The big parking lot was mostly full, and every voting booth was in use when I voted at 6PM at Pine Grove.
Pine Grove
Pictures by John S. Quarterman for Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange (LAKE), Valdosta, Lowndes County, Georgia, 31 July 2012.
No Campaigning:
Continue readingIt’s not over ’till it’s over, but so far, here’s what the Secretary of State election results page shows 45 minutes after poll closing time on this primary election day:
Results from GA Secretary of State
Screenshot by John S. Quarterman for Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange (LAKE), Lowndes County, Georgia, 31 July 2012.
Allen Lane and Demarcus Marshall are neck and neck for District 4 (East) for Lowndes County Commission in the Democratic primary, while John Gates is ahead of Jamew Warren III in the Republican primary.
For District 5 (West), Jody Hall is ahead, followed by John Page in the Republican primary, and it looks like they’ll be in a runoff.
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Chris Gay is running for Coroner of Lowndes County. He spoke at a baseball reunion in Naylor, 14 July 2012.
I have no videos of his opponent, the incumbent Bill Watson, because I have never seen Watson at a public event.
Here's the video:
What kind of investigation can you do in a minute and a half? –Chris Gay for Coroner of Lowndes County
1st Annual Reunion, South Georgia Semi-Pro Baseball & Softball League (Baseball),
Video by John S. Quarterman for Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange (LAKE), Valdosta, Lowndes County, Georgia, 14 July 2012.
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Today’s the primary election: remember to vote!
I just posted videos of the two Democratic candidates for Lowndes County Commission District 4 (east side), Demarcus Marshall and Allen Lane. You may wonder, where are my videos of the two Republican candidates? Well, they weren’t at that baseball reunion, so I didn’t video them. Marshall and Lane I think were the only the two there who are in a contested primary race.
Update: And Chris Gay for Coroner.
Update 2: At another recent event, Doyle Kelly (incumbent) and Bob Dewar (challenger) spoke about why they are running for Tax Assessor Post 1.
I did video all the other candidates who were there, and I will post those videos later. A while back I went to a Lowndes County Republican Party (LCRP) meeting and volunteered to video the speakers, but was told that can’t happen there. I guess they’re shy.
Here once again is a list of All candidates for offices inside Lowndes County, Georgia in 2012. And here’s a post about candidates for the Public Service Commission and the legislature. Here’s how to find out who’s on your ballot and where to vote. Don’t forget the T-SPLOST referendum is on the same ballot today.
County Commission District 5 (west side of Lowndes County) has four Republicans running and no Democrats:
2427 Westwood Dr., Valdosta, GA 31602
229-242-1900 (h)
tucker658@bellsouth.net
7288 Hall-Webb Rd., Hahira, GA 31632
229-794-1425 (h), 229-563-1762 (w)
jolan777@yahoo.com
4470 Plantation Crest Rd., Valdosta, GA 31602
229-834-7465 (h), 229-247-4301 (w)
adamrassatt@gmail.com
P.O. Box 32, Hahira, GA 31632
229-834-3939 (h), 229-249-9797 (w)
jppage@att.net
I did see my neighbor Jody Hall at
Valdosta Farm Days and took a video of him there.
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Allen Lane is one of the two Democrats running for the new County Commission District 4 for the east half of Lowndes County. He spoke at a baseball reunion in Naylor, 14 July 2012.
Here's the video:
When you cry, I'm gonna cry; when you laugh, I laugh —Allen Lane for Lowndes County Commission District 4
1st Annual Reunion, South Georgia Semi-Pro Baseball & Softball League (Baseball),
Video by John S. Quarterman for Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange (LAKE), Naylor, Lowndes County, Georgia, 14 July 2012.
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Demarcus Marshall is one of two Democrats running for the new County Commission District 4 that covers the eastern half of Lowndes County. He spoke at a baseball reunion in Naylor, 14 July 2012.
Here's the video:
Invest in our future now or watch our kids leave —Demarcus Marshall for Lowndes County Commission District 4
1st Annual Reunion, South Georgia Semi-Pro Baseball & Softball League (Baseball),
Video by John S. Quarterman for Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange (LAKE), Naylor, Lowndes County, Georgia, 14 July 2012.
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Greg Gullberg has updated his WCTV story about T-SPLOST with a new video, this time interviewing private citizen John Gayle (for T-SPLOST) sitting at the Valdosta Mayor’s desk, Gretchen Quarterman (against T-SPLOST) at the Lowndes County Extension Office, and some other people.
The major issue driving people to the polls and dividing them is the TSPLOST Transportation tax. The TSPLOST Transportation Tax is a hot issue here in Georgia.. because it effects everybody. Organizers say with an extra penny of sales tax—when you add all those pennies up over the next ten years— that could be almost 20-billion dollars for the state. One side says it will ease your troubled commute. The other says the measure is so flawed it won’t really help at all.
Another excerpt:
Continue readingIn his Tuesday T-SPLOST story WCTV reporter Greg Gullberg noted that current Lowndes County Chairman Ashley Paulk said "the Commission is not taking a stance." Indeed, but Ashley Paulk himself took a stance against T-SPLOST as far back as April 2011, when 
he said:
I think what disturbs me, is when you've got to put something in the law that's a stick, carrot and stick, you don't do what I've said you're going to get punished….
Right now if I had to vote for it I could not find the interest to get out there.
He also said:
Right now, I do not have a good or warm fuzzy feeling about this. That could change.
He said he'd tell us if it changed. Last time I checked with him, his position had not changed.
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Gregg Gullberg reported for WCTV yesterday, Georgia Voters To Decide… What Can An Extra Penny Do For You?
“Sales tax falls unfairly on the poor and middle class,” said Gretchen Quarterman, who is running for Chair of the Lowndes County Commission. “So as a percentage of their income, poor people and middle class people will pay more. And that’s just not fair.”
The current chair says the Commission is not taking a stance. But we did talk to Valdosta Mayor John Gayle by phone.
“Valdosta is a growing city. And TSPLOST gives us the means to keep it on track. The entire region can benefit from improved transportation,” said Mayor Gayle.
Each region will hold its own independent election, so there is no need to worry how a different region will vote. Residents will vote on this tax next Tuesday, July 31st.
As Gullberg promised on-air, the WCTV online story contains a list of T-SPLOST projects and more information. Here’s the WCTV video.
And here’s more about how T-SPLOST doesn’t include any public transportation projects that would help people get to work, about the two I-75 interchange projects, about GDOT changes to costs of projects and about how we can make a Plan B.
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Back to their old tricks! The Lowndes County Commission was already approving minutes a minute before the announced start time of their Work Session this morning. After that, it was another brief session. They vote Tuesday 5:30 PM 24 July 2012.
Here's the agenda. Below are some notes on some items.
Here's a video playlist:
Videos: Two taxes, Library bid, and two road repairs
Work Session, Lowndes County Commission (LCC),
Video by Gretchen Quarterman for Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange (LAKE), Valdosta, Lowndes County, Georgia, 23 July 2012.
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