Fayette County has elected its first black county commissioner: Pota Coston of Tyrone.
While news of Coston will surely be included in the history books on Fayette, the news was buried among last week's election stories about the Georgia governor and U.S. Senate races.
As you may know, there has been a bit of a legal dustup in Fayette over the voting system which some say has kept blacks off the county commission and school board. The NAACP and some black residents sued the county to try to break that 193-year-old barrier. A federal judge earlier this year ordered the county to end its at-large voting system and adopt district-style voting.
As a result, Fayette now has its first black commissioner. Coston, a retired federal law enforcement official, will represent the newly-created District 5, a district comprised mostly of black residents. Poston is widely known in Fayette politics having tried unsuccessfully to gain a seat on the Tyrone City Council.
The legal wrangling over the county's voting system isn't over yet Attorneys for both sides will present oral arguments before an 11th Circuit Court Appeals court Judge on Dec. 10.
Stay tuned.
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