Good withdraws from Cherokee race
Two-term Commissioner Derek Good of Cherokee County withdrew suddenly Tuesday from the primary race for his Post 4 seat over past inaccuracies about his military service.
His withdrawal leaves his Republican opponent Jason Nelms as the de facto winner of the seat, representing the Woodstock area, as he does not have a Democrat opponent in the fall general election.
Robert Trim, a political consultant who has helped Good campaign, responded to a call to Good from The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Trim said that when Good first ran for office about nine years ago he mentioned in an interview that he had served as an Army Ranger. That was not true, but it was printed.
Trim said Good had served in the Army and attended Ranger training, but did not graduate because of an injury and eventual honorable medical discharge. Good, however, never corrected himself.
"Over time, he went with it because it was easier to stick with what people already believed than correct it," Trim said.
Tuesday, Good was reviewing his background with a reporter from another newspaper and was asked about his service and corrected the record.
"It had been weighing on him for a long time," Trim said. "He said, ‘ I never corrected it. It is my fault, and this is not up to my standards for what I expected from myself. I am going to withdraw because I allowed it to go on.'"
Janet Munda, the Elections Supervisor for Cherokee County, confirmed Good's withdrawal. His name will remain on the July 20 primary ballot.
Nelms is a Woodstock businessman and neophyte politician.
Nelms said he got a call about 3 p.m. Tuesday from the county elections office saying that Good had withdrawn. Not having to concentrate on the primary election frees him to begin preparing himself for his new responsibilities, he said.
"It is going to give me time to get out and meet some other people in the post and get to my job earlier," Nelms said.
About the Author
Christopher Quinn is a writer and editor who has worked for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution since 1999. He writes stories on Veterans Affairs, business including high-tech growth in metro Atlanta, Georgia's $72 billion farm economy, and he oversees assigning and editing news obituaries.
