Now that all those hypothetical political races have become real, people are whispering that one of the major players — a general orchestrating a full-on attack against Augusta’s established (read white) power structure — is State Court Judge David Watkins.
Watkins, you’ll remember, was a central voice in the skirmish over the naming of the Judicial Center. He also wasn’t much pleased with the notion of bringing in conservative Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas to dedicate the building, the courthouse of which was finally named after Appeals Court Judge John H. Ruffin, Jr. — but only after Watkins reportedly threatened not to move in.
Add to that the fact that Chief Judge Carlisle Overstreet appointed Richard Slaby rather than Harry James to fill in as probate judge when Judge Isaac Jolles retired for medical reasons earlier this year, and you’ve got one pissed off judge.
So pissed that Watkins is rumored to have vowed to run a black candidate in every race.
Some, like running someone against Elaine Johnson for clerk of court, were easy enough — he had to look no farther than his own judicial assistant, Hattie Holmes-Sullivan, who used to work for Johnson before working for him. Others, like finding someone to run against Judge John Flythe for state court judge, proved more difficult… and a little embarrassing. After making very public overtures for the position, Vanessa Dianne Hewlet-Quinland found out she didn’t meet the most fundamental requirements of eligibility (doh!).
Another name, Inga Hicks, formerly of the district attorney’s office (formerly because she was fired by D.A. Ashley Wright) was thrown around for the position after she popped up at a both a fundraiser for Overstreet and the Law Day banquet, but ultimately she proved to be just a name and, in the end, nobody wound up running against Flythe at all.
Former Municipal Court Judge Evita Pashall did sign up to run against Ashley Wright, though Wright, who seems to have walked right out of a Dick Wolf TV drama, appears unbeatable. She’s all-in as far as law enforcement is concerned — married to her job, dating Georgia State Trooper and District 7 Commission candidate Donnie Smith — and she’s constantly being praised by Georgia Attorney General Sam Olens. In fact, her only weakness seems to be the fact that she’s not black in an election cycle in which race matters more than usual.
And if you think race doesn’t matter, look at all the maneuvering surrounding redistricting. Because of all of that, the school board and commission of Richmond County have yet to qualify, meaning we don’t know for sure if anyone else is going to muddy the waters of the District 1 pool or whether or not Marion Williams is really going to run again.
While insiders say Watkins has been instrumental in harnessing the power of the black churches for registration efforts and get out the vote campaigns, which have remained more or less under the radar because of Augusta’s basic segregation, his direct influence wasn’t much required in finding a candidate for the sheriff’s race. Richard Roundtree’s quest for the sheriff’s office has always rested on the determination of an old white man, and his success in getting there will likely have more to do with the power of motivating voters for a runoff than it will anything else.
Sources have been insisting that the black vote was gearing up to come out in record numbers long before Alvin Mason’s voter registration rally, and though the churches can help, in Roundtree’s case, the question might be whether or not they can rally everyone to make a return trip to the polls less than a month later for the all-important and nearly inevitable runoff.
One thing’s for sure — Overstreet ended up with an opponent this go-around. Willie Saunders might have some tax issues and he may be backed by his share of white Republicans, but all that voter registration can work for him, too, regardless of ideology, and in this election, that could be worth a lot.You Might Also Like:
Pulling Strings
Now that all those hypothetical political races have become real, people are whispering that one of the major players — a general orchestrating a full-on attack against Augusta’s established (read white) power structure — is State Court Judge David Watkins.
Watkins, you’ll remember, was a central voice in the skirmish over the naming of the Judicial Center. He also wasn’t much pleased with the notion of bringing in conservative Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas to dedicate the building, the courthouse of which was finally named after Appeals Court Judge John H. Ruffin, Jr. — but only after Watkins reportedly threatened not to move in.
Add to that the fact that Chief Judge Carlisle Overstreet appointed Richard Slaby rather than Harry James to fill in as probate judge when Judge Isaac Jolles retired for medical reasons earlier this year, and you’ve got one pissed off judge.
So pissed that Watkins is rumored to have vowed to run a black candidate in every race.
Some, like running someone against Elaine Johnson for clerk of court, were easy enough — he had to look no farther than his own judicial assistant, Hattie Holmes-Sullivan, who used to work for Johnson before working for him. Others, like finding someone to run against Judge John Flythe for state court judge, proved more difficult… and a little embarrassing. After making very public overtures for the position, Vanessa Dianne Hewlet-Quinland found out she didn’t meet the most fundamental requirements of eligibility (doh!).
Another name, Inga Hicks, formerly of the district attorney’s office (formerly because she was fired by D.A. Ashley Wright) was thrown around for the position after she popped up at a both a fundraiser for Overstreet and the Law Day banquet, but ultimately she proved to be just a name and, in the end, nobody wound up running against Flythe at all.
Former Municipal Court Judge Evita Pashall did sign up to run against Ashley Wright, though Wright, who seems to have walked right out of a Dick Wolf TV drama, appears unbeatable. She’s all-in as far as law enforcement is concerned — married to her job, dating Georgia State Trooper and District 7 Commission candidate Donnie Smith — and she’s constantly being praised by Georgia Attorney General Sam Olens. In fact, her only weakness seems to be the fact that she’s not black in an election cycle in which race matters more than usual.
And if you think race doesn’t matter, look at all the maneuvering surrounding redistricting. Because of all of that, the school board and commission of Richmond County have yet to qualify, meaning we don’t know for sure if anyone else is going to muddy the waters of the District 1 pool or whether or not Marion Williams is really going to run again.
While insiders say Watkins has been instrumental in harnessing the power of the black churches for registration efforts and get out the vote campaigns, which have remained more or less under the radar because of Augusta’s basic segregation, his direct influence wasn’t much required in finding a candidate for the sheriff’s race. Richard Roundtree’s quest for the sheriff’s office has always rested on the determination of an old white man, and his success in getting there will likely have more to do with the power of motivating voters for a runoff than it will anything else.
Sources have been insisting that the black vote was gearing up to come out in record numbers long before Alvin Mason’s voter registration rally, and though the churches can help, in Roundtree’s case, the question might be whether or not they can rally everyone to make a return trip to the polls less than a month later for the all-important and nearly inevitable runoff.
One thing’s for sure — Overstreet ended up with an opponent this go-around. Willie Saunders might have some tax issues and he may be backed by his share of white Republicans, but all that voter registration can work for him, too, regardless of ideology, and in this election, that could be worth a lot.You Might Also Like:
Posted in Insider