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Results: Races held in coastal Georgia counties

Harry November 6, 2024

Follow live via the Georgia Secretary of State’s website.

CAMDEN

Sheriff

Zone 0/11 will report at 20:16

James Proctor (I), Independent 7,060

James “Kevin” Chaney, Republican 12,221

Voters first elected Valdosta native James “Jim” Proctor to the post of Camden County sheriff as an independent in 2012. Until last year, he had not faced any significant challenges to his lead since the two candidates entered the Republican primary. Opposing him in November. Kevin Chaney, Proctor’s former top aide, won the primary against Proctor in May.
Much of the race focused on law enforcement accountability and taxpayer responsibility. Since November 2022, state police have charged six Camden deputies and guards for violence. The county’s insurance company declined to renew its policy in 2023 due to excessive force incidents and frequent crashes of police cruisers. The insurer renegotiated more expensive rates for the county after a six-figure payout to resolve the cases.
Chaney’s campaign said culture changes required better oversight and a new sheriff, while Proctor said he addressed the problems after they came to light. Proctor blamed the situation on understaffing, deterioration of the jail and waste of taxpayer dollars by county commissioners.

County Commission District 1

Kevin M. Walker, Democrat 1,774

Walter “Robbie” Cheek, Republican 2,962

With 0/11 region reporting as of 20:16

CATHAM

Sheriff

John Wilcher (I), Republican 2,527

Richard Coleman, Democrat 4,952

With 0/87 region reporting as of 19:31

John Wilcher spent more than half his life working for the agency he would one day run. Elected in the 2016 special election runoff, Wilcher led the Chatham County Sheriff’s office for two, four-year terms as a Republican. He focused on issues related to inmate safety, medical contracts, recidivism programs, and improving the quality of life of deputies. Wilcher is well-known and well-liked among Chatham Republicans and Democrats.
Wilcher suffered a heart attack over the summer and was hospitalized for months. Now 80 and in a wheelchair, his poor health created an opportunity for his Democratic opponent, Richard Coleman. The Savannah native and former police chief of two Georgia cities said it’s time for new leadership at Georgia’s fifth-largest prison.

District Attorney

Shalena Cook Jones (I), Democrat 4,874

Andre Pretorius, Republican 2,496

With 0/87 region reporting as of 19:31

Cook Jones, a former elder abuse prosecutor in Chatham, was first elected as district attorney in 2020 when he unseated Republican incumbent Meg Heap. The Democrat proposed reforming Chatham’s criminal justice system. However, much of his first term was disrupted by the buildup of Covid-19, a series of prosecutors leaving his office and sanctions imposed by a federal judge for his conduct.
Some of the successes of Cook Jones’ first term included diversion programs for nonviolent property crime or drug crime offenders and detaining police officers who committed misconduct. responsibleand prosecuting violent crimes at trial, such as the Leilani Simon case.
Former Chatham County attorney and misdemeanor prosecutor Andre Pretorius challenged Cook Jones as a Republican. He said crime victims languished under Cook Jones’ watch and the county suffered from a lack of experienced prosecutors. He was running on a more traditional “fighting crime” prosecutorial platform. The two candidates were at odds with each other productivity And ethic.

County Commission Chairman

Chester Ellis (I), Democrat 5,303

Joel Boblasky, Republican 2,131

With 0/87 region reporting as of 19:31

Incumbent Ellis said he has a record of being able to raise funds from state and federal governments to improve the county’s infrastructure for recent growth, including emergency services. Joel Boblasky disagreed, saying he could provide a vision for the future with structured planning for growth.

County Commission Dist. 6

Aaron R. Whitely, (I), Democrat 585

Leonard C. Massey, Republican 183

With 0/87 region reporting as of 19:31

County Commission Dist. 7

Dean Kicklighter (I), Republican 400

Orlando Scott, Democrat 683

With 0/87 region reporting as of 19:31

BRYAN

Although there were no competitive races in the district, there was one notable race.

with 0% votes

Carter Infinger (I), Republican 14,316

Meredith Gibson, Written 934

Richmond Hill resident Meredith Gibson ran a write-in campaign for Commission Chair. Gibson was inspired to run against Infinger after witnessing flooding from Tropical Storm Debby and claiming a lack of leadership in the county’s recovery efforts.

FREEDOM

Sheriff

Will Bowman (I), Democrat 13,244

Gary Eason, Republican 7,763

With 0/12 region reporting as of 20:18

Bowman, a two-time Georgia State Patrol Trooper of the Year and Liberty County’s first African-American sheriff, upset the 3rd-generation Sikes dynasty when he won the office 4 years ago, but has come under fire for spending some of his school district speed camera revenues on school and security services. community youth groups.
Eason criticized Bowman’s spending of school district camera revenue, called for a grand jury investigation into the matter, and claimed Bowman was damaging morale at the LCSO.

County Commission Chairman

Donald L. Lovette (I), Democrat 12,857

Michael Navarro, Republican 8,066

With 0/12 region reporting as of 20:18

For more than 40 years, Lovette has wielded significant political power on the Liberty County School Board and Board of Commissioners, as well as many other local boards, and frequently calls on citizens to educate themselves on basic processes such as zoning requests and mileage hearings.
Navarro, an Army veteran and school bus driver, said he would use his position on the Board of Commissioners to lower county taxes and “welcome a second Trump administration,” even though the president only voted to break the tie. ”

County Commission Dist. 4

Maxie R. Jones (I), Democrat 1,090

Timmy Blount, Republican 2008

With 0/12 region reporting as of 20:18

Jones, a longtime employee of D.S. Smith (formerly Interstate Paper) and vice president of United Steel Workers Local 1354, is the brother of the late tax commissioner Virgil Jones and called for tax breaks for developers to build more affordable housing.
Blount is a project manager for defense contractor TSW in Ft. Stewart and Hunter Army Air Field say they want to work with GDOT to cut county spending and improve road maintenance and safety.

Transportation SPLOST

Yes 9,711

No 10,704

With 0/12 region reporting as of 20:18

Liberty County TSPLOST 2 would go into effect when the current 1-cent sales tax for transportation expires and would not increase the county sales tax.
Some projects slated to receive funding include the Hinesville bypass, Liberty Transit bus service, bike lanes and road repairs in counties and municipalities.

GLYNN

Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax for Education, 1%

Yes 19,567

No 16,552

With 0/17 region reporting as of 20:04

The 1% sales and use tax for educational purposes shall be imposed on the Glynn County School District for a period not to exceed 4 years or upon reaching the $114.6 million limit for the purchase, construction and equipping of the following capital expenditures. Projects in the district.

Board of Education and Discipline Mah. 3

John Madala (I), Republican 5,212

Robert B. McKenzie, Democrat 2,155

With 0/17 region reporting as of 20:04

With the impending retirement of school superintendent Scott Spence and the rezoning of the elementary school, the District 3 school board seat is up for grabs. Incumbent Republican John Madala has held the seat since 2009. Madala has also been a nurse at Southeast Georgia Healthcare System for the past 26 years and was a deputy chief for the Brunswick Fire Department but was terminated in 2014.

Democratic challenger Bob McKenzie has owned McKenzieHR since 2002. He said he wants to move Glynn County Schools into the top ten percent of schools in Georgia. His wife, Olga McKenzie, is the district chair of the Democratic Party.

MCINTOSH

Sheriff

with 0% votes

Thornell “TK” King, Democrat North America

Christopher Mitchell, Republican North America

McIntosh County has had the same top law enforcement agency since 2009. So when Sheriff Stephen Jessup decided not to run for re-election in 2024, it created an opportunity for new blood in a position that has become infamous for news headlines such as: Racial profiling at traffic stops and the good boy networks referenced in the “Praying for Sheetrock” pages.
Thornell “TK” King has thrown his hat in the ring as the Democratic candidate. I am a long-time Georgia State Patrol major. honour This action by the state legislature in 2021 has fueled increased trust between law enforcement and the citizens of McIntosh. Chris Mitchell, who is running as a Republican, is one of Jessup’s top aides. Mitchell said his main focus is on reducing the sheriff’s office’s accrued debt and keeping citizens safe through “proactive policing.”

public transportation SPLOST

with 0% votes

Yes No

No

This vote will expand the 1% sales tax for Mcintosh County. The money would be split between Darien and the county and would expire in 6 years or when the total collected reached $11,500,000; The county would receive a share of $9.2 million ($2.3 million) for Darien. Residents of both Darien and McIntosh County are required to vote on the measure. In addition to 8 city streets, 17 road projects will also be prioritized.

Grant Full Development Authority to Industrial Development Authority

with 0% votes

Yes No

No

Grant Full Development Authority to the City of Darien

with 0% votes

Yes No

No

These two measures allow the county and Darien to invoke all points of certain state laws. (Click here to read.) When the Darien City Council and McIntosh County Commission decided to put it on the ballot, the stated plan was to give the McIntosh County Development Authority the authority to designate a Tax Allocation District in Darien to raise money to pay for bonds for redevelopment purposes.