Early voting for the Nov. 2 general election cranks up Monday at the Fayette County Elections Office at the county’s Stonewall government center in downtown Fayetteville.
Fayette County voters who have their minds made up will be welcomed Mondays through Fridays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Voters must bring a picture ID so pollworkers may verify their identity.
There is one local contested race on the ballot this year for the Post 5 seat on the Fayette County Board of Education. Republican Sam Tolbert is facing Democrat Laura Burgess; both are newcomers to the political scene, and neither faced primary opposition in July.
The winner will take over the seat being vacated by sitting board member Lee Wright, who decided not to seek re-election.
Incumbent Board of Education member Bob Todd won re-election in July since no Democratic opponent qualified to compete in the race. His name will be on the ballot, but there is no other challenger to vote for.
Others in a similar situation are county commissioners-elect Steve Brown and Allen McCarty, as they also face no opposition after winning their Republican primary races against incumbents Jack Smith and Eric Maxwell in July.
Several local legislative seats will be contested in the election, as Senate District 34 incumbent Valencia Seay, a Democrat, will face Republican Zannie Billingslea. Also long-serving Republican legislator John Yates of Griffin will face a Democratic challenge from Rose Carroll of Fayetteville for his District 73 seat in the House of Representatives.
On the ballot for this election are statewide races for governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general and insurance commissioner among others.
The governor’s race pits former Governor Roy Barnes against former U.S. Congressman Nathan Deal.
Again this year, additional early voting places will be opened a week prior to the election Oct. 25-29 as voters will be able to cast ballots at the Peachtree City or Tyrone libraries in addition to the county elections office.
