Democrat Davis, a librarian, leading in school board race

A sign of the changing times in Cobb County made itself apparent in Tuesday’s school board elections.

Democrat candidates on the state ticket, from governor down to state school superintendent, carried the day in the former Republican stronghold.

Of three open seats on the seven-member county school board, two went to Democrats, including an apparent squeak-from-be- hind win by a mother and former teacher turned librarian Charisse Davis. She leads by 1,074 votes.

More than 2,000 provisional and other ballots still were being considered, but only a portion of those might count in her race for Post 6.

Jaha Howard, a dentist who had no competition, was elected, and David Morgan, the first Democrat in recent memory, is serving his second term.

David Chastain, a Republican from north-central Cobb running for another term, held onto his seat. Republicans will remain in con- trol of the seven-member school board.

Republican Scott Sweeney was apparently unseated by Davis.

Sweeney is a business executive with experience in contracting, negotiating, planning and handling multi-million dollar budgets. He served two terms for East Cobb County, known for its high-performing schools and for attracting well-off families who can afford to buy homes near them.

“I stayed with my message,” Davis said, taking a break from story time at her library branch in Fulton County. “I am a former teacher, librarian and a mom.”

She campaigned on the need to have someone with those credentials, fresh ideas and a willingness to listen — as well as having a woman — on the board.

“I think it was time for change, time for the perspective of someone who has been in the classroom and understands the challenges and is willing to talk about them there,” she said.

Davis trailed most of the night as returns came in, but her confidence grew, knowing that precincts where she had strong support had yet to report. At about 1:30 a.m. Wednesday, she finally inched ahead as final ballots came in.

“I didn’t know. You don’t know ’til it’s all said and done,” she said. “I wanted to see the numbers come in and see where we were at the end of it.”

She holds a 2.5-point lead. The votes final certification could come Friday.