Candidate Fair for July 31 Ballot

While I normally blog on real estate, I also think it is important to get out and vote. Ironically, it helps home values when you have elected officials working towards a goal of making the community better. The best voter is an educated one.

This election is very important- it will decide many issues that concern our community.   Specific ballot questions, the election of Board of Education and Judges will only appear on July 31st.  Many County level offices have candidates running only in one party; there could be only one name on the November ballot. The Civic Association Network of Central Dekalb is one of the sponsoring Civic Associations for a Candidate Fair on July 9th  at the Hellenic Community Center on Clairmont Road. The event will run from 7 to 9 PM.  

This Candidate Fair is designed to give voters access to candidates in one convenient location.

The ELECTION DATE is July 31, 2012.  The deadline for  Voter Registration for this election (and for its Runoff on Aug 21)  was July 2.
          
Included on the July 31 ballots for voters in central DeKalb are the following: 

PRIMARY ELECTION For Partisan Offices (Republican & Democratic parties only; the voter must select a party to vote on these offices)

Federal: Congress
State: Senate, House, DeKalb District Attorney
County: CEO, County Commissioners (Districts 1 & 6), Tax Commissioner, Clerk of Superior Court, Sheriff, Solicitor, Chief Magistrate

ELECTION for NON-PARTISAN Offices

Judges (many): Georgia Supreme Court, Georgia Court of Appeals, Superior Court, Probate Court, State Court

Board of Education (districts 2, 4, 8)

BALLOT QUESTIONS (NON-PARTISAN)

Transportation SPLOST Referendum
Telecommunication Tower Nonbinding Advisory Referendum
City of Brookhaven Incorporation Referendum (appears ONLY on ballots within the proposed Brookhaven area)

In Georgia, every voter is essentially an independent voter- we are not required to specify a party when we register to vote.  The partisan primary elections select each party's candidates  for the November ballot; voters can only vote in one primary or the other, not both. However, everyone gets a vote on the non-partisan items on the ballot. If a voter declines to choose a party for the primary elections, he/she can vote only on the Non-Partisan items on the ballot.  If there is a runoff election, a voter CANNOT SWITCH parties for the runoff.  

EARLY VOTING begins July 9 only at 4380 Memorial Drive, Suite 300, Decatur
On July 23, five additional Early Voting locations will open (note that this list has changed since previous elections):

    Tucker Recreation Center (4898 LaVista Rd, Tucker)
    Chamblee City Hall (5468 Peachtree Rd, Chamblee)
    Clark-Harrison Bldg (330 W Ponce de Leon, Decatur)
    Community Action Center (4522 Flat Shoals Pkwy, Decatur)
    New Bethel A.M.E. Church (8350 Rockbridge Rd, Lithonia)

Further information on this election and on voter registration, including a look-up of a voter's voting precinct, an individual's districts (NEW -- many changes this year), NEW official district maps, absentee ballot applications, and a host of other  information,  go to http://www.dekalbvotes.com or telephone (404) 298-4020.