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FORSYTH COUNTY NEWS Sunday, December 4,2022 FORSYTHNEWS.COM Election official pushes back on Duncan claim Lt. Gov. says he waited about an hour’ without voting By Kelly Whitmire kwhitmire@forsythnews.com A member of the Forsyth County Board of Voter Registrations and Elections has issued a statement regarding com ments made by Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan, a Forsyth County resident, about advance voting earlier this week. In a CNN interview on Wednesday, Duncan said he showed up to vote earlier that morning, waited in line for “about an hour” and did not cast a ballot for either incumbent Democratic U.S. Sen. Raphael Wamock or Republican challeng er Herschel Walker. “I showed up to vote this morn ing,” Duncan said. “I was one of those folks who got in line and spent about an hour waiting, and it was the most disappointing ballot I have ever stared at in my entire life since I started voting. I had two candidates that I just couldn’t find anything that made sense for me to put my vote behind, so I walked out of that ballot box showing up to vote but not voting for either one of them.” Duncan, a former state legisla tor who represented south Forsyth County, has made several comments critical toward Walker during the election season after previously making national head lines for his criticisms of former President Donald Trump and Trump’s responses. In a statement on Friday, Joel Natt, a Republican member of the Forsyth County Board of Voter Registrations and Elections, pushed back against Duncan’s claims and said the average wait time for Forsyth County’s advance voting locations was less than 15 minutes “with a few exceptions.” “Yes, our current Lt. Governor, a Forsyth resident, voted on Wednesday in person,” Natt said in a public social media post on Friday. “But he did not take an hour to wait in line or anything. We, the Forsyth County Board of Election, know when he did vote and how long it took to get in and go to a machine, but I, as the Vice-Chairman, will not address it publicly at this time. “But I can assure you no one in Duncan Photo by Ashlyn Yule Forsyth County News Voters wrap around the Forsyth County Elections Office on Friday, Dec. 2 for the final day of advance voting for the Dec. 6 U.S. Senate runoff election. Forsyth is waiting 1 hour in any ment as of press time, line.” According to information from Neither Duncan nor Natt responded to a request for com- See Duncan 12A 'Anna is unstoppable' Photo by Sabrina Kerns Forsyth County News Student Government Association President Anna Mpller was chosen as a finalist for the Rhodes Scholarship, making her the first student at the University of North Georgia to earn the title. Student chosen as UNGs first Rhodes Scholarship finalist From staff reports The University of North Georgia recently announced that its Student Government Association President, Anna Mpller, was named as the school’s first Rhodes Scholarship final ist. The Rhodes Scholarship, a national postgraduate award for students to study at England’s University of Oxford, is the oldest and most presti gious international graduate scholar ship in the world. Mollcr applied as a Danish citizen to The Global Rhodes Scholarship, which Dr. Anastasia Lin, assistant vice presi dent for Academic Affairs, said is an exceedingly competitive international scholarship. “The entire University of North Georgia community is incredibly proud of Anna and this achievement,” UNG President Bonita C. Jacobs said. “Her drive and leadership skills have been evident throughout her time at UNG, and this accomplishment will propel her to further success.” Lin, who also directs UNG’s Nationally Competitive Scholarships office, nominated Mollcr. She and sev eral other faculty and staff then men tored Mollcr through the application process. “Anna is unstoppable,” Lins said. “She possesses a unique blend of aca demic excellence, leadership savvy and a genuine commitment to making the world a better place. She has honed her skills relentlessly through her work on sustainability issues, Student Government, and the Honors Program.” See Rhodes 12A Canton man faces stalking, other charges in Forsyth By Kelly Whitmire kwhitmire@forsythnews.com A Canton man has been arrest ed on stalking and other charges tied to an incident in Forsyth County. According to the Forsyth County Jail’s web site, Jeffrey Carl Mattson, 53, of Canton, was arrested on Friday, Nov. 18 and is charged with felo ny first-degree Mattson forced entrance burglary, two counts of felony criminal damage to property in the second degree, harassing communication/phone calls, robbery-forcible purse snatching, aggravated assault, stalking and interfering with a 911/emergency phone call. According to an incident report from the Forsyth County Sheriff’s Office, on Oct. 31, deputies responded to a stalking call on Raeburn Road. The complainant told officers “that a male subject kicked in her front door and was inside her house.” The responding officer made contact with Mattson and he was arrested at the site. Details of the other charges were not immediately available. Mattson is being held at the Forsyth County Jail. Residents can give input on proposed McFarland Parkway transport hub By Kelly Whitmire kwh itm i re@f o rsyth news.com The Forsyth County gov ernment is offering in-person and digital options for the community to give input on a proposed transportation hub in the McFarland Road area. During the Holiday Concert at Sexton Enrichment Center, 2115 Chloe Road, on Sunday, Dec. 4, a pop-up event will be held from 3-5 p.m. for the McFarland Mobility Hub Feasibility Study. An online survey for the study is avail able at surveymonkey.eom/r/ McFarlandMobilityHub According to the study’s website, those involved will look at the feasibility and potential location of the mobility hub, “a physical location that provides an inte grated collection of mobility services, amenities, and sup porting technologies,” in the area around Ga. 400 Exit 12. “Services can include on- demand ridesharing, micro transit services, bikeshare, carshare, and micromobility parking and e-charging,” the website said. “Mobility hubs offer a safe, comfortable, con venient, and accessible space to transfer across different travel modes seamlessly.” An interactive example of a mobility hub on the study’s website shows several poten tial offerings, including a high-capacity public transpor tation station for services uti lizing the upcoming express lanes on GA. 400, bike and scooter parking, electric vehi cle charging, vendors or retail and landing space for air taxis, which “would include an aerial on-demand transport for single passengers or a small group of riders” to other potential air taxi sites in metro Atlanta. After this round of public comments, those conducting the study will work on mobil ity hub concepts before seek ing public involvement again next summer as they finalize recommendations for the hub. The mobility study is the first major initiative from the Link Forsyth Public Transportation Plan, which “guides the vision for and implementation of future pub lic transportation investments in Forsyth County,” according to the county’s website. For more information on the project, go to mcfarland- mobilityhub.com/. O Photo submitted to Forsyth County News An interactive example of a proposed transportation hub on McFarland Parkway includes a possible high-capacity public transportation station, bike and scooter parking, electric vehicle charging, vendors or retail and landing space for air taxis. Weather High Low 57/42 Access local news online at ForsythNews.com