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House District 80 race takes nasty turn with
misleading mailer ahead of July 26 runoff
Alan Cole
BY DYANA BAG BY
dyanabagby@reporternewsyaper
The Republican runoff for House
District 80 re
cently took a nas
ty turn.
A campaign
mailer mocking
GOP candidate
Alan Cole appear
ing to come from
the other GOP
candidate, Mea-
gan Hanson, was
actually sent by
a Democrat oper
ative.
Hanson, who
did the foot
work to uncov
er the fact that
the mailer was
sent by former
President Jimmy
Carter’s grand
son, James Cart
er, said she was
appalled when
she saw the mail
er that features
a photograph of
former Brookhav-
en Mayor J. Max
Davis, Brookhav-
en Councilmem-
ber Bates Matti-
son and Cole with
derogatory terms
stamped on them and allegedly sent
by the “Super Friends for Meagan Han
son.”
Hanson and Cole, both of Brookhav-
en, face each other in the July 26 Re
publican runoff. The winner of the run
off will face Democrat state Rep. Taylor
Bennett of Brookhaven in November.
Bennett defeated Davis last year for the
seat vacated by Republican Mike Jac-
bos, who left the seat to become a judge.
House District 80 includes Brookhav
en and a small slice of Sandy Springs.
Hanson said she was so angered by
the mailer, she tracked down who sent
it by first locating the bulk mail firm
that mailed it and then
the printer that actually
printed it. She said she dis
covered that a “Sally Cart
er,” wife of James Carter,
purchased the mailers for
some §800.
The Atlanta Journal-
Constitution was able to
confirm that Carter sent
the mailer.
“I take full responsibil
ity for the mailer,” James
Meagan Hanson
Carter told the AJC. “All of the allega
tions contained in it are 100 percent
true.” Davis was investigated for al
leged sexual harassment while he was
mayor and Mattison
has recently filed for
bankruptcy.
Carter did not re
turn an email from
Reporter Newspapers
seeking comment.
Carter earned na
tional notoriety in
2012 when he dis
covered a video of
then-presidential Re
publican candidate
Mitt Romney say
ing, “There are 47
percent of the peo
ple who will vote for
the president [Barack
Obama] no matter
what... My job is not
to worry about those
people.”
Bill Gannon, a
Sandy Springs res
ident who is cam
paigning for Hanson,
called the mailer a
“new low.”
“Taylor Bennett
and his supporters
have reached a new
low and this is some
thing they will have
to deal with in No
vember,” he said.
Hanson, who has vehemently de
nounced the mailer, also denounced
the Democratic Party for getting in
volved in a Republican race.
“I was very shocked they [Demo
crats] would get involved in our Repub
lican primary,” Hanson said.
“They have no business doing that.
What it shows me is they are very con
cerned about the HD 80 seat. I think it’s
important for everyone to know, Re
publican or Democrat, that the Demo
crats are trying to have influence with
a Republican election — and that’s not
OK,” she said.
Birds of a 1
flock together.
X Disgraced Former Mayor J. Max Javis
* accused of Sexual Harassment and Cover Op
v Bankrupt City Councilman Bates
* W'aced three foreclosures since taking
Cole has multiple Tax Liens & Code
jt Alan
Cole’s campaign issued a statement
saying, “It appears that Alan Cole has
been the subject of a vicious anony
mous attack by the Democratic Par
ty. This kind of dirty trick is a reason
not to trust Georgia Democrats in the
fall campaign. Alan intends to be the
Republican nominee for District 80 by
taking our positive message of proper
ty tax relief and reigning in county gov
ernment straight to the voters.”
Bennett also issued a statement in
response to the mailer.
“I strongly disagree with the tac
tics that have been used recently in
the HD80 Republican Primary race, re
gardless of their source or sources. My
office and my campaign strive to ad
here to the highest standards of trans
parency and accountability. During the
first weeks of my legislative career, I
sponsored HB 1016, which would have
prohibited sending campaign-related
mailers without taking responsibility
for their content. I will never partici
pate in anonymous or misleading mail
ings, and I encourage all candidates in
HD 80 and their supporters to focus on
the substantive issues that affect our
district and our state,” Bennett said.
GOP runoff also in
House District 81
Two Republican candidates are
also vying to win the House Dis
trict 81 nod to take on incumbent
Democrat Scott Holcomb in No
vember. HD 81 includes a portion
of Brookhaven, Chamblee and
Tucker.
Jim Duffie and Lane Flynn face
each other in the July 26 runoff.
Duffie, of Atlanta, is the state di
rector for Georgians for Fair Tax
ation, ran unsuccessfully for HD
81 in 2014 and for Senate District
40 in 2010. Lane Flynn, a business
owner and commercial pilot, is
from Tucker.
► Briefs
DEKALB BOARD OF
COMMISSIONERS KILLS SPLOST,
E-HOST REFERENDUMS
The DeKalb County Board of Commis
sioners voted July 19 to kill putting a ref
erendum for proposed sales tax increases
on the November ballot after questions
were raised that doing so would likely
eliminate a longstanding property tax
freeze.
County and city elected officials be
gan asking questions about wording in
House Bill 596.
The word “tolled” is used in the bill
rather than “extend” — meaning if the
sales tax referendums, a Special Purpose
Local Option Sales Tax and Equalized
Homestead Option Sales Tax were ap
proved by voters in November, the prop
erty tax freeze would disappear, accord
ing to legal analysis.
The penny tax was to be used to fund
infrastructure projects, including paving.
As part of the process to get the ref
erendums on the ballot, DeKalb County
sought Intergovernmental Agreements
(IGA) and resolutions of support for the
SPLOST and E-HOST referendums from
municipalities, including Brookhaven
and Dunwoody.
The Dunwoody City Council deferred
its vote on July 11, before the tax freeze
questions were raised, because council
members wanted to wait to see how the
BOC would vote at its July 19 meeting.
On July 18, at a special called meeting af
ter the property tax freeze questions were
raised, the Dunwoody City Council voted
again to defer voting on the measures.
CITY COUNCIL AGREES TO FORM
AFFORDABLE HOUSING TASK FORCE
The City Council agreed during the July
12 work session to form a 12-member task
force to look at affordable housing in the
city.
City Council will present a list of poten
tial members to city staff at a later date.
The task force, suggested by Councilmem-
ber Linley Jones, is in response to a letter
signed by members of local churches, ask
ing the council to put the issue on their
agenda.
Those serving on the task force should also
include developers, Mayor John Ernst said.
Councilmember Joe Gebbia noted there
are resources available on affordable hous
ing and that he is interested in assessing
impact fees on developers to assist with
workforce housing.
Gebbia is also interested in creating a
workforce housing fund.
Councilmember Bates Mattison want
ed to make sure members from the Latin
American Association and the Center for
Pan Asian Community Services had input
on the task force.
BK