Fewer than one in 20 voters will be choosing Augusta’s newest state representative unless turnout picks up in Tuesday’s special primary.
As of Wednesday, only 4.2% of District 129 voters had voted early. It’s the fifth time Augusta voters have been called to the polls this year.
“We are sort of fatigued, with the mayoral election earlier in the summer and then the general election, and then the (U.S. Senate) runoff, but we have one more election to go,” said Jordan Johnson, the Augusta commissioner who is chairman of the Richmond County Democratic Party.
The special Democratic primary is open to all voters, regardless of their prior party choices. It became necessary after the death in office Oct. 13 of Rep. Henry “Wayne” Howard, D-Augusta.
Four men are seeking the post including Howard’s brother the Rev. Karlton Howard, activist Brad Owens, project manager Scott Cambers and college student Davis Green.
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Wayne Howard’s are big shoes to fill, and the election is crucial on matters such as abortion law, Medicare expansion and criminal justice reform, said Sen. Harold Jones, D-Augusta.
“Do not be tired, because this is the election that you’re going to see really, really impact the food on your table; your healthcare. It’s going to impact what you can do with your own body,” Jones said.
The primary will cost Augusta-Richmond County approximately $80,000 to conduct, said Travis Doss, executive director for Richmond County Board of Elections. At the current rate, that’s approximately $56 per vote.
About 75% of the cost is poll worker pay during three weeks of early voting and on Election Day, when 18 polling sites will be open, Doss said.
Georgia House District 129 by augustapress on Scribd
Where is District 129?
Many voters are likely unaware there’s another election, Doss said. And since redistricting, many may not know if they live in District 129, he said.
“Unfortunately, I don’t think voters even know that the election is going on,” Doss said. “With redistricting, the seat number changed, and they changed the voters that were in the district.”
The district has had six different numbers — 85, 118, 98, 121, 124 and 129 — since Henry Howard represented it in the 1990s. During the redistricting process, it was assigned the number 129, which had been a Macon-area district.
While its population hadn’t changed much, state legislators sliced all or part of four voting precincts from the district and added four new ones during redistricting.
The biggest changes include removing the area south of Washington Road from I-20 to John C. Calhoun Expressway. It went to the new House District 127, represented by Mark Newton, R-Augusta. Also trimmed were areas surrounding the Fleming Heights, Green Meadows, Tanglewood and Marks Church Road subdivisions.
Legislators added to District 129 most of the Summerville area, Wheeler Heights, the Regency Mall area and an area west of Olive Road.
Voters can check the state’s My Voter Page to determine which district they live in.
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Turnout historically low in special elections
The highest turnout in the special primary took place during advance voting in the Dec. 6 senate runoff, Doss said. About 250-300 voters cast a ballot in the house race during the overlapping week, then turnout plummeted,
“With that first Saturday, we did five people. It just went downhill after that,” Doss said. Since Dec. 3, fewer than 30 voters per day have used the downtown advance voting site, where voting ends Friday.
Doss projected final turnout in the special primary at around 15%, but area turnout has historically been very low for single-issue special elections.
Last year, fewer than 6% voted in the sales tax referendum. Turnout was in the single digits for special commission and school board elections in in 2018 and 2019. The 2015 special election for commission District 7 set a record at 13.6%.
Susan McCord is a staff writer with The Augusta Press. Reach her at susan@theaugustapress.com
