A Peachtree City man who’s running for the Secretary of State’s office in the 2010 election is miffed at Gov. Sonny Perdue.

Democrat Gary Horlacher is upset because Perdue appointed announced Secretary of State candidate Brian Kemp, a Republican, to the office. Kemp will finish the remainder of the year holding the very office he is running for, which some could allege gives him an unfair “leg up” in the race.

The vacancy was created when then-Secretary of State Karen Handel resigned a few weeks ago to concentrate on her bid for the governor’s office.

“This is yet another very stark illustration of how the Gold Dome is being run,” Horlacher said in a news release. “In this instance, the heck with letting the Republican electorate voluntarily and independently choosing their nominee.”

Horlacher accuses Perdue of silencing Republican voters by making the appointment himself of what is normally a voter-elected Constitutional officer.

Kemp, a state senator from 2002-2006, “has shown a strong dedication and commitment to public service,” Gov. Perdue said in a recent news release. “His leadership abilities and integrity will be a great asset to Georgia and the Secretary of State’s office.”

The news release acknowledged that Kemp would be allowed to continue his campaign for the full four-year term of the office that starts Jan. 1, 2011.

According to the governor’s office, Kemp, from Athens, is a small business owner who specializes in real estate investments and property management. In the senate, Kemp served as chair of the public safety and homeland security committee, vice chair of the higher education committee, secretary of the agriculture and consumer affairs committee and on the appropriations committee.

A graduate of the University of Georgia, Kemp also serves on the board of St. Mary’s hospital in Athens.