Politics & Government
Four New Candidates in State Rep Races
Two more incumbents face challenges after the second day of election qualifying.
Editor’s note: We’ve added Paulding’s two superior court races to the list as well. Both incumbents qualified on Wednesday; so far, no challengers have emerged in the non-partisan race.
Two state representative races became competitive by the end of the day Thursday, while another gained an additional two candidates, bringing the total to four seeking the seat.
One addition sees State Rep. Paulette Rakestraw Braddock, R-Powder Springs, who qualified on Wednesday, facing a challenge by Michael Ray James of Acworth in the Republican primary on July 31. The winner could potentially coast to an easy November victory if no Democrats qualify by midday Friday.
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Meanwhile, the races in two other districts—the two districts new to Paulding—saw the addition of Democratic candidates. Kimberly Alexander of Dallas is so far sole Democrat in the District 66 race, while Michael “Mike” Miller joins fellow Douglasville residents Bob Snelling and Mickey Thompson on the Republican side.
In District 67, incumbent Bill Hembree, R-Winston, has yet to meet a challenger for the primary, but Thursday saw Leigh Mcmutry of Winston qualify as a Democrat. If the two remain the sole candidates in their respective parties, they would be set to face off in November.
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Candidates who have qualified thus far and the cities they hail from are (Thursday’s additions in bold):
State Senate, District 30
Republicans: Bill Hamrick of Carrollton (Incumbent)
Democrats: None
State Senate, District 31
Republicans: Bill Carruth of Dallas, Bill Heath of Bremen (I), J.K. Rogers of Dallas
Democrats: None
State Representative, District 17
Republicans: Howard Maxwell of Dallas (I)
Democrats: None
State Representative, District 19
Republicans: Paulette Rakestraw Braddock of Powder Springs (I), Michael Ray James of Acworth
Democrats: None
State Representative, District 66
Republicans: Michael “Mike” Miller of Douglasville, Bob Snelling of Douglasville, Mickey Thompson of Douglasville
Democrats: Kimberly Alexander of Dallas
State Representative, District 67
Republicans: Bill Hembree of Winston (I)
Democrats: Leigh Mcmutry of Winston
Public Service Commission, District 5
Republicans: Pam Davidson of Douglasville, Stan Wise of Marietta (I)
Democrats: None
Superior Court Judge, Paulding Circuit (Beavers)
Tonny S. Beavers of Dallas (I)
Superior Court Judge, Paulding Circuit (Vinson)
Kenneth G. Vinson of Dallas (I)
Those seeking these offices should qualify through the Secretary of State's office. Qualifying ends Friday at noon.
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