Metro Atlanta PSC candidate is back on the ballot — for now
Democratic Public Service Commission candidate Daniel Blackman will remain on the ballot for now, a Fulton County judge ruled.
Blackman is challenging Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger’s decision to disqualify him from the race.
In a stay issued Thursday, Fulton County Superior Court Judge Ural Glanville said Blackman will remain on the ballot until he makes his ruling.
The legal battle over whether Blackman has lived in District 3 — which represents Clayton, DeKalb and Fulton counties — long enough to qualify for the race comes as early voting for the June 17 primaries is underway.
PSC members must reside in one of five geographic districts but are elected statewide. Candidates must live in their district for at least one year before they are qualified to run in that jurisdiction.
On Wednesday, Raffensperger ruled that Blackman had failed to show enough evidence that Blackman met that requirement.
Voting history data shows Blackman voted in Forsyth on Nov. 5, one month after he said he moved to Fulton. He also changed his voter registration address to a Midtown Atlanta apartment in April, the last day to qualify for the race.
Under Glanville’s stay, voters will choose from four Democrats running for the party nomination, including Blackman, Peter Hubbard, Robert Jones and Keisha Sean Waites, a former Atlanta City Council member and former state representative.
A hearing on Blackman’s appeal is scheduled for June 10.
About the Author
Caleb Groves is a general assignment reporter for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution's politics team and a Kennesaw State University graduate.
