T-SPLOST falls in metro Atlanta; several incumbents unseated
UPDATE at 12:16 p.m.: My colleagues on the news side have now called the referendum as well, declaring T-SPLOST defeated in metro Atlanta. It’s on to Plan B. The one thing I can say with certainty: There will be a Plan B.
That’s it for tonight. More to come Wednesday.
UPDATE at 11:55 p.m.: At least four incumbent House members were defeated Tuesday by challengers:
- Charlice Byrd, R-Woodstock, lost 53-47 to Michael Caldwell;
- Steve Davis, R-McDonough, lost 65-35 to Dale Rutledge;
- Doug McKillip, an Athenian who went from being a member of the House Democratic leadership to a Republican who this year sponsored the so-called fetal pain anti-abortion bill, lost 50.4-49.6 to Regina Quick;
- Keith Heard, D-Athens, lost 55-45 to Spencer Frye.
In addition, there are two districts where House Democratic incumbents were paired against each other. Pat Gardner had a 63-37 lead over Rashad Taylor, while Simone Bell led Ralph Long 57-43.
And another six House incumbents were in real trouble: Judy Manning, R-Marietta; Yasmin Neal, D-Jonesboro; Glenn Baker, D-Jonesboro; Kip Smith, R-Columbus; and Jason Spencer, R-Woodbine, all were trailing late Tuesday night, and Pam Dickerson, D-Conyers, was headed for a runoff against Sharon Sawyer.
UPDATE at 11:30 p.m.: My prediction of a single-digit loss for metro Atlanta’s T-SPLOST is looking shaky. With two-thirds of the region’s precincts reporting, the tax is trailing by a whopping 18 28 percentage points, 64-36 (sorry, late-night math — KW). We shall see what the final margin is, but I feel safe in saying the tax has been defeated.
In other news, it would appear state Sen. Jack Murphy survived a tough primary challenge. Other endangered Senate incumbents (see previous update) were still having to sweat it out. Sens. Miriam Paris and Bill Heath, and probably Gail Davenport as well, appeared headed for runoffs.
UPDATE at 10:10 p.m.: A few incumbent state senators appear to be in some trouble tonight. With the caveat that it’s still early, with important parts of these districts still to report, the nervous ones tonight are:
- Majority Whip Cecil Station, R-Macon, who trails challenger Spencer Price 51-49 at the moment;
- Johnny Grant, R-Milledgeville, who trails Burt Jones 53-47;
- Miriam Paris, D-Macon, who trails former state Rep. David Lucas 48-47 (with a third candidate taking a handful of votes);
- Jack Murphy, R-Cumming, who has drawn criticism for remaining chairman of the Senate Banking Committee while being sued by the FDIC, leads Steve Voshall 50.2-49.8;
- Bill Heath, R-Bremen, a.k.a. the man who put longtime Speaker Tom Murphy out of politics, leads Bill Carruth 45-42 in another three-man race;
- Gail Davenport, D-Jonesboro, is trailing former state Sen. Gail Buckner 48-37 in a three-person race;
UPDATE at 9:44 p.m.: In congressional races, we appear to be headed to runoffs in a couple of GOP primaries.
In the newly created 9th District centered on Hall and Forsyth counties, state Rep. Doug Collins has 42 percent of the vote and radio talk-show host Martha Zoller 41 percent. There still are a number of counties still to fully report in that large, Northeast Georgia district.
In the 12th, which Republicans redrew last year to be much more favorable to their party against incumbent Democrat John Barrow, state Rep. Lee Anderson has an early lead in a four-way race. But the Augusta area, home to two of the challengers, has yet to report most of its results.
We might also see a Republican runoff in the 2nd, although incumbent Democrat Sanford Bishop is much safer in his redrawn district than he was in 2010, when he barely held onto his office. Whoever emerges from the GOP side is unlikely to give him nearly as tough a run this year.
Neither Hank Johnson (D) nor Phil Gingrey (R) nor Lynn Westmoreland (R), the only incumbents to face more than one primary challenger, seems likely to end up in a runoff. (Note: I left Westmoreland off that list originally. — KW)
UPDATE at 9:30 p.m.: Two and a half hours after the polls closed, we still don’t have a ton of clarity about how T-SPLOST is faring in metro Atlanta. That’s because Clayton, DeKalb and Fulton counties are just beginning to report the bulk of their returns. When they do, the 66-34 lead for the “no” vote will narrow considerably. I still look for disapproval of the sales-tax hike by single digits.
That said, the nightmare scenario for state officials seems to be unfolding: Metro Atlanta, for whom the T-SPLOST was created, will vote it down while it passes in other regions, tying the hands of state lawmakers in coming up with Plan B. The tax is currently ahead in the regions surrounding Augusta and Columbus, along with the one in rural southeast-central (ish) Georgia stretching from Wrightsville to Jesup. I still think the only option will be for another vote within a couple of years.
ORIGINAL POST:
Tonight — or early Wednesday morning — we’ll learn the fate not only of the T-SPLOST in metro Atlanta and 11 other regions around the state. We’ll also find out the winners in a number of elections for Congress and the statehouse, whether other races are going to runoffs, and how the ballot measures fared in the Democratic and GOP primaries.
I’ll update this post as the evening wears on. You can get results here.
– By Kyle Wingfield
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456 comments Add your comment
Never can tell
August 1st, 2012
11:25 am
@@
You would probably be he last person who wants to talking about “sniping”.
Maybe not today, but you do it on a regular basis.
Hypocrite much?
SHNIRT
Sick of Progs
August 1st, 2012
11:26 am
getalife
August 1st, 2012
11:20 am
will robme did not pay any taxes for 10 years.
They should file charges on this felon.
They should file charges on Jeff Immelt for shipping jobs overseas and G.E. not paying taxes last year. Oh, wait, who’s Job Czar is he??
St Simons - we're on Island time
August 1st, 2012
11:26 am
Is Mark Hatfield gone? hallelujah jaysus chicken samwich!
Ditto Benedict McKillip
And I see for Bill Heath, its InGawdWeTrust, for all others, its a runoff heh
like my uncle said, swing the hammer, Cant hit but one nail at the time
Never can tell
August 1st, 2012
11:27 am
HillBilly D
Good point on the water issue. I think that is as important or more so than the infrastructure issue.
getalife
August 1st, 2012
11:28 am
Sick of,
Same ole con deflection.
Are you going to vote for a felon that paid no taxes for 10 years?
Are you that brainwashed?
Rockerbabe
August 1st, 2012
11:29 am
Whell, yes whell, you white folks on the north side of town, you Tea Party idiots can just sit in your traffic jams and stew! I live on the east side of town and life is a lot better when you folks do not come over here for anything!. NOTHING and I mean NOTHING will ever make the TP folks happy other than a return to the 1950s and 1960s. When I retire in about 5 years, I will be heading back up north were folks are reasonable and sane and see beyond their own front yards. If the folks here in Atlanta want progress, then your are going to have to vote the TP and GOP out of office.
stands for decibels
August 1st, 2012
11:30 am
Michael Stipe would love your mentality.
can someone translate this into English?
Last I checked, Mr. Stipe was a fabulously well-off retired rock star who can do more or less whatever he likes. I’m not sure what that has to do with the discussion at hand, though.
Big D
August 1st, 2012
11:31 am
“Wonder why the Dems can use former Presidents but you sure dont see the Bush’s around”
The above statement is so funny it is hard to believe it was seriously offered Obama is in such bad shape, he has to rely on a disbarred former president, (the only one in history) admitted perjurer and womanizer who disgraced the oval office with his shenanigans or Jimmy Carter whose only claim to fame now is, with Obama in the White House, Jimmy is no longer the worst president in our history. Even by comparison with those two, Obama comes out looking like the doofus he is. Here is the prime proof of the stupidity of our present white house is that both Clinton and Obama’s speech is scheduled for opening of NFL football opposite Cowboys and Giants on TV. Want to bet on who will be watching Laurel and Hardy?
Hillbilly D
August 1st, 2012
11:33 am
Lu Green’s point is an excellent one. The vast majority of large cities in the world evolved from villages that grew up around waterways, water being the most important element to sustain life. Atlanta and some other cities didn’t and that’s part of their problem. They were built on a foundation of shifting sand, so to speak.
getalife
August 1st, 2012
11:35 am
“GA voters revolt, crush $7.2 billion transportation tax…” drudgey.
Good job voters, you made drudgey..
Hillbilly D
August 1st, 2012
11:35 am
I will be heading back up north were folks are reasonable and sane and see beyond their own front yards.
Like the sizeable number of folks in NYC who didn’t want the Mosque near (relatively speaking) Ground Zero?
md
August 1st, 2012
11:37 am
“It’s my understanding that the reason there is no MARTA line to Turner Field is that the Braves didn’t want it because it would cut into their parking revenue.”
And in a testament to how lazy our society is getting, the Ga St station is not that far of a walk……but fat america is fat for a reason…………
@@
August 1st, 2012
11:37 am
Never:
I hit AmVet and Kamchak over here…never on their <—–own turf. Call it payback.
I do not, however, go hunting for them.
USMC
August 1st, 2012
11:37 am
“I am not running for President and paid all my taxes.
will robme is a felon.”
felon???LOL! I think you need to put the pipe down and come up for some air, Getalife.
Hmmmmmm
August 1st, 2012
11:38 am
@Never can tell….
I forgot that I was talking to a Liberal Elite… Sorry, I bow before your great intellect…. LOL. Some people never learn…
Never can tell
August 1st, 2012
11:38 am
@@
Play semantics all you like. Again, you are the last blogger that needs to bring up “sniping”.
getalife
August 1st, 2012
11:39 am
USMC,
He is hiding his papers. Fact.
getalife
August 1st, 2012
11:40 am
md,
Most cons are fat and lazy.
Agreed.
larry
August 1st, 2012
11:41 am
“I am not running for President and paid all my taxes.
will robme is a felon.”
I will reserve judgement on whether he’s a felon or not, but I feel like he is hiding something. If it was going to give him an advantage , he would have released them back in the primaries.
stands for decibels
August 1st, 2012
11:41 am
Obama is in such bad shape, he has to rely on a disbarred former president,
oh please.
Save for a relatively brief spell during his first term, a majority of actual Americans approved of Clinton as President, and Republican efforts to remove him from office only made Americans appreciate him more.
If Obama weren’t using this campaign resource — who just happens to be the Secretary of State’s husband — to his advantage, he’d be guilty of political malpractice.
iggy
August 1st, 2012
11:42 am
“I will be heading back up north were folks are reasonable and sane and see beyond their own front yards.”
Thats the best news I ve heard all day. Buh Bye!
getalife
August 1st, 2012
11:43 am
Reid said his Bain contact told him will robme paid no taxes for 10 years.
I believe Reid is telling the truth.
md
August 1st, 2012
11:43 am
“Are you going to vote for a felon that paid no taxes for 10 years?”
And that my friends is how a lie gets legs………..
USMC
August 1st, 2012
11:43 am
The city of Atlanta CAN’T even manage the SYNCHRONIZATION of it’s own traffic lights. SAD!
How is it going to take part in managing BILLION$ of tax payer dollars???
It’s not just the city of Atlanta, the state and county municipalities, errr politicians are in the same predicament. Make the most of what you have already, THEN let’s take on a larger project.
Tealiban Party
August 1st, 2012
11:44 am
Anyone else see the irony of the Tea Party having their results party at Hudson Grill midtown?
Debbie Dooley and the fest of her minions should stay in the burbs, rally at their local Applebee’s, and stop cloggin the intown streets!!!!!
Jose
August 1st, 2012
11:45 am
it would make me happy if the yankee libs that always THREATEN to head back up NORTH would keep their word……….. but they never do
SIGH
i guess when they realize that the lib ways up NORTH that forced them to come down here will COST them………… they decide to stay
stands for decibels
August 1st, 2012
11:46 am
If it was going to give him an advantage , he would have released them back in the primaries.
or, as some have speculated, he might’ve waited until the news story had built up a serious head of steam–say, just a few weeks ago?–and released the information and said “happy now? I’m clean as a whistle, not that it was ever any of your business, really.”
As it stands, he must realize that there’s nothing to be gained by succumbing to these demands, and he figures it will have largely blown over as an issue to swing voters in November.
stands for decibels
August 1st, 2012
11:47 am
L-O-S-T SHEETZ.
md
August 1st, 2012
11:47 am
“And I will continue to boycott them to show support for equal rights for ALL individuals.”
Isn’t boycotting them indicating a lack of equal rights for ALL individuals??
I’m a heathen, but I see no problem with them expressing their beliefs as long as they do not withhold service to all individuals……..and last I checked, they serve anyone that walks through the door.
In my opinion, boycotting is doing the exact same thing that one is supposedly against…….
Jose
August 1st, 2012
11:47 am
ANYONE SEE THE IRONY THAT A MAJORITY VOTED NO IN CITY OF ATLANTA, DEKALB AND FULTON
THE AREAS WHERE THE TEA PARTY HAS NO FOOTHOLD
Never can tell
August 1st, 2012
11:47 am
Heck if my choices were Applebees, Chilis or Ruby Tuesdays…….. I would go to Hudson Grill as well
Can’t say I blame them one bit
Numbers-R-US
August 1st, 2012
11:48 am
I heard Romney got nicknamed Mitt the Twit while overseas. If that is true, then that is not a good sign for Mitt’s diplomacy skills.
USMC
August 1st, 2012
11:49 am
He is hiding his papers. Fact.
Kind of like Obama hides his college transcripts, college papers and Birth Certificate for THREE years.
We still have never seen ANY of Obama’s transcripts from college, etc. Not that I care, he is unqualified regardless.
Getalife you are being played for a fool by the DemocRats. Try developing some critical thinking skills instead of barking the Socialist party line like a Seal at the Circus.
USMC
August 1st, 2012
11:52 am
“I heard Romney got nicknamed Mitt the Twit while overseas. If that is true, then that is not a good sign for Mitt’s diplomacy skills.”
Nothing that Mitt said or did has come close the Enormous Blunder that Obama made recently while in Poland… “Polish Death Camps” instead of “Nazi Death Camps”… What a Buffoon.
Never can tell
August 1st, 2012
11:52 am
Yeah getalife
Why bark your line, when you can be just as blind as USMC and bark the same tired line from the other side.
Two peas in a pod
md
August 1st, 2012
11:52 am
“I will be heading back up north were folks are reasonable and sane and see beyond their own front yards.”
Are the reasonable ones the ones that are still up there or the ones that moved to the south to escape the weather and taxes??
Never can tell
August 1st, 2012
11:53 am
Too funny that USMC, as he marches to the right wing talking point beat, calls out others for doing the same.
USMC…. you too funny
iggy
August 1st, 2012
11:56 am
“The city of Atlanta CAN’T even manage the SYNCHRONIZATION of it’s own traffic lights. SAD!”
Then there are the crooks at Watershed MisManagement and the parking ticket debacle. Whatever happened to ShirleyGirls “donate to the homeless, cash boxes?”
Piedmont South from North Georgia
August 1st, 2012
11:58 am
Mittt the Twitt
what a fitt.
I demand to see Cheesy Grits Birth Certificate- Long Form Please
August 1st, 2012
11:59 am
Romney did pay some taxes.
Just not very much.
The rich have learned how to game the system ( Cayman Islands, Swiss bank accounts ) so they pay very little in taxes.
Romney knows the America people would be shocked at how little he paid in taxes. It would be the last nail in his election coffin.
Thats the real reason he doesnt want those returns out there.
Besides he needed that extra money to put that car elevator in his house.
Never can tell
August 1st, 2012
12:03 pm
Cheesy Grits
I agree. It isn’t the point that he didn’t pay any taxes or did anything illegal. With all of his investment income, his rate is probably pretty low compared to the “middle class”. Of course he isn’t the only wealthy individual with his kind of rates, but he is running for President and doesn’t want to give Obama any more ammo.
I demand to see Cheesy Grits Birth Certificate- Long Form Please
August 1st, 2012
12:03 pm
Are the reasonable ones the ones that are still up there or the ones that moved to the south to escape the weather and taxes??
Most of them moved south because its so easy to excel down here.
Everything is so cheap here and they know they can do well.
There isn’t much competition in the workplace. I mean look at the education level of most Georgians.
This state actually voted for Newt Gingrich for president.
That says it all.
Jose
August 1st, 2012
12:03 pm
next we need to ENCOURAGE CA, WA, OR and the NORTHEAST………..
to pass and implement high speed rail………. 90% tax rate on the rich………. gay marriage……… etc
then ENCOURAGE all those living in GA that agree with it that they should move to those states…………. its a win win……… they can live in a state in which their beliefs match their government
kind of the POINT of our country
Never can tell
August 1st, 2012
12:06 pm
“kind of the POINT of our country”
Wrong. 100% incorrect.
People are free to voice their disagreements via protest, votes, etc. That goes for all sides. May not change anything, but it is your right.
So you again are wrong.
You are batting exactly ZERO.
Jose
August 1st, 2012
12:06 pm
we will never be HOMO in this country
HOMOGENEOUS that is
I demand to see Cheesy Grits Birth Certificate- Long Form Please
August 1st, 2012
12:08 pm
Romney explains ‘culture’ remark, blames media for bad press
Classic Republican move. Right out of the playbook.
When they step in it blame the “liberal” media
In other words the media they dont control. Like Fox.
Gary
August 1st, 2012
12:14 pm
Atlanta is a wannabe city. This place thinks it’s a international city and that’s a joke. The state defeated the “tsplost” bill and there ain’t no sidewalks down here!!!!! 49th in the country in literacy, No#1 in the country in under age prostitution and a 19/20th century mentality. Atlanta is a “moron factory!!!!!” No progressive thinking at all. Don’t believe the HYPE!!!!!!!!!!
Jose
August 1st, 2012
12:17 pm
GARY
feel free to go to hartsfield-jackson international airport and fly one way to a place where their values agree with yours
its the beauty of this country
you are free to choose where you want to live
Never can tell
August 1st, 2012
12:20 pm
Jose
And if he chooses to live here, that is his business.
But thanks for letting him know
bwahhahahahah
Phineas
August 1st, 2012
12:25 pm
How depressing for Atlanta and for Georgia. I think we are now officially about 4-5 years into a long downward slide for Atlanta and for Georgia. Atlanta’s stature compared to other major American cities has taken a hit the last few years, and now that trend is likely to continue. It’s too bad after Atlanta had things on such a good upswing following the 1996 Olympics.