Cherokee Citizens Form Marlow Recall Committee

A committee dedicated to the removal from office of Cherokee School Board Member Kelly Marlow has been registered with the State of Georgia.

According to the Georgia Government Transparency and Campaign Finance Commission, SCRAM! Special Committee to Recall Marlow, was created on June 28.

The registration information on file with the state lists Woodstock resident Michelle Albers as the committee chairperson and Canton resident Christine Rea as the treasurer. The committee's mailing address is a PO Box in Holly Springs.

Both Albers and Rea are members of a different SCRAM! group, called Smart Citizens Rally Against Marlow. This group was formed on Facebook and has held rallies and become prominent at Cherokee County School Board meetings.

The recall committee had originally intended to act quickly to remove the embattled school board member from office, but their plans took a back seat to the ethics violation charges brought against Marlow in light of her July 6 arrest for making false statements to police.

Treasurer Rea told the Cherokee Tribune that the committee is using a wait and see approach for a recall election, as Governor Nathan Deal could remove Marlow from office. Additionally, Rea said that Marlow could be convicted on the false statement charge. Rea believes either outcome would remove the need for a taxpayer-funded recall election.

According to the Georgia Government Transparency and Campaign Finance Commission, a recall committee is a "campaign committee which accepts contributions or makes expenditures designed to bring about the recall of a public officer or to oppose the recall of a public officer."

Recall committees must register with the state before they collect any contributions or make any purchases. Committees must also file regular Campaign Contribution Disclosure Reports regardless of whether or not a recall election is held or the officeholder is removed.

SCRAM! Special Committee to Recall Marlow has yet to file such a disclosure report, according to the Commission's website.