” a lien for not paying your taxes, duh.  I presume next month Jill will be challenging her opponents to produce the “long form” tax lien, but I digress.

Yikes.  Couldn’t have happened to a more truthful politician.

I was forwarded a letter from Linda Carsten in response to this piece I posted Friday. In addition, there were two quotes attached referenced in the letter. They are each included below.

Dear Friend,

Yesterday you received a mailing from my opponent, BJ Pak, attacking me for accepting a personal campaign contribution from my friend, Victoria Chacon, owner of an Atlanta-based publication called La Vision.
Victoria and I are long time friends who openly disagree on politics — but we are personal friends and always will be. I am a strong supporter for tough measures to stop illegal immigration.

Because we disagree on issues, Mr. Pak wants me to return her campaign contribution.

Mr. Pak didn’t tell you that many of his contributors are attorneys who defend illegal immigrants in court. But he won’t return those contributions, totaling $6450

Also, one of Mr. Pak’s contributors is former Supreme Court Justice Leah Sears-Collins the most liberal judge ever to sit on Georgia’s Supreme Court. Sears-Collins donated $500 to Pak according to his June 30th campaign disclosures.

Judge Sears was a leading voice on the Court for the abolition of the death penalty for even the most violent of criminals. But he won’t return that campaign contribution.

Mr. Pak also sent you a provably false story about me that 20 years ago I was a member of a Women’s Republican club that supposedly was disbanded because it couldn’t account for $4,500 of funds. That simply did not happen, and statements are included in this envelope that directly repudiates these false claims.

That statement — for which Mr. Pak knew the truth (as he is a lawyer) — is utterly false.

There is a gutter side to politics where candidates say almost anything to get people to vote for them. Candidates — like Mr. Pak — stop relying on real evidence and proof and simply start using misleading lies and distortions.

I ask you for your vote because our country needs to elect more citizen-legislators to government — not more people with direct business interests voting on legislation which affects their own finances. We need legislators who will do what is right for the state and country — not just right for their line of work and their own financial benefit.

And we need legislators who will tell the truth — the whole truth, not parts of it — and do it all of the time — not just some of the time.

Sincerely,

Linda Carsten

“ Linda Carsten is a very dear friend of mine for many years. I know her to be a staunch supporter for enforcing our illegal immigration laws. We discuss and debate this issue on a regular basis and she never wavers and neither do I. Who I make political contributions to is my right as an American citizen. No one, including B J Pak, Linda’s opponent, has a right to attack me personally for whom I give contributions to. Or to attack my publication and distort my quotes or quote me for general news articles that appear in many other publications. I support Linda because I know her to be an honest, straight talking, ethical woman who would never compromise her principles. And that is what the voters of House District 102 deserve.”

Victoria Chacon, President & CEO La Vision

“ B J Pak has sent out a vicious campaign mailer accusing Linda Carsten of misspending monies from our Republican Women of Gwinnett organization in 1995. Pak needs to get his campaign to retract this lie and distortion of the facts. Let me set the record straight. I was Vice President of the organization and know that our organizations funds were given to political candidates and various Gwinnett based charitable organizations, including the Battered Women’s Shelter and the Children’s Shelter. Linda Carsten was never accused or implicated of any involvement in the misspending of funds from the organization. In addition, the B J Pak campaign has alleged that the organizations charter was revoked; this is patently false. As a founding member of Republican Women of Gwinnett I would challenge anyone to research this issue for the facts, obviously, the Pak campaign did not. Linda Carsten is a person we can trust to represent us with integrity and help the citizens of House District 102.”

Tamera Knight Former 1st Vice President, RWOG