With a party vote expected Monday, Harlem state Rep. Barry Fleming remains in the running to be the state’s next House speaker.
Fleming was one of two Republicans seeking the top post, to replace current Speaker David Ralston, who is stepping down as speaker for health reasons, the Associated Press reported Friday. The House Republican Caucus is scheduled to select a nominee for speaker Monday.
Having Fleming leading the state House of Representatives would be a boon for metro Augusta, which hasn’t had anyone with such rank since Democrats controlled the General Assembly two decades ago, said longtime GOP official Dave Barbee.
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“Barry would be a good speaker, and I’d like to see him win the spot for us over here,” Barbee said. “It would give us some strength in Atlanta.”
In a recent radio interview, Fleming said he was seeking the position because fellow caucus members asked him to. He said it would mean a much larger time commitment than serving as a rank-and-file state representative, but one that would keep attention on the area.
“It is a much bigger job and a very important job in the structure of our government in Georgia,” Fleming said. “There are a lot of things in the Augusta area, in Columbia County, that need attention, and you need people from the area to make sure that’s front-and-center for the rest of the state to realize how important that is.”
Fleming, a lawyer who represents local governments, was chairman of the Columbia County Commission when he was first elected to the state House in 2002. Republicans nominated him House Majority Whip during his second term. Fleming left the House seat in 2008 to run for U.S. Congress, then reclaimed the office in 2012. More recently, Fleming was lead author of what became the state’s election law, Senate Bill 202.
Fleming couldn’t be reached for comment Friday. His office said he had a family emergency.
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Three prior hopefuls, Reps. Jan Jones, Matt Hatchett and Alan Powell, had thrown support behind House Majority Leader Jon Burns for speaker. Jones is the No. 2 Republican in the House and Hatchett is house majority whip.
Jones, Hatchett and Powell are known as Ralston allies, while Fleming is known as a Ralston rival who challenged Hatchett for whip last year.
Ralston, speaker since 2010 who will remain a state representative, is expected to influence the caucus’ decision.
“With the speaker still being there, he’s going to put his word in, and it’s going to carry some weight,” said Augusta Sen. Harold Jones.
The speaker of the Georgia House presides over the house, assigns legislation to committees, names committee leadership and members and even determines office space.
Susan McCord is a staff writer with The Augusta Press. Reach her at susan@theaugustapress.com
