Candidates take part in forum

In Saturday’s edition of the Houston Home Journal we featured part of the candidate forum that was hosted on Thursday evening by Bishop Harvey Bee and The Winning Church, for local candidates running for offices in Houston County. The article featured the Houston County District Attorney candidates, and this article will feature the rest.

Thursday’s panel consisted of local pastors within Houston County, and other candidates participating were those running for Superior Court Clerk, Houston County Commission Post 5, and Georgia House of Representatives District 147. All candidates were present except for Republican Incumbent, Superior Court Clerk Carolyn Sullivan and Republican Houston County Commission Post 5 candidate, Mark Byrd.

Bee informed those in attendance and watching live stream on Facebook that Sullivan apologized for not being able to make it due to a full work calendar. Byrd submitted a letter, which Bee read, that stated Byrd had tested positive for COVID-19 and he hoped to get back out on the campaign trail.

While Sullivan was not in attendance, the panel brought forth questions for Angela Anderson, who is the Democratic candidate running for Houston County Superior Court Clerk. Anderson feels she is the best candidate for the position due to her 22 years of experience in the Houston County Court System, where she has served as a victim advocate who assisted victims of crime in juvenile, state and superior courts, as well as worked as a legal assistant with the Houston County District Attorney’s office. Currently, Anderson is a judicial assistant for Superior Court Judge Kathryn Lumsden, and has been with Lumsden since 2007.

A question that was asked of Anderson was, was she aware of a recent situation that involved the current clerk telling a customer to, “take her papers and go back to Ethopia,” and how would she have handled the matter. Anderson said she was aware of this situation, but was not in the office when it occurred.

“Anyone with common sense knows that is not the way you talk to a customer,” Anderson said. “There are steps to follow if a customer becomes irate, we have security that is about 10 feet away from the clerk’s office doors. So if you can’t handle the situation, the best thing to do is contact security or hit the panic button that is there, because in the end, we still have to give the customer what they need. The lady has a recording of that incident, but there was no reason for that to happen.”

Anderson also shared Thursday that her plans are to create a more modern clerk’s office, if elected, and she would do so by creating a dedicated website for the clerk’s office, making the office more secure for the staff as well more accessible for the public, implementing a credit/debit card system and overall improving the customer service aspect of the office.

Before Keith McCants, Houston County Commission Post 5 Democratic candidate, took the stage, Bee read Byrd’s letter aloud that not only informed the public of his recent diagnosis of testing positive for COVID-19, but shared a little about himself. Byrd shared that he is a lifelong resident of Houston County. Growing up, Byrd attended Centerville Elementary, Miller Elementary, Northside Junior High and graduated from Northside High School in 1988. He went on to earn a degree in finance and graduated from Georgia Southern University (GSU) in 1992. Byrd is married to his wife, Amy, and they recently celebrated their 25th wedding anniversary. Together, they have a son, Parker, who is a recent 2020 graduate from Veterans High School and is a freshman at the University of Georgia.

The Byrd family business, now operating as Byrd and Company LLC, has been in continuous operation since 1961. Over the years, while the business interests of Byrd and Company LLC have varied from residential rental property management to the manufacture and sale of prefabricated concrete products, and from residential and commercial development to hospitality, Byrd said the core principles of integrity, hard work, and community service have remained the same from generation to generation.

Byrd returned to Houston County shortly after graduation from GSU to work in the family business and has been the managing member of Byrd LLC for over 25 years. The primary current business operations of the company include residential real estate development and the ownership and operation of Houston Lake Country Club.

“First and foremost, as a commissioner, I pledge to serve the citizens of Houston County with the highest level of integrity at all times,” Byrd said in his letter. “In addition to serving with integrity, I recognize that as a commissioner, I serve at the will of the people. I will hold myself accountable to the citizens of Houston County and will advocate on behalf of the employees of county government. The Houston County Commission has a long history operating in a financially responsible manner. As a commissioner, I am committed to making all decisions in a fiscally responsible manner to the benefit of the citizens of Houston County. And lastly, I recognize the importance of unity in our community. As a commissioner, I will seek to develop unity of purpose throughout Houston County with elected officials, business and community leadership, and citizens throughout all areas of the county.”

McCants then took the stage and began sharing why he is the best candidate for Houston County Commission Post 5.

“I am the best candidate for this position because I have previously served on council for the city of Oglethorpe,” McCants said. “I know how to handle budgets, I am a people person, team builder, and I look out for the little guy and for those who feel voiceless or have no power. When I came here last year, I was not planning on running, but over time, I saw some issues. Now the current commission is fine people, but there is some disconnect between them and the citizens. People complain, it’s easy to do, but I am new. I have fresh eyes, I am not bought and paid for, and I am a fresh voice. I will bring new perspective. If they want change and new direction, it’s me.”

McCants was born in Americus, Ga. and raised in Oglethorpe, Ga. where he said his mother and father instilled in him the love for God, the value of family, hard work and respect for others. He attended the Macon County School System, graduating from Macon County High School in 2000, and later attended South Georgia Technical College, where he obtained diplomas in welding and joining technology and aircraft structural technology.

He has worked as a welder, solderer, hatchery worker, forklift operator, material handler, warehouse worker, machine operator and production. He currently works at Bluebird Body Company located in Fort Valley, Ga. McCants also was, for a short period of time, co-owner of the now defunct StalnakerMcCants Consulting along with the late Jay Stalnaker of Butler, Ga.

McCants served on the Oglethorpe City Council from 2012 to 2016, during which he states he practiced fiscal conservatism to maintain a balanced budget, but he also helped secure a $500,000 grant to improve city housing among other things.

He completed training, and was certified in 2016 by the Georgia Municipal Association / Carl Vinson Institute of Government and he was a recipient of the 2018 40 under 40 honoree by “Rural Leader Magazine.”

McCants believes that Houston County has a lot of strengths, but one of its weaknesses is diversity.

“The county’s strengths are Robins Air Force Base and the school system,” McCants said. “Its weakness is diversity; we don’t have it in county government. It’s been 40 years since a person of color has served. As much as we talk about inclusion, do you see it? Practice what you preach. I haven’t seen any effort to show, hey, there is place of diversity. The commission should reflect the county, but it’s difficult for a person of color to win in the county.”

Last to take the stage were Georgia House Representative for District 147 Heath Clark (Republican incumbent) and Democratic candidate Stephen Baughier.

Clark was first elected to office in 2014. In 1999, Clark graduated from Warner Robins High School. He later spent his freshman year of college at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wake Forrest, North Carolina, earned his associates degree at Georgia Military College, and finished up at Macon State (Middle Georgia College). Clark believes his record speaks for itself in that he has kept his word from his first campaign over six years ago.

“I think that at this time, with everything that we’re going through, the experience that I have, uniquely qualifies me to see that Georgia gets through the coronavirus and on the other side so that our economy can continue to be strong,” Clark said. “I want to get back to where salaries were rising for the first time in a long time because there was a demand for workforce and because we had created such a strong environment for businesses to thrive and grow. With the coronavirus, I have the experience to be able to get us through that, and then on the other side, so that we can make sure that our economy is vibrant and thriving for all Georgians.”

Having lived in Houston County for over 40 years, served in the United States Navy and as an Air Force Reservist, and his financial background, is what Baughier believes makes him uniquely qualified for office.

“My dad is retired Air Force. He was in Myrtle Beach, but when he retired, he took a job here. I grew up here from that point and went to Warner Robins High School, where I graduated back in ’96,” said Baughier. “After that, I went into the Navy. I was serving in the Navy during 9/11, which was kind of surreal. Upon leaving the Navy, I came home, started a family and finished up my accounting degree. I received a bachelors and a masters in accounting at Georgia College and State University. I later re-enlisted in the Air Force reserves here at Robins Air Force Base.”

Baughier is an active father of two. His roots in accounting prompted him, two years ago, to start a personal financial retreat called Camp FI (financial independence). It is a weekend getaway where people get together to talk about personal finance and improving their lives. The camps give them a real-life support system to move forward confidently with their finances. It is somewhat in this same manner that Baughier hopes middle Georgians will entrust him to be the voice that helps to get their issues addressed as their representative in Atlanta.

Both Clark and Baughier were asked a variety of questions such as their thoughts on Warner Robins becoming a Smart City with high speed internet. Clark and Baughier agreed that the city needs to move forward as it already has the infrastructure in place. They also agreed that it would help boost the local economy and businesses.

The forum was live streamed on The Winning Church’s Facebook page, and is still available for viewing.

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