Incumbents lose in F'ville, PTC, Senoia; PTC mayor faces runoff

Tue, 11/08/2005 - 11:08pm
By: Cal Beverly

By CAL BEVERLY
editor@TheCitizen.com

Incumbents took a beating in Fayetteville, Peachtree City, Senoia, Fairburn and Palmetto elections Tuesday, while the controversial mayor of Peachtree City faces an uphill runoff Dec. 6 against well-funded political newcomer Harold Logsdon.

Third-time Fayetteville candidate Paul Oddo beat incumbent Al Hovey-King 337 votes to 248, becoming the first challenger to turn out an incumbent city councilman in Fayetteville in more than two election cycles.

With 36 percent of Peachtree City’s registered voters casting ballots in this off-year election, former BellSouth executive Logsdon rode a well-oiled campaign to a commanding lead over Mayor Steve Brown, forcing a runoff.

Logsdon polled 3,120 votes (42 percent) to Brown’s 1,619 (22 percent). The closest challenger in the crowded field was fitness center owner Dar Thompson with 13 percent.

Political newcomer Stephen Boone, a retired military officer, beat incumbent Steve Rapson for the Post 3 Peachtree City seat by 216 votes out of nearly 6,900 cast.

Recreation Commissioner Cyndi Plunkett won over her two challengers with 57 percent of the vote to win the Peachtree City Post 4 council seat without a runoff.

In Tyrone, newcomer Gloria Furr defeated former Planning Commission Chairman Cary Dial 64 percent to 36 percent.

[CORRECTED VERSION] And one-time County Commissioner Grace Caldwell came out of political retirement to lead the five-candidate pack with 46 percent of the vote to win the post held for more than two decades by Tyrone Councilwoman Lisa Richardson, who polled 18 percent of the votes cast. Tyrone's charter has no provision for a runoff election, so Caldwell is the winner.

In Woolsey, Kenneth Wright won over Ron Smith for the city council Post 1, 87 percent to 13 percent.

Voters in Senoia turned out incumbent Mayor Robert Hannah with a 51-49 percent victory for Robert Belisle, who had earlier resigned his council seat to run against the mayor.

Perry Benson beat Murray McAfee 55-45 percent for Belisle’s vacant seat. Keith Harrison and incumbent Larry Owens were the top two vote-getters in the three-man race for the final seat on the Senoia Council. Owens bested fellow incumbent Tony Miller by 1 vote, 209 to 208.

Sunday liquor by the drink in Senoia squeaked to a victory by 21 votes, 223 to 202.

In Fairburn, incumbents Doug Crawford and Mario Avery were returned to office. Scott Vaughn was the top vote-getter for the best three out of four slots. Incumbent Roy Farr will be losing his seat on the council.

In Palmetto, challengers John O. Miller, Gregory Rusch and Jeffery Yasson were the top three vote-getters, defeating incumbents James Harper, John Farr and Bill Burnham for a clean sweep of the Palmetto races.

In Peachtree City, the referendum providing for an added homestead exemption for poor seniors sailed to easy passage, 81 percent to 19 percent.

Vote totals as of 10:45 p.m. Tuesday are available on this Web site for these and other races.

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CarpeDieminPTC's picture
Submitted by CarpeDieminPTC on Wed, 11/09/2005 - 9:11pm.

Dear Mayor Brown,

It was a fun ride while it lasted, but it is now, in fact, over. Your talents and gifts that you brought to the City were very helpful, but the indulgences that you took with how you went about governing were not. Perhaps a Mayor with a less polarizing and confrontational "in your face" style may not, in the end, be more successful, but there was only so much we the citizens could tolerate of the continuing diatribes, monologues and novels that were being written by you every week.
I would suggest three things for you to do now.
1. Show us that this was not about the power, but about the people and concede the election now, so that the run-off would be nothing more than a foregone conclusion. Remove your name from the ballot.
2. Shake this election off and go back to your private citizen advocacy. Keep Mayor Lodgson's feet to the fire over the next four years, as you are so well able to do.
3. And finally, tone down the rhetoric to a more managed fevor pitch.
Maybe with time, you will grow into a more intellectual and less liberal of a politician, and you might come back to govern again.

Politicians sometimes become drunk with the power of being elected. You may not have been completely drunk, but you were staggering around as if you had a few too many. Take your lumps, learn your lessons and maybe, just maybe you might come back even stronger, but not if you "fight to the bitter end". No incumbent survives a run-off without getting more than 45% of the original vote. So don't try and set a record, instead read the signs on the wall and let it go. . . for the sake of the citizens of Peachtree City.

Seize the Day in Peachtree City


DanTennant's picture
Submitted by DanTennant on Wed, 11/09/2005 - 9:32pm.

Carp's comments were right on, but they are falling on deaf ears. Trust me, Brown will not concede. And it has nothing to do with nobility or statesmanship or rationality or dignity or any of that stuff. It's because he thinks he can win. He really does. It is much more than denial, it's way beyond that. It borders on psychosis. He is not grounded into the reality the rest of us acknowledge. Brown actually believes he can win the run-off. Rational people certainly understand that my supporters and those of Dar and Phil voted so in part because we were NOT Steve Brown. Four out of five voters voted for someone OTHER than Brown.

Now get this: Steve Brown actually left a message on my cell phone sucking up to me for support in the runoff. That folksy whimsical good old boy Steve. Shucks, buddy, I'll forget all the hateful things you said and wrote about me over the past several years, I mean what the heck are a few years of character assasination? Yet another sign that this man has lost all touch with reality.

Oh don't believe me? Call me on my cell and I will be happy to play the message for you. My number is 404-375-2115.

Just remember, as bizarre and convoluted as it sounds, Brown COULD mathematically win if voters transform into an unheardof apathetic mode. Please do your part and encourage your friends and neighbors not to let that happen.


PTC Guy's picture
Submitted by PTC Guy on Wed, 11/09/2005 - 10:27pm.

Wheee! Sounds like you bit into a Possum Grape before the frost hit to sweeten it.

But really, Steve Brown did do some good things. He got rid of the Good Ole Boy Mayor system, good riddance, got some things going that had laid stagnant for years and he beat you twice.

So he isn't without accomplishments.

I believe the two left in the Mayoral Race are the two best offered. And they both have every right to be in that Run Off.

And like it or not either could win statistically.


Submitted by dkinser on Wed, 11/09/2005 - 9:39pm.

One interesting question should Brown quit, which he won't.

If the City's Charter states that for a candidate to be victorious he/she must win 50% plus 1 vote, if Brown were to quit and since Logsdon didn't win the required percentage, would Thompson then be thrown into the runoff?

Think about it? Won't happen, but interesting none the less.

Dana Kinser

birdman's picture
Submitted by birdman on Wed, 11/09/2005 - 9:51pm.

Good question. Still more desirable than even the possibility of Brown winning again. Actually, if all the remaining candidates conceded then it wouldn't be an issue. It would be only Logsdon on the ballot and he'd only need one vote to win. Of course that would entertain the possibility of Brown winning through write-in votes. Wouldn't that be interesting. Anyway, moot point. Dan is right, Brown won't concede because his ego won't let him. He'll go kicking and scratching all the way. The only way to really get him out is to vote him out. That's why we must ensure a good turnout on Dec. 6.


DanTennant's picture
Submitted by DanTennant on Wed, 11/09/2005 - 9:47pm.

Dana, I've never met you, and I know you made many posts here that were not exactly kind to me, but I admire the way you present your case. It is evident that you are informed and that you care deeply about our city. Annexation is just one of those things that we won't agree on, but at least I understand your reasons and I assume you understand mine.

As to your question about what happens if Brown quits, I don't know this for sure, but my guess is that Brown's name will automatically appear on the ballot per state law even if he dropped dead. I don't think there is any way that Dar's name could show up on the ballot. You might give Betsy at city hall a call in the morning and ask her. Interesting concept, but I don't see that as a possibility. Heck if it were, I would have tried harder to finish third! Wink wink.

Dan Tennant

Dan Tennant


Submitted by dkinser on Wed, 11/09/2005 - 10:02pm.

Dan,

While some of my posts were not positive towards you, I never took the tone that the majority of your supporters on this blog took. Posts by the hamster, squirrel, dog, and cat; were frequently purely mean spirited. Many of the posts had no basis in facts and were purely inflammatory.

Setting that aside, I realize what you are saying that Brown's name will appear come hell or high water on the ballot, but it probably should have been followed up with a disclaimer along the lines of:

"I am not endorsing the sudden death of Steve Brown and wish to disassociate myself from anything untowards Mr. Brown."

Can't be too safe in this forum.

Dana Kinser

secret squirrel's picture
Submitted by secret squirrel on Thu, 11/10/2005 - 9:26am.

Mr. Kinser, you need to make sure your personal accusations are at least founded somewhat in fact. I never made a single comment about Dan Tennant on this board until after the election. More to that point: the one comment I made was titled "Tennant = class," in which I applauded Dan Tennant's dedication to Peachtree City and the class he showed Tuesday night.

Beyond that, any comment I posted on this site was explicitly devoid of personal observations about the public figures in this race. If you chose to view them as such, that is your prerogative. But please take care, and caution, in mis-characterizing my statements.


Submitted by Tombo100 on Wed, 11/09/2005 - 8:11am.

I wonder if Cal will reconsider his endorsement of Steve Brown. After 4 illustrious years of running our fair city, he can only muster 1600 citizens to come to the polls to vote for him. I think the telling point of the election is that nearly 80% of the population of Peachtree City voted for someone other than Steve Brown yesterday.

Good job, people of Peachtree City. Now remember to get to the polls on December 6th.

nuk's picture
Submitted by nuk on Wed, 11/09/2005 - 10:55pm.

Controversy makes people read The Citizen and that means more advertising revenue for Cal. Since Steve generates tons of controversy with his non-stop personal attacks on the living or dead, Cal's got to love him.

I noticed in Cal's *endorsement* that he mentioned how "open" the government is with Brown as Mayor. I don't recall any violations of the Open Records/Meeting laws pre-Brown.
NUK


Submitted by Reality Bytes on Wed, 11/09/2005 - 12:13am.

Congratulations to Paul Oddo - I guess it proves that if you keep running into the wall, eventually it will fall over Smiling

Seriously, though, congratulations to you and the other winners tonight.

Submitted by turtlejack on Wed, 11/09/2005 - 12:55pm.

I would like to also congratulate Paul Oddo on his win to the Fayetteville City Council. Paul just might be the beginning of a fresh perspective to the "Good 'Ol Boys Club" that has turned Fayetteville into Riverdale South.

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