Cagle favored in every Floyd precinct
Also, an analysis of local voting patterns shows the Superior Court contest drew more interest than the governor race.
Casey Cagle won all but one of Floyd County’s 25 precincts in the Republican primary with at least 40 percent of the vote — taking as much as 53.53 percent in Garden Lakes.
His lowest local share in the five-man gubernatorial contest was 39.19 percent, at the North Carolina precinct in Coosa, which matches the percentage he won statewide.
Georgia’s lieutenant governor is locked in a runoff battle with Brian Kemp, the current secretary of state, for their party’s nomination in the governor race.
“I expect a spirited campaign between Cagle and Kemp,” said Andy Garner, who chairs the Floyd County Republican Party. “I hope they will both consider stopping in Rome to make their case to Floyd County voters before Election Day.”
Kemp was the second-place favorite in Floyd County, but not in every precinct. He tied with Hunter Hill in South Rome and Riverside and lost out to Hill by 3 votes in North Rome.
The statewide runoff, set for July 24, will determine if Cagle or Kemp appears on the Nov. 6 general election ballot opposite Democrat Stacey Abrams.
Also in the Republican runoff are David Shafer and Geoff Duncan for lieutenant governor and for secretary of state — a race Garner said is of critical importance — Brad Raffensperger and David Belle Isle. Voters who cast a ballot in the Democratic primary aren’t eligible to weigh in.
Democrats also have a runoff to decide: Otha Thornton Jr. or Sid Chapman as their state school superintendent nominee. Voters in the Republican primary can’t participate.
Turnout for last week’s primary barely topped 20 percent locally, about a percentage-point higher than the last midterm elections in 2014. However, there are close to 7,000 more registered voters this year.
About 69.6 percent of voters pulled the Republican ballot and 25 percent voted in the Democratic primary. In the 2014 primary, 81.6 percent voted in the GOP races and 18.4 percent weighed in on the Democratic ticket.
Ruth Demeter, who chairs the Floyd County Democratic Party, said the spread is even greater in terms of raw numbers.
She noted that there were 1,414 local votes cast in the 2014 Democratic primary for Jason Carter, the sole governor candidate. This year a total of 2,554 people voted in the contest, with 1,622 opting for Abrams and 932 picking Stacey Evans.
“That’s an 80 percent increase,” Demeter said. “Yes, there are different ways to look at numbers, but more people voted for Stacey Abrams than voted for Jason Carter. The numbers are even more interesting statewide ... but there are Democrats here.”
A small number of local voters opted for the nonpartisan ballot, which only contained the judge races.
The Floyd County Superior Court judge contest between Kay Ann Wetherington and Emily Matson sparked the most local interest.
There were 9,951 votes cast in the race — the most for any position on the ballots. Wetherington won with 5,810 votes and will take the seat being vacated by Chief Judge Tami Colston.
In comparison, a total of 9,659 votes were cast in the Republican and Democratic governor races and the 14th District Congressional primaries drew a combined 7,966 votes.