Candidate withdraws from Muscogee County School Board race

A candidate who qualified to run for the Muscogee County School Board has withdrawn from the race.

Robert “Bob” Roth, a retired U.S. Army colonel, has ended his campaign for the District 6 seat on the nine-member board. That leaves the District 6 race between incumbent Mark Cantrell, CEO of Action Buildings, and former Muscogee County School District secondary education director Eddie Obleton, now an assistant principal at Russell County High School.

Roth told the Ledger-Enquirer in an email Monday, “There were some unexpected and unpredictable events that have transpired in our family that requires my full time attention. Please let your readers know, it is with great regret that I withdraw but family comes first.

“I truly believe in self-less service and sacrifice when serving in a public position such as this...and was hoping to have the opportunity to serve in exactly that manner. Education -- beginning at the youngest age possible, coupled with strong leadership at the Principal levels with site based budgets, along with community involvement for transforming our schools from simple places of public education to places that serve struggling families, such as the Harlem Children's Zone project in NYC, were just a few of ideas I was looking to bring to the table.

“I plan to run in some capacity in the future for sure. I appreciate you reaching out and please pass along my best to all the candidates or incumbents. Too often, we complain about our government at work and don't give enough kudos. Those who chose to serve deserve a great deal of gratitude. It takes time and effort away from their families and puts them in a position where every idea they have is scrutinized - which is a good thing, but exhausting for sure. Invariably, not everyone is happy, but I believe in my heart that the men and women who serve Columbus and Georgia at large wake up each morning and look for ways to make our community a better place for all.”

Asked to specify the “unexpected and unpredictable events,” Roth told the L-E that he’s “not at liberty to talk about those things at this time.”

Here are the other candidates who qualified last month to run for one of the seats up for election on the board this year:

▪ At-large: Incumbent Kia Chambers, a broker for Prestige Property Brokers, and Tony McCool, a supply chain manager for NCR Corporation.

▪ District 2: Mike Edmondson, a retired MCSD science teacher; Sheryl Hobbs McCraine, a claims specialist at Aflac; and John “Bart” Steed, owner of Kar-Tunes Car Stereo.

▪ District 4: Incumbent Naomi Buckner, a special-education teacher in Chattahoochee County, and Toyia Tucker, a retired Air Force non-comissioned officer.

▪ District 8: Incumbent Frank Myers, a self-employed lawyer, and Philip Schley, a retired urologist.

The deadline to register to vote in the state primary and local nonpartisan elections is April 24. Advance in-person voting will be April 30 through May 18 in the City Services Center, 3111 Citizens Way. May 22 will be Election Day for those races.

The ballot for the local nonpartisan and state primary elections in Columbus already has been printed, so Roth’s name still will appear as a candidate, but notices concerning his withdrawal will be posted and any votes cast for him will not be counted, Muscogee County Elections and Registration director Nancy Boren told the Ledger-Enquirer in an email Monday.

Absentee ballots for Columbus voters in the military were mailed Friday, she said, and the mailing of the others began Monday.

This story was originally published April 9, 2018 at 10:25 AM with the headline "Candidate withdraws from Muscogee County School Board race."