Early voting starts Monday in the July 15 Democratic primary runoff for Georgia Public Service Commission District 3.
The runoff will decide which of two Democrats, Keisha Sean Waites and Peter Hubbard, will face Republican Fitz Johnson on the Nov. 4 ballot. District 3 spans Fulton, Clayton and DeKalb counties, but the seat is elected statewide.
For Democratic-leaning counties, the election will not come cheap. Richmond County Elections Executive Director Travis Doss said conducting advance voting this week and having all polls open July 15 will cost taxpayers around $90,000.
For counties such as Columbia, turnout was so low in the June 17 Democratic primary – less than 1% – state law allows the county to open just a single polling place for the runoff.
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The law requires the single polling place be in the precinct where the “county courthouse is located,” so Columbia voters will be voting at the Kiokee Baptist Church polling place in Appling, according to Nancy Gay, elections director for the county.
More than 1%, just under 3%, of Richmond County voters cast ballots in the June 17 Democratic primary, Doss said. So Richmond will have all 42 polling locations open July 15, Doss said. He predicted even lower turnout in the runoff.
Any registered voter who either cast a ballot in the Democratic primary or did not vote is eligible to vote in the runoff. Voters may cast early ballots for any reason at advance voting sites. The deadline to register to vote was May 19.
Richmond County voters favored Waites, a former Atlanta city councilwoman, in the primary with 46.5% of votes. She placed first statewide but came short of the 50% plus one needed to avoid a runoff.
Hubbard, a clean energy advocate, won 27.2% Richmond County votes and 33% votes statewide in the primary.
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Augusta-Richmond County advance voting sites will be open from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday. The locations are:
- Linda W. Beazley Community Room – 535 Telfair St.
- Henry Brigham Community Center – 2463 Golden Camp Road
- Robert Howard Community Center – 103 Diamond Lakes Way
- Warren Road Recreation Center – 300 Warren Road
View a list of all Richmond County polling places that will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. July 15.
Columbia County will conduct advance voting from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday at Building G3 in the Government Complex, 610 Ronald Reagan Dr. in Evans.
To vote on runoff election day, Columbia County voters go from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. to Kiokee Baptist Church, 2520 Ray Owens Road in Appling.
