First candidate emerges to become Muscogee County School District Board’s newest member
The seat hasn’t been vacated yet, but the first candidate to become the Muscogee County School District Board’s newest member already has emerged.
Patricia Frey announced in a news release Thursday night she intends to run in the special election to represent District 7 on the nine-member MCSD board.
Frey is vice president of Home For Good, the United Way of the Chattahoochee Valley’s program dedicated to helping individuals and families move from homelessness to permanent and stable housing.
This news came two days after Cathy Williams, the MCSD board’s current representative, received the most votes among the 24 state legislators whose districts are in or contiguous to the 2nd Congressional District to serve a five-year term on the 14-member Georgia Department of Transportation Board.
Williams told the Ledger-Enquirer the Target date for her resignation from the school board and swearing-in ceremony to join the transportation board is April 1.
That means the next available date for a special election is June 20, but that won’t be set until the Muscogee County Board of Elections and Registration officially is notified that the seat is vacant, elections board director Nancy Boren told the L-E.
The other dates available this year for this special election are Sept. 19 and Nov. 7. But if the special election to fill the District 7 seat on the MCSD board indeed is June 20, here are key dates that would lead up to that election day, according to Boren:
- May 1-5: Qualifying period for candidates.
- May 30: Soonest starting date for early in-person voting and mail-in voting. This period would be a maximum of three weeks.
- If no candidate receives a majority of the votes after the special election ends June 20, a runoff between the top two finishers would be conducted July 18.
The winner, after the election board certifies the result, would serve the rest of Williams’ four-year term through 2024. The seat would be up for re-election in its regular cycle that May with the other nonpartisan local offices on the ballot.
In an emailed interview with the L-E, Frey explained why she chose this opportunity to seek public office for the first time.
“I want to broaden my work in serving our community by being an advocate for the students, parents and educators,” she said.
Asked what would be the most significant change for which she would advocate if elected to the board, Frey said, “I would like to work on ensuring equitable educational access and opportunities so that all students of Muscogee County are career or college ready.”
In addition to her work with Home For Good, Frey serves on the Mayor’s Commission for Re-Entry as the Housing Subcommittee chairwoman.
Her previous places of employment and job titles are Columbus Regional Healthcare System program coordinator, professional recruiter, SOURCE case manager, Norrell Services branch manager, Dr. Roger O’Bryan’s office manager and Housing Authority of Columbus manager.
Frey, 55, is a 1985 graduate of Baker High School in Columbus, where she has lived for more than 40 years. She took computer programming courses at Meadows College but didn’t earn a degree.
This story was originally published February 24, 2023 at 9:39 AM.
