Fayette voters

get their first taste of last year's redistricting when the General Assembly

is gavelled to order this week.

The 2003 edition

of the legislature may leave residents scratching their heads and wondering

who represents them.

Well, you'll

need to expand the memory on your Palm Pilot, because this year the county

is represented by 10 legislators seven representatives and three senators

and residents should check out the maps to see who represents them this

year.

In House District

48, four representatives will take Fayette's causes to the Gold Dome this

year. Democrats Bob Holmes, Sharon Beasley-Teague, Joe Heckstall and Virgil

Fludd will all represent the county for the first time.

House District

85 has two representatives this year: Republicans John Lunsford and John

Yates.

The only holdover

representative for Fayette is Republican Lynn Westmoreland, who represents

the 86th District.

In the Senate,

three senators now have Fayette as part of their districts.

In District

17, Republican Mike Crotts now represents the county, along with Democrat

Valencia Seay in the 34th District.

Fayette's only

holdover senator is Republican Mitch Seabaugh in the 28th District.

Local government

leaders will be scrambling this session to try and get their local legislation

to the delegation. Traditionally, local governments like all representatives

and senators to sign off on an issue, so Fayette's leaders will be burning

up shoe leather and cellphone minutes trying to track down all the legislators.

Information

on actions of this year's General Assembly can be obtained at https://www2.state.ga.us/Legis/.