Establishment candidates repel newcomers in Muscogee school board runoffs

There were two elections, but all four candidates in the Muscogee County School Board runoffs focused on the same main issue: whether the school district is headed in the right direction under the leadership of three-year superintendent David Lewis.

The answer Tuesday from the voters of District 1 and District 7 was yes.

With all eight precincts and early voting reported in the runoff for the District 1 seat on the nine-member board, three-term incumbent Pat Hugley Green defeated former educator JoAnn Thomas-Brown by 814 votes to 602 votes (57 percent to 43 percent).

With all seven precincts and early votes reported in the runoff for the District 7 seat, former board chairwoman Cathy Williams defeated political newcomer Shelia Williams by 378 votes to 228 votes (62 percent to 38 percent).

“I am just truly thankful to the voters of District 1 for remaining focused on all the facts and not all the fabricated rhetoric,” Green said. “I’m grateful to the parents who know their schools aren’t failing, and they used their votes as their voice.”

Green emphasized the importance of having another four years to work with Lewis and his administration.

“I think that people, once they figured out the hidden agenda, the negative effort, they realized what was at stake,” she said. “They want to have people serve on the board who actually support our superintendent.”

Thomas-Brown wasn’t reached for comment Tuesday night.

“Pat and I both stood for the progress of this administration and our opponents felt there needed to be a change,” Cathy Williams said. “The voters believe in the progress of David Lewis and his administration quite vigorously.”

The majority also rejected the ugly campaigning, Cathy Williams said.

“People were turning out to vote against the nasty, vile and vulgar tactics of my opponent,” she said. “That was a motivating factor because that doesn’t work here in Columbus, Ga.”

“The voters made their choices,” Shelia Williams said. “Whether they showed up at the polls or didn’t show up, the voters made their choices. The process is the process, and the process works. I appreciate everyone for what they did, working with me, campaigning and everyone who went out to vote for me and everyone who prayed for me. I really appreciate it.”

Despite the rough campaign rhetoric, Shelia Williams insisted she has no regrets.

“The truth can be ugly, but it was the truth,” she said. “It’s an ugly truth that we have schools that are failing. I’m very satisfied with what I did. If I had to do it all over again, I would do exactly the same thing.”

Green, an insurance agent and chief administrator for Hugley’s Facility Management and Janitorial Service, is the board’s vice chairwoman and chairs the finance committee. She is the sister of Columbus city manager Isaiah Hugley and the sister-in-law of state Rep. Carolyn Hugley, D-Columbus. Green received about 47 percent of the district’s 2,651 votes in the May 24 election.

Thomas-Brown is owner and chief executive officer of B&O services, which provides support and a group home for the intellectually disabled. She worked 36 years in the Muscogee County School District, including as principal of Baker Middle School, and earned a place in the runoff by finishing second in the three-way race with about 30 percent. Al Stewart, another retired educator, came in third with about 23 percent. There were two write-in votes.

District 7 representative Shannon Smallman, a real estate broker, didn’t seek re-election to a second term. She instead is campaign manager for Cathy Williams, president and chief executive officer of NeighborWorks Columbus, which promotes and provides access to fit and affordable housing.

After serving on the board for eight years, including two as chairwoman, Cathy Williams didn’t seek re-election to the board’s lone county-wide seat in 2014. Two years later, she said she wasn’t satisfied with the choices in District 7 so she qualified as a candidate.

Cathy Williams, the wife of Ledger-Enquirer senior reporter Chuck Williams, received about 46 percent of the district’s 1,173 votes in the May 24 election. Shelia Williams, who works with Thomas-Brown as executive director of B&O Services, received about 33 percent. Former board member Norene Marvets, co-owner of John Paul’s Jewelers, received about 21 percent.

Shelia Williams also has been a team leader and support coordinator for Columbus Community Services, an online adjunct criminal justice instructor for Troy University at Fort Benning and a lead teacher for Easter Seals of West Georgia.

This story was originally published July 26, 2016 at 10:02 PM with the headline "Establishment candidates repel newcomers in Muscogee school board runoffs."