COVINGTON, Ga. — Newton County voters will make their choices in one of two state Senate races in the Nov. 8 General Election.
Western and northwestern Newton County residents will vote in the Senate District 43 race between incumbent Democrat Sen. Tonya Anderson of Lithonia and Republican Melanie Williams of Stonecrest.
Voters in the rest of Newton County will vote in the Senate District 17 race between incumbent Republican Sen. Brian Strickland of McDonough and Democrat Kacy Morgan of Madison.
SENATE DISTRICT 17
District 17 was redrawn based on population shifts found in the 2020 federal census. It includes parts of Newton, Walton and Henry counties and all of Morgan County.
Strickland, the incumbent, is a McDonough attorney. He serves as chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee and vice chairman of the Senate Higher Education Committee.
He won 73% of the vote in defeating challenger Brett Mauldin of Madison in the Republican primary in May.
Strickland was elected to his Senate seat in a special election in January 2018. He also has served as a Governor’s Administration Floor Leader for both Gov. Nathan Deal and Gov. Brian Kemp. He earned a Bachelor of Business Administration degree in Economics from Valdosta State University, and a Juris Doctor degree from the Florida Coastal School of Law. He practices law in McDonough with Smith, Welch Webb & White.
Among the legislation Strickland sponsored or supported are bills that give enhanced sentencing for those that select a victim for a crime based on such factors as race or gender; prevents patients from being given a surprise medical bill for services provided outside of a network; help victims of sex trafficking gain employment despite having criminal records; and others.
Morgan was unopposed for the Democratic nomination in May.
He is a Madison native and has pastored Bethel Bara Baptist Church in Union Point since 2015. Morgan spent 20 years in the Army before retiring in 2015 because of a spinal injury suffered following an explosion while serving in Iraq.
He also worked as an equipment operator for GDOT for 10 years and earned associate’s degrees from American Military University and the Gupton-Jones College of Funeral Service.
The political newcomer said he first began to consider running for office after hearing about the deaths of young, unarmed Black men such as Ahmaud Arbery in early 2020 in Brunswick.
Morgan said he wants to address such issues as homelessness, racial discrimination and aid for veterans if elected. Morgan also wants more equal access to home loans.
SENATE DISTRICT 43
Anderson is seeking a fourth term in the state Senate representing District 43, which includes parts of Newton and DeKalb and all of Rockdale counties. She won the Democratic nomination for the seat by easily defeating Conyers dentist Joe N. Lester in May.
Anderson serves as secretary of the Senate Special Judiciary Committee and a member of the Senate Economic Development and Tourism, Regulated Industries and Utilities, Reapportionment and Redistricting, MARTOC, and Veterans, Military and Homeland Security committees.
The senator authored a criminal justice reform bill, Senate Bill 288, that allows for the restriction and sealing of criminal records of most misdemeanor convictions, according to her website. It took effect in 2021.
Anderson first won election in 2006 to Lithonia City Council, and served as mayor from 2008 to 2011. After winning election to the Georgia House representing District 92, she was elected to the Senate representing District 43 in 2016.
Anderson retired in 2012 from the U.S. Air Force Reserve after more than 21 years. She earned a degree in Business Administration with an emphasis in Management from Alabama State University, and a Master of Divinity degree from Luther Rice University.
Williams, a Stonecrest resident, is a Gainesville native. She attended Savannah State College and Columbia Southern University and is working on bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Oral Roberts University.
She has worked in multi-family property management for over 25 years. Williams breaks with the state and national Republican parties in having a pro-choice stand on abortion. She also wants to work to protect sensitive medical information, her website states. Williams also lists concerns about criminal justice, environmental justice, education and economic development on her website.
