Qualifying for May primary is next week

Published 2:00 pm Thursday, March 3, 2022

Some people planning to run for political office have already begun placing ads, putting up signs and making appearances. The official start of the 2022 election season is Monday, when qualifying begins for the May 24 general primary and nonpartisan elections.

Locally, several offices will be on the ballot this year.

In Whitfield County, primary voters will select Democratic and Republican party candidates for the following offices:

• Board of Commissioners District 1, currently represented by Barry Robbins.
• Board of Commissioners District 3, currently represented by John Thomas.
• Board of Education District 2, currently represented by Jamie Johnson.
• Board of Education District 4, currently represented by Joseph Farmer.
• Board of Education at large, currently represented by Bill Worley.

All of those incumbents are Republican. School board elections are countywide. Commissioners are elected only by the people who live in the district. Voters’ election cards will tell them which district they live in. The term for both commissioners and school board members is for four years. The qualifying fees are $18 for the school board seats and $270 for commissioner seats.

In Murray County, primary voters will select Democratic and Republican party candidates for the following offices:

• Board of Education District 5, currently represented by Conrad Puryear.
• Board of Education District 6, currently represented by Heath Jones.
• Board of Education District 7, currently represented by Kelli Reed.

All of those incumbents are Republican. Elections are countywide. The term for school board members is for four years.The qualifying fee is $20.

Murray County will also hold a nonpartisan election for chief magistrate judge. Connie Reed holds that post. The term is for four years. The qualifying fee is $2,056.43.

Qualifying will occur from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 9 a.m. to noon on Friday. It will take place in Whitfield County in the elections office in the courthouse, and in Murray County in the elections office in the courthouse annex, 121 N. Fourth Ave. in Chatsworth. Whitfield County Democratic Committee Chair Debby Peppers said the party will not have a table at the courthouse but asks anyone who wishes to qualify to contact the party on its Facebook page.

District maps in both counties were redrawn this year after the results of the 2020 national census were released. Those considering seeking a school board seat or a commission seat should consult the latest maps in their local elections office to confirm which district they live in.

Qualifying for state and federal offices will take place during the same hours at the Georgia secretary of state’s office, 214 State Capitol in Atlanta.

All seats in the state House of Representatives and state Senate and the U.S. House of Representatives are up for election this year, and primary voters will select the Democratic and Republican party candidates for those seats on May 24.

Local incumbents include:

• U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Rome, who represents Georgia’s 14th Congressional District, which includes both Whitfield and Murray counties.
• State Sen. Chuck Payne, R-Dalton, who represents state Senate District 54, which includes both Whitfield and Murray counties.
• State Rep. Steve Tarvin, R-Chickamauga, who represents state House District 2, which includes parts of southern and western Whitfield County.
• State Rep. Kasey Carpenter, R-Dalton, who represents state House District 4, which includes the city of Dalton and some precincts to the north.
• State Rep. Jason Ridley, R-Chatsworth, who represents state House District 6, which includes all of Murray County and part of northeast Whitfield County.

Again, legislative district lines were redrawn this year, so potential candidates should consult the latest maps to determine which district they live in.