Former Georgia Rep. Erick Allen won the Democratic primary for the District 2 seat on the Cobb County Board of Commissioners in a runoff election on Tuesday.
Allen, a consultant, captured about 56.7% of the vote to defeat dentist Jaha V. Howard, according to unofficial election results.
Allen will face Alicia Adams, a Republican, in the special election April 29. The contest for the board’s District 4 seat also will be decided that day.
Cobb County was forced to hold the special elections after a protracted legal dispute over County Commission district lines caused a do-over of last year’s election because the districts drawn by county officials were deemed unconstitutional.
The heavily blue District 2 seat came open when incumbent Jerica Richardson’s home was drawn out of the district by the state Legislature in 2022 — the issue that led to the legal battle over district lines.
Cobb County Superior Court Judge Kellie Hill ruled that last year’s primaries had to be redone, concluding the county-drawn electoral map used was unconstitutional. This year’s special election is being held using a map drawn by the Georgia Legislature.
State lawmakers are typically understood to have redistricting authority, but the county drew its own map, arguing that home rule powers in the state constitution allowed them to do so.
Tate Fall, Cobb’s elections director, has said that the entire cost for the special election cycle could be just over $1.5 million.
For the District 4 seat, incumbent commissioner Monique Sheffield defeated attorney Yashica Marshall in last month’s special Democratic primary election.
In the April 29 special election, Sheffield will take on challenger Matthew Hardwick, an engineer who defeated business owner Julien Grhas in last month’s Republican primary.
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