Incumbent Republican Steve Davis announced he is running for his fifth House term in the new District 109, which covers parts of Rockdale, Newton and Henry counties.
"It has been a great honor to represent this district for the last eight years and I am glad that I have been able to deliver on the promises of my original campaign," Davis said in a written statement. "I have focused much of my attention on education, transportation and public safety."
He said his experience and committee seats makes him better able to serve voters. "I believe I'm sitting in a place that would be in the best interest of all the voters to keep," he said. "There's still a lot of work to do. I believe this is not the time to try and retrain someone and give up the experience and leadership."
Davis serves as Chairman of the Information and Audits and is a member on the Appropriations, Insurance, Transportation, State Planning and Community Affairs, State Institutions and Properties Committees.
Davis, a real estate developer, counts an education bill as one of his proudest achievements. HB 186, passed in 2011, requires students to map out "career pathways" among other things.
"I think it's one of the crowning achievements in my eight years - College and Career Readiness bill. It has so many things," he said. "That put more emphasis on workforce skills in high school coursework. We felt as though our job is not just to teach them to read and write but to give them marketable skills when they get out in the workforce."
He said he supports the referendum to amend the state Constitution on charter school creation by the state.
Transportation has been a focal point of his work in Henry County. "We are still way behind on infrastructure," regarding high growth areas in metro-Atlanta, said Davis.
On the upcoming referendum for the regional transportation penny sales tax, or TSPLOST, Davis said he has no stance. "It's up to the voters to decide." He said he fought to ensure smaller counties such as Rockdale and Henry would have equal representation at the transportation regional roundtable.
Other work he highlights includes a sex offender registry bill and a bill allowing independent contractors and small businesses to pool together for insurance purposes.
The newly drawn House District 109 picks up the Magnet and Barksdale precincts in Rockdale and Downs and Livingston precincts in Newton while shifting out of Henry County on the west. Davis said he was pleased with the redistricting.
Henry County businessman Dale Rutledge recently announced his bid for the Republican nomination for District 109.
Davis said he is no stranger to facing challengers. He faced Republican, Democratic and Libertarian challengers in his first election in 2004 and a primary or general election challenger each term since.
Davis and his wife Melissa have three children and live in the Kelleytown area of Henry County.
His campaign will host a fundraising "grill-out" and meet and greet today on from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m., at JP Mosely Park, 1042 Millers Mill Road, Stockbridge.
For more information, contact repstevedavis@gmail.com or go to http://steve-davis.org.
