Politics & Government

Banks, Dollar Face Primary Challenges

A school board incumbent and three sitting state lawmakers are facing foes in the July 31 Republican primary.

Cobb Board of Education member David Banks will have two opponents in the July 31 Republican primary, as qualifying ended on Friday. 

Banks, who has been a lightning rod on the school board for his stances , represents the , and high school districts in East and Northeast Cobb.

Qualifying to run against him are Stephanie Henry, the parent of Pope and students; and Lisa Hanson, who lives in the Lassiter district. 

Find out what's happening in East Cobbwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

No Democrats qualified to run for the Post 5 seat, which has been redrawn to include areas in the  and districts that currently make up the Post 6 seat held by Scott Sweeney. 

Banks is one of several East and Northeast Cobb office holders facing a GOP contest. 

Find out what's happening in East Cobbwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Three others are in the Georgia House, including Rep. Matt Dollar, who will be challenged by Cynthia Rozzo, the publisher of the EAST COBBER magazine, and software business owner Nick Johnson. Rozzo was named the 2011  by the Cobb Chamber of Commerce's East Cobb Area Council. 

State Rep. John Carson,  to fill the unexpired term of the late Bobby Franklin, is being opposed by Martin Hawley of Woodstock in the GOP primary. Kennesaw sales rep Kevin Westphal is the lone Democrat to qualify.

 

JoEllen Smith, with ties to the Tea Party, also officially qualified to run against State Rep. Don Parsons. She has been for several weeks.  

The race that figures to get the most attention is for Cobb Commission chairman. Three of the four Republicans who have qualified, including incumbent Tim Lee, are from East Cobb. 

Mike Boyce and East Cobb civic activist Larry Savage also have filed to run, as has former chairman Bill Byrne, who lives west of Marietta. 

East Cobb District 2 commissioner Bob Ott, who is completing his first term, is not facing a Republican opponent and also will be unopposed by a Democrat in the November general election. 

The chairman candidates and Ott will be featured at an East Cobb Civic Association forum that starts at 7 p.m. Wednesday at the . 

Also unopposed are State Sen. Judson Hill of East and Northeast Cobb, a Republican majority leader; and State Rep. Sharon Cooper (R-East Cobb), the chairwoman of the House Health and Human Services Committee. 

U.S. Rep. Tom Price, a Republican who represents East and Northeast Cobb, has no GOP opponent. The Democrats filing are Robert Montigel, a Suwanee business owner, and Alpharetta business consultant Jeff Kazanow, who qualified on Friday, according to .

More from The Marietta Daily Journal, including qualifying from elsewhere in Cobb, judicial elections and the race to succeed retiring Cobb District Attorney Pat Head. 


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

More from East Cobb