Gwinnett County voters rejected embattled Judge Kathryn “Kathy” Schrader’s bid for another term, choosing a new Superior Court judge in Tuesday’s runoff elections.
They also decided who will be on the ballot this fall in races for county commission, tax commissioner and sheriff.
Schrader, who was charged with three counts of felony computer trespass in a convoluted case involving accusations that she provided a private investigator and two contractors improper access to the Gwinnett County computer network, lost to Deborah Fluker, a magistrate judge. Schrader was due to be retried in April after a mistrial in February, but the pandemic has delayed the trial.
Fluker, who has been sitting in Superior Court by designation, said she was running because she was concerned that Schrader wasn’t fulfilling her job duties.
Democrats also settled on a slew of candidates. In the sheriff’s race, Keybo Taylor edged out Curtis Clemons. Taylor, who has pledged to eliminate the 287(g) immigration program, said he wants to improve crisis intervention training and mental health policies, and hire a command staff that better reflects the county’s diversity.
Taylor will face Republican Lou Solis in November. In the tax commissioner’s race, Tiffany Porter will face Republican incumbent Richard Steele. Porter beat Regina Carden to be on the ballot this fall.
In the commission chair’s race, Nicole Love Hendrickson took nearly 80% of the vote. Hendrickson had barely missed winning the race outright in June, and her competitor, Lee Thompson Jr., said he would not campaign for the job. Hendrickson will face Republican David Post in November. The former director of the county’s community outreach program, Hendrickson said she wants to improve inequities in the county, with a focus on food insecurity and workforce development.
In the District 3 commission race, Jasper Watkins III edged out Derrick Wilson for the Democratic nomination. It will be Watkins’ second time vying for the job. In 2016, he barely lost to Tommy Hunter, a Republican who is not seeking reelection. If elected, Watkins wants to improve emergency preparedness planning and work to bring large corporations to the county by promoting smaller businesses.
He’ll face Republican Ben Archer in November. Archer, a member of the county’s planning commission, bested Matt DeReimer in the runoff. Archer said he’s running because he sees infrastructure improvements that could be made in the area. He said the district has been under-served and he wants to be more present as a representative.
The county still has around 200 provisional ballots and absentee ballots to consider, with signature confirmations needed for the absentee ballots. None of the margins are close enough that the results will change the outcome of the election.
