Election Day 2018: Bartow Candidates, Voting Hours, Sample Ballot

CARTERSVILLE, GA — Election Day 2018 is finally here, and residents around Bartow County who did not take advantage of early voting opportunities will venture to the polls Tuesday to cast ballots in federal, state and local races.

Polls are open from 7 a.m to 7 p.m. Nov. 6 so you can have your say in the race for governor, the battle for a Congressional seat and contests for two State House and two Bartow County School Board seats. Bartow County Assistant Elections Supervisor Cheryl Billard said 16,025 residents voted early in the Nov. 6 elections. Across the state, a little more than 2 million voters cast ballots during the early voting period before the midterms, the Secretary of State's Office said.

Of course, the election that has all eyes on Georgia is the race to become the Peach State's next governor. Democrat Stacey Abrams, Republican Brian Kemp and Libertarian Ted Metz are running to succeed outgoing Gov. Nathan Deal. Kemp and Abrams have been polling at a statistical tie, leading many to wonder if Tuesday's race will result in a December runoff.

Of course, this election has become more contentious in its final hours, as Kemp, Georgia's secretary of state, is accusing the Democratic Party of Georgia of trying to hack into the state's voter registration system. The GBI said its Georgia Cyber Crime Center is investigating the claims.

For the lieutenant governor's race, Republican Geoff Duncan and Democrat Sarah Riggs Amico are vying to succeed Casey Cagle, the outgoing incumbent who lost the primary for the governor's race. The race to become Georgia's next secretary of state is a three-way election among Republican Brad Raffensperger, Democrat John Barrow and Libertarian Smythe Duval. Incumbent Republican Chris Carr is hoping to continue on as Georgia's attorney general in his fight against Democrat Charlie Bailey.

Other statewide races on the ballot include:

Agriculture Commissioner

• Gary Black (incumbent), Republican
• Fred Swann, Democrat

Insurance Commissioner

• Jim Beck, Republican
• Janice Laws, Democrat
• Donnie Foster, Libertarian

State Schools Superintendent

• Richard Woods (incumbent), Republican
• Otha E. Thornton Jr., Democrat

Labor Commissioner

• Mark Butler (incumbent), Republican
• Richard Keatley, Democrat

At the federal level, voters in Georgia's 11th Congressional District will consider re-electing incumbent Republican Barry Loudermilk or choose Democrat Flynn Broady to represent them in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Loudermilk, a small business owner, served in the Georgia State Senate before he was elected to Congress in 2014. Broady is the prosecuting attorney for Cobb's DUI court. The 11th Congressional District includes Bartow and Cherokee counties and parts of Cobb and Fulton counties.

At the state level, State Senate candidate Bruce Thompson is facing off against Democrat Rachel Kinsey for the District 14 seat while Evan Ross, another Democrat, is challenging incumbent Chuck Huftstetler for the District 52 seat. House District 16 incumbent Republican Trey Kelley and Matthew Gambill of House District 15, also a Republican, are both running unopposed.

The State House District 14 seat is in question since incumbent Republican Christian Coomer of Cartersville was appointed to the Georgia Court of Appeals. However, Coomer remains on the ballot and is running unopposed. According to media reports, Coomer's father, Ken Coomer, has announced his plans to seek the seat. It should be noted that the younger Coomer has not submitted a notice to withdraw from the race and no special election date has been called, according to the Rome Tribune-News.

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There will also be three local contested races on the ballot in Bartow County. Republican Tony Ross, who ousted incumbent John Howard in the May 22 primary, will face Democrat Larry Slocum in the Nov. 6 race. District 3 incumbent Derek Keeney, a Republican, will battle for that seat against Democrat Willie Coombs. District 2 School board member-elect Terry Lee Eggert defeated incumbent Davis Nelson in the May 2018 primary and is running unopposed.

Residents in Kingston will also vote in a special election to consider electing Larry Posey or Roxie Pritchett to fill the unexpired term of City Councilman Harold Posey, who died in July.

Polls around Bartow County will open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Nov. 6. Please note that if you did not vote early, you must vote at your assigned precinct. You can check your voter registration card or visit the Georgia Secretary of State My Voter Page to view your precinct location. The SOS site also includes links to sample ballots for Bartow County voters, as does the local elections office website.

Photo identification is required when voting in Georgia. Valid forms of ID include driver's licenses, state ID cards, tribal ID cards, United States passports, employee ID cards, military ID cards, and voter ID cards issued by county registration offices.

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