Henry Democrats fight over commission seat

Georgia Sen. Emanuel Jones, D-decatur, is seek- ing to amend a law he pushed through the Legislature earlier this month to help Republicans hold on to a Henry County Commis- sion seat.

After the majority Democratic commission declined last week to choose between one of three Republican candidates for the seat left open by the March 2 death of GOP Commissioner Gary Barham, Jones introduced Senate Bill 306 to force the group to make a decision in 14 days.

If the members fail to do so, the decision will revert to the board chairwoman, who some commissioners say is an ally of Jones.

“I do not agree with SB 306,” said Commissioner Vivian Thomas, a Democrat who thinks Barham’s District 3 seat should remain vacant until a June special election. “The democratic process works. Voting, selecting choices, that works.”

Jones said he filed the legislation to avoid taking his fellow Democrats to court.

“It was quicker that we just introduce legislation and Senate Bill 306 states that if they fail to appoint someone during that time period, then the chair will appoint it for them,” he said.

The intraparty squabble comes as Henry County, once a Republican stronghold, has become more Demo- cratic in the past few election cycles. Until last year, the six-member commission was evenly split between Democrats and Republicans, but that changed when Car- lotta Harrell, a Democrat, was elected chairwoman in November, giving the party a 4-2 advantage.

SB 306 follows SB 22, a law Gov. Brian Kemp signed this month that allows the party in control of a Henry County seat to hold onto it in the interim if it is suddenly vacated. The legislation was sponsored by Jones.

Barham’s death means the Democrats could pick up his seat in a county that voted for Hillary Clinton and Pres- ident Joe Biden in the last two presidential elections.

At last week’s commission meeting, the three Demo- crats who oppose the new law complained they were given the list of Republican candidates just hours before they were supposed to make a decision. They said they knew little about the Henry Republican Party-selected nominees and whether they had been vetted.

Harrell said she received the list four days before the commission meeting and forwarded it to the Henry County attorney. To avoid conflict, she announced she would not vote on the matter.

Republican Commissioner Johnny Wilson said he did not have a preference among the candidates.