A look at the polls
‘Faithful’ voters
Barbara Ford, longtime poll manager for the 11th Precinct at Lewis Frasier Middle School, said the election turnout was better than she anticipated. By lunchtime, about 132 voters had come out in a steady stream — but Ford said she has come to predict when her precinct’s voters will turn out, and it tends to be a bit later. “The faithful, that’s what I call them,” she said. “They’d have to be sick and shut-in to not come out and vote.”
Pulling youth, too
Bradwell Institute class of 2012 graduate Adonis Jordan showed at the 10th precinct at Lyman Hall Elementary School to vote in his first election. The college-bound Jordan said casting his ballot made him feel “a little bit nervous” but that the primary served as preparation for the Nov. 6 general election. Asked whether the local election or T-SPLOST was a bit topic among his peers, Jordan said, “I know a lot of them registered, but they might wait until the presidential one to vote.”
Contests close to home
For those connected to both sides of a contested race, choosing a candidate can be a challenge. Hinesville resident Dorothy Rose campaigned for Donald Lovette at First Baptist Church of Hinesville but said it was a hard decision because she knows both men and is good friends with Maxie Jones’ sister Karen Jones Jemison. “I know both of them, and I’m best friends with Maxie’s sister,” she said. “It was a hard choice — We don’t know a background on Maxie. I know Donald’s background, and he’s a champion.”
Donald L. Lovette will serve as the next Liberty County Commission chairman, a message from voters that status quo may not be so bad.
With 12 of 13 Liberty County precincts reporting at 9:30 p.m. Tuesday, Lovette held the majority with 2,045, or 60.56 percent, of votes.
“I feel super. It’s a great day. A lot of hard work went into it, and a lot of hard work pays off,” Lovette said by phone Tuesday night. “I’m excited for being … excited to have the opportunity to serve and look forward to serving well … I want to say thank you to all the citizens who supported me; I never imagined this day.”
His opponent in the sole countywide contest, Maxie R. Jones IV, garnered 1,332 votes, or 39.44 percent.
Of the 25,144 registered voters in the county, more than 19.15 percent turned out, according to unofficial county results posted on the Liberty County website at 9:32 p.m. But only those who asked for Democrat ballots weighed in on the chairman race.
Smith Carter wins for BoE District 2
In the contested Liberty County Board of Education District 2 race, challenger Carolyn Smith Carter proved that interacting with the public is important to voters.
With 12 precincts reporting, Smith Carter edged out incumbent and 2008 opponent Charlie J. Frasier by 87votes.
“I’m thrilled; God did this, it was certainly not by my own power, and I just thank him and I thank all of my teachers and my former students,” Smith Carter said Tuesday night from home, where she awaited the results. “I just feel so overwhelmed, and I promise them I will do my very, very best.”
Smith Carter will take up her first term in public office upon swearing in.
During board meetings, Smith Carter’s opponent Frasier is usually quiet, and that conveyed during his campaign.
He did not grant the Courier an interview, opting instead to provide a written statement, and he also did not attend the Candidate Political Forum on July 24.
Still, Frasier cited more than 39 years of experience as a teacher, National Guard retiree and school board member as qualifications for the job.
“I’m comfortable,” Frasier said from the board of elections as results came in, showing Frasier behind early. “I’m going to go by my proven record, that has been for 10 years.”
When asked for his comments in the event he does not win, Frasier said he will continue to support the school board and whoever serves on it.
“I will feel good about what I have done and not be vengeful,” he said.
When 12 of 13 precincts were in and Frasier saw the results, he opted not to comment further.
T-SPLOST not likely at press time
Results of the T-SPLOST referendum, which must be determined by a 50 percent plus one vote in the 10-county Coastal Region, leaned toward the referendum’s defeat at press time.
In Liberty County, the 1 percent sales tax received a mixed reception from voters, passing within the region by a narrow margin of 2,377 in favor to 2,288 opposed — a tight 50.95 percent to 49.05.
But nine other counties are factors in the fate of the tax.
With nine of the 10 Coastal Georgia District counties reporting, TSPLOST had 58.2 percent “no” votes overall in the district, according to the Georgia Secretary of State website.
Three counties — Liberty, Bryan and Screven — voted in favor. Long County had not reported its results at press time.
If enacted, the 1 percent sales was set to take effect Jan. 1, 2013, and regional projects would advance on a tiered schedule as revenue is collected.
Leading up to the primary, Connect Georgia 2012, a social welfare organization under section 501(c)(4) status, coordinated large-scale campaigns in support of the tax.
Local chambers of commerce, including the Liberty County Chamber of Commerce, also backed the tax, touting it as a move that will promote economic growth, provide new jobs and improve the infrastructure.
As the election drew nearer, however, many spoke against the tax at town hall meetings, on blogs and in letters to the Courier.
John Spradley, a Hinesville resident who last year ran for city council, said Tuesday that he opposes the tax because its benefits are not as local as the issue is presented.
“I hope everybody voted no,” he said, adding that he thinks smaller roads deserve more priority than the 25 percent allocated to them.
The pet constrained project for Liberty County, a $12 million Hinesville bypass from Highway 196 around the McIntosh Community to Highway 84 in Long County, would draw business away from local merchants, Spradley added.
The Courier tried to get a sense of votes on the referendum as voters left the polls Tuesday, and of the dozen voters who talked to the Courier, three said they voted for it, two said they voted against it and six had no comment. One man said he hadn’t noticed that T-SPLOST was on the ballot and didn’t know what it was about.
The $1.2 billion in Coastal Region road projects now face an uncertain future.
A look at the elected
Lovette, who is director of laboratory service at Liberty Regional Medical Center, has served almost 22 years as an elected official.
His tenure in public service began as a district representative for the Liberty County Board of Education, and he was in his 10thyear as the Board of Commissioners District 2 representative when he vacated his seat in May to qualify for the race.
Throughout the election, Lovette hammered home the point that “experience matters.”
Jones, a fiber supply department operator at Interstate Paper, tried the opposite appeal. He cast himself as an everyday working man who has not served in public office but who has learned how to listen and advocate in his 15-year role as vice-president of the local chapter of the United Steel Workers Association.
Jones spoke early Tuesday and said he felt the election was above-board and with little negativity, and he thanked those who have supported him.
“I feel really good about things, where we’ve come from to here,” Jones said Tuesday morning.
Tuesday night he could not be reached for comment.
Lovette also serves as chairman of the Hinesville Downtown Development Authority board and vice-chairman of the Savannah Technical College’s Local Board of Directors.
The chairman-elect said he will meet with sitting Chairman John McIver and County Administrator Joey Brown to “find my way and to transition, and we do want a seamless transition,” he said. “I’ve been meeting with the commissioners one by one.”
Smith Carter, who retired from Jordye Bacon Elementary School in 2005 as assistant principal, said she has experience from multiple perspectives that makes her good for the job.
In addition to working as an administrator and teacher, Smith Carter is the mother of two children who had different educational requirements, and she watched her parents work as support personnel.
Leading up to the race, Smith Carter kept up with local education by attending some meetings and reading the Courier. She also attended a Georgia School Boards Association conference for board of education candidates and registered with the Georgia Government Transparency and Finance Commission.
Transparency, she said, is one of her top priorities — she has vowed to hold “fireside chats” with students, focus groups with teachers and parents and to conduct surveys with her constituents.
Donald L. Lovette will serve as the next Liberty County Commission chairman, a message from voters that status quo may not be so bad.
With 12 of 13 Liberty County precincts reporting at 9:30 p.m. Tuesday, Lovette held the majority with 2,045, or 60.56 percent, of votes.
“I feel super. It’s a great day. A lot of hard work went into it, and a lot of hard work pays off,” Lovette said by phone Tuesday night. “I’m excited for being … excited to have the opportunity to serve and look forward to serving well … I want to say thank you to all the citizens who supported me; I never imagined this day.”
His opponent in the sole countywide contest, Maxie R. Jones IV, garnered 1,332 votes, or 39.44 percent.
Of the 25,144 registered voters in the county, more than 19.15 percent turned out, according to unofficial county results posted on the Liberty County website at 9:32 p.m. But only those who asked for Democrat ballots weighed in on the chairman race.
Smith Carter wins for BoE District 2
In the contested Liberty County Board of Education District 2 race, challenger Carolyn Smith Carter proved that interacting with the public is important to voters.
With 12 precincts reporting, Smith Carter edged out incumbent and 2008 opponent Charlie J. Frasier by 87votes.
“I’m thrilled; God did this, it was certainly not by my own power, and I just thank him and I thank all of my teachers and my former students,” Smith Carter said Tuesday night from home, where she awaited the results. “I just feel so overwhelmed, and I promise them I will do my very, very best.”
Smith Carter will take up her first term in public office upon swearing in.
During board meetings, Smith Carter’s opponent Frasier is usually quiet, and that conveyed during his campaign.
He did not grant the Courier an interview, opting instead to provide a written statement, and he also did not attend the Candidate Political Forum on July 24.
Still, Frasier cited more than 39 years of experience as a teacher, National Guard retiree and school board member as qualifications for the job.
“I’m comfortable,” Frasier said from the board of elections as results came in, showing Frasier behind early. “I’m going to go by my proven record, that has been for 10 years.”
When asked for his comments in the event he does not win, Frasier said he will continue to support the school board and whoever serves on it.
“I will feel good about what I have done and not be vengeful,” he said.
When 12 of 13 precincts were in and Frasier saw the results, he opted not to comment further.
T-SPLOST not likely at press time
Results of the T-SPLOST referendum, which must be determined by a 50 percent plus one vote in the 10-county Coastal Region, leaned toward the referendum’s defeat at press time.
In Liberty County, the 1 percent sales tax received a mixed reception from voters, passing within the region by a narrow margin of 2,377 in favor to 2,288 opposed — a tight 50.95 percent to 49.05.
But nine other counties are factors in the fate of the tax.
With nine of the 10 Coastal Georgia District counties reporting, TSPLOST had 58.2 percent “no” votes overall in the district, according to the Georgia Secretary of State website.
Three counties — Liberty, Bryan and Screven — voted in favor. Long County had not reported its results at press time.
If enacted, the 1 percent sales was set to take effect Jan. 1, 2013, and regional projects would advance on a tiered schedule as revenue is collected.
Leading up to the primary, Connect Georgia 2012, a social welfare organization under section 501(c)(4) status, coordinated large-scale campaigns in support of the tax.
Local chambers of commerce, including the Liberty County Chamber of Commerce, also backed the tax, touting it as a move that will promote economic growth, provide new jobs and improve the infrastructure.
As the election drew nearer, however, many spoke against the tax at town hall meetings, on blogs and in letters to the Courier.
John Spradley, a Hinesville resident who last year ran for city council, said Tuesday that he opposes the tax because its benefits are not as local as the issue is presented.
“I hope everybody voted no,” he said, adding that he thinks smaller roads deserve more priority than the 25 percent allocated to them.
The pet constrained project for Liberty County, a $12 million Hinesville bypass from Highway 196 around the McIntosh Community to Highway 84 in Long County, would draw business away from local merchants, Spradley added.
The Courier tried to get a sense of votes on the referendum as voters left the polls Tuesday, and of the dozen voters who talked to the Courier, three said they voted for it, two said they voted against it and six had no comment. One man said he hadn’t noticed that T-SPLOST was on the ballot and didn’t know what it was about.
The $1.2 billion in Coastal Region road projects now face an uncertain future.
A look at the elected
Lovette, who is director of laboratory service at Liberty Regional Medical Center, has served almost 22 years as an elected official.
His tenure in public service began as a district representative for the Liberty County Board of Education, and he was in his 10thyear as the Board of Commissioners District 2 representative when he vacated his seat in May to qualify for the race.
Throughout the election, Lovette hammered home the point that “experience matters.”
Jones, a fiber supply department operator at Interstate Paper, tried the opposite appeal. He cast himself as an everyday working man who has not served in public office but who has learned how to listen and advocate in his 15-year role as vice-president of the local chapter of the United Steel Workers Association.
Jones spoke early Tuesday and said he felt the election was above-board and with little negativity, and he thanked those who have supported him.
“I feel really good about things, where we’ve come from to here,” Jones said Tuesday morning.
Tuesday night he could not be reached for comment.
Lovette also serves as chairman of the Hinesville Downtown Development Authority board and vice-chairman of the Savannah Technical College’s Local Board of Directors.
The chairman-elect said he will meet with sitting Chairman John McIver and County Administrator Joey Brown to “find my way and to transition, and we do want a seamless transition,” he said. “I’ve been meeting with the commissioners one by one.”
Smith Carter, who retired from Jordye Bacon Elementary School in 2005 as assistant principal, said she has experience from multiple perspectives that makes her good for the job.
In addition to working as an administrator and teacher, Smith Carter is the mother of two children who had different educational requirements, and she watched her parents work as support personnel.
Leading up to the race, Smith Carter kept up with local education by attending some meetings and reading the Courier. She also attended a Georgia School Boards Association conference for board of education candidates and registered with the Georgia Government Transparency and Finance Commission.
Transparency, she said, is one of her top priorities — she has vowed to hold “fireside chats” with students, focus groups with teachers and parents and to conduct surveys with her constituents.