Jackson voters say 'yes' to SPLOST

The Jackson County Area of Chamber of Commerce was advocating for voters to approve SPLOST, saying out-of-county visitors would make a major contribution to the fund. If the sales tax vote didn’t pass, the chamber warned that property taxes could be increased to pay off the county’s debt.

“We’re just appreciative of the voters who helped keep the debt off the backs solely of the property owners in Jackson County and allowed as much as 40 percent of that debt to be paid by people who don’t live in this community,” said chamber president Shane Short.

Along with Short, county manager Darrell Hampton and Keith Ariail — who chairs the Citizens for a Better Jackson — awaited election results late Tuesday night at the Jackson County Courthouse.

Ariail said he was impressed with the total number of voters — those for and against the SPLOST proposal.

Short said regardless of how people voted on the SPLOST referendum, its approval will make Jackson County better.

“I think the majority of people understood what SPLOST was about,” Short said. “It was about paying down debt the county had on the jail.”

Jackson County plans to use $23.7 million of its estimated $33.7 million share of SPLOST funds to pay for debt service on the new jail; $6.8 million for roads, streets and bridges; $2 million for recreation; and $1.2 million for three satellite EMS facilities.

Each city in the county also plans to use its share of SPLOST money for various projects or debt service.

STATE RACES

Jackson County voters overwhelmingly favored Republican candidates in Tuesday’s election, according to unofficial results.

In the race for State Senate District 47 — currently held by Ralph Hudgens, who won a spot as Georgia’s next insurance commissioner — Republican Frank Ginn garnered 73.4 percent of the district-wide vote, compared to Democrat Tim Riley’s 26.6 percent. The 47th State Senate district includes other Northeast Georgia counties.

Jackson County favored Ginn by 82.4 percent and Riley by 17.4 percent.

Similar figures were posted for Republican Paul Broun, who was seeking another term to the U.S. House for the 10th Congressional District. Broun got 82.9 percent of the votes in Jackson County, while his Democratic challenger, Russell Edwards, got 17 percent of the votes.

In the governor’s race, Jackson County favored Republican Nathan Deal with 78.9 percent of votes, compared to Democrat’s Roy Barnes’ 16 percent. Libertarian John Monds got 4.7 percent of the votes. Deal ultimately beat Barnes in the governor’s race to avoid a runoff.

In the race for state agriculture commissioner, Commerce resident Gary Black, a Republican, was heavily favored by Jackson County voters with 83.3 percent of the votes. Democrat J.B. Powell got 13 percent and Libertarian Kevin Cherry got 3.6 percent of the votes. Statewide, Black was the strong favorite and will succeed long-term agricultural commissioner Tommy Irvin for the position.

The following is how Jackson County voters cast their ballots in Tuesday’s election.

U.S. Senate
Johnny Isakson (I)(R): 82.5%
Michael Thurmond (D): 14%
Chuck Donovan (L): 3.3%

Governor
Nathan Deal (R): 78.9%
Roy Barnes (D): 16%
John Monds (L): 4.7%

Lt. Governor
Casey Cagle (I)(R): 79.3%
Carol Porter (D): 16.4%
Dan Barber (L): 4.24%

Secretary of State
Brian Kemp (I)(R): 81.2%
G. Sinfield (D): 14%
David Chastain (L): 4.6%

Attorney General
Sam Olens (R): 77.3%
Ken Hodges (D): 18.3%
Don Smart (L): 4.2%

Agriculture Commissioner
Gary Black (R): 83.3%
J.B. Powell (D): 13%
Kevin Cherry (L): 3.6%

Insurance Commissioner
Ralph Hudgens (R): 76.9%
Mary Squires (D): 18.1%
Shane Bruce (L): 4.8%

State School Superintendent
John Barge (R): 77.4%
Joe Martin (D): 16.5%
Kira Willis (L): 5.9%

Labor Commissioner
Mark Butler (R): 79.8 %
Darryl Hicks (D): 15.5%
Will Costa (L): 4.5%