Debate for House Runoff Candidates Set for Jan. 22

Scot Turner and Brian Laurens will face off in Holly Springs before their Feb. 5 runoff election.

Early Voting Starts Wednesday For Special Election

Voters in the Georgia House District 21 seat will vote in the Feb. 5 run-off.

Early and advanced voting for the Feb. 5 special election to fill the Georgia House District 21 seat will start on Wednesday. Voters who reside in the district can cast ballots between 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday, Thursday and Friday at the Albert L. Stone Elections Building at 400 East Main Street in downtown Canton.  Voters will choose between Republican candidates Scot Turner and Brian Laurens, who came in first and second respectively in last Tuesday's special election to fill the seat.  No voting will be held on Monday Jan. 14 as the elections office will be closed due to the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. holiday. Early voting will resume Tuesday Jan. 22 through Friday Jan. 25 during those same hours at the elections office. Voting …

•  1 Comment
• Photos (1)

Tuesday's House, District Election Results

Here's a recap of the special election that was held on Jan. 8

Debate for House Runoff Candidates Set for Jan. 22

Scot Turner and Brian Laurens will face off in Holly Springs before their Feb. 5 runoff election.

The two remaining candidates in the State House District 21 runoff election will explain their views during a debate to be held in Canton later this month. Scot Turner and Brian Laurens will be at the Holly Springs Train Depot in Holly Springs on Tuesday, Jan. 22 at 7:00 p.m. as part of a debate hosted by the Cherokee County Republican Party. According to the debate's Facebook page, the candidates are expected to, "discuss and debate the issues that matter to the Cherokee voters." Anyone wishing to submit questions to be asked during the debate is welcome to do so, provided they e-mail their questions to ccrpdebate@comcast.net before 5 p.m. on Jan. 20. Turner and Laurens were the two biggest vote-getters in the Jan. 8 special election, but…

• Photos (1)

Cherokee Special Election Turnout Higher Than Expected

Officials initially predicted a 5 percent turnout, but numbers were closer to 10 percent.

More Cherokee County voters showed up the polls to cast ballots in Tuesday's special election than officials anticipated.  In unofficial results, nearly 10 percent of voters in Cherokee County went to the polls on Tuesday to vote in the election while turnout in the Fulton County portion of the district hovered around 5.6 percent.  Out of 88,089 registered voters in both districts, 8,546 or 9.7 percent, cast ballots in the Georgia Senate District 21 and Georgia House District 21 races. Cherokee overall has around 129,000 registered voters. In Cherokee, Greater North Fulton Chamber of Commerce President & CEO Brandon Beach defeated former State Rep. Sean Jerguson of Holly Springs with 52 percent, or 3,925 votes. Jerguson received 48 percent…

•  1 Comment
• Photos (1)

Unofficial Vote Count Complete, Runoff Looms for House Race

With 100 percent of votes unofficially tallied, Scot Turner leads overall, followed by Brian Laurens and Natalie Bergeron.

Update (9:55 p.m.): According to the Secretary of State's website, all votes for the House District 21 race have been tallied with no candidate earning a 50 percent plus one majority. Scot Turner leads the race with 1,496 votes, or 46.39 percent of the electorate. Brian Laurens is in second place with 971 votes, or 30.11 percent. Laurens and Turner will face each other in a runoff election to determine the House District 21 representative on Feb. 5. Update (9:10 p.m.): Scot Turner's lead in the House District 21 race has widened to a 46.39 percent margin, with 1,496 votes out of a total of 3,225 votes cast. Turner needs 50 percent plus one to avoid a runoff and become the representative for State House District 21. Updated vote totals can …

•  2 Comments
• Photos (1)

Cherokee State House Candidates Bring In Cash For Race

However, the four candidates in Tuesday's special election for the Georgia House District 21 seat aren't raising as much money as the Georgia Senate District 21 candidates.

The four candidates vying for the Georgia House District 21 seat in Tuesday's special election aren't bring in as much dough as their counterparts running for the Georgia Senate District 21 seat. Democratic candidate Natalie Bergeron and her Republican challengers Scot Turner, Kenneth Mimbs and Brian Laurens have all submitted their campaign contributions and expenditures reports for the special election.   Turner, who challenged Sean Jerguson in July Republican primary for the state house seat, has raised $14,905.91 in cash and $9,496.50 in in-kind contributions.  However, Turner in his report notes he had previous donations carried over from the 2012 primary season. Turner reported $8,741.79 in previous cash contributions and $8,875.00 …

• Photos (1)

State House District 21 Race Loses Another Candidate

Attorney Bill Fincher of Canton has ended his short bid for the Georgia House District 21 seat.

A second candidate for the Georgia House District 21 seat has cut short his bid to become Cherokee County's newest elected official.  Bill Fincher, who serves as an assistant district attorney for the Appalachian Judicial Circuit, has dropped out of the race to replace State Rep. Sean Jerguson (R-Holly Springs), Cherokee County Elections Supervisor Janet Munda confirmed this morning.  Jerguson resigned the seat he was reapportion into and subsequently won in the Nov. 6 general election to seek the vacant Georgia Senate District 21 seat, which also became vacant after former Woodstock Senator Chip Rogers abruptly resigned. Patch has reached out to Fincher and is waiting to hear back from the Canton resident. Fincher's decision to end his …

• Photos (1)