DeKalb Commission election results
Mereda Davis Johnson: 27%
George Turner: 16%
Jerome Edmondson: 11%
Kathryn Rice: 9%
Gina Mangham: 9%
Gregory Adams: 8%
Harmel Deanne Codi: 7%
Vaughn Irons: 6%
Gwen Russell Green: 4%
Kenneth Saunders III: 3%
A lawyer who’s married to a U.S. congressman will face a longtime community volunteer in a runoff election for the county commission seat representing southeast DeKalb, which hasn’t had a commissioner for almost two years.
Mereda Davis Johnson, the wife of U.S. Rep. Hank Johnson, D-Ga., was the front-runner in Tuesday’s special election, with 27 percent of the vote. She’ll compete in a July 14 runoff against George Turner, a retired MARTA manager and the leader of several neighborhood groups, who finished with 16 percent of the vote.
They emerged at the top of a field of 10 candidates who campaigned to restore representation to DeKalb District 5, which has about 144,000 residents. Since former Commissioner Lee May became the county’s interim CEO in July 2013, the district, which includes Lithonia and Stonecrest, hasn’t had a full voice in local government.
Johnson said if she’s elected, she would repair the damage done to the district in that time. Potholes need to be filled, litter picked up and the community beautified if it’s going to attract more businesses, she said.
“We’ve been neglected for two years,” Johnson said. “Before you can even get to economic development, you have to take care of the basics. If I neglected my house for two years, how would it look and how would I attract a buyer? It’s the same thing with the county.”
Turner, the chairman of the District 5 Community Council, said his work with homeowners’ associations and youth groups has demonstrated his commitment to improving southeast DeKalb.
“I’ve been out there working to make a change in DeKalb County for no other reason than to do what is right for DeKalb and making it better,” Turner said. “We need to clean up DeKalb County in terms of ethics reform and take care of business.”
Turnout in Tuesday’s election was low, with fewer than 6 percent of nearly 83,000 registered voters casting ballots.
Several voters said they supported Johnson because they believe she would govern like her husband, a former DeKalb commissioner.
Tijuana Davis, who voted with her family at Fairington Elementary and knows Mereda Johnson from church, said she hopes Johnson will work to repair poorly paved roads.
“We need to make a change. These streets are terrible,” Davis said.
Beatrice Williams, who voted at Ousley United Methodist Church, said she supported Turner because she believes he’ll get potholes filled and bring more resources to the area.
“I wanted someone who’s been involved in the community and didn’t jump up at the last minute,” Williams said. “I don’t like taxation without representation.”
The area went without representation for so long because DeKalb’s commissioners disagreed for months on five nominees — including Turner — to serve as a temporary commissioner. Last month, May resigned the commission seat he was elected to, clearing the way for the special election.
The campaign to fill the seat focused on job growth, business development and community improvement.
Many candidates said they will restore honesty to county government after a series of criminal cases against the chief executive officer, a commissioner, school officials and other government employees.
“I want to see that erased, and I want more progress in DeKalb County,” said Nyambe Smith after voting Tuesday. “We’ve had so many issues.”
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