Three candidates met today's noon deadline to qualify to run for the Georgia House District 2 seat vacated by Jay Neal, R-Chickamauga, who stepped down last week to take an appointment by Gov. Nathan Deal to a state Department of Corrections post.
According to the Georgia Secretary of State's website, the following Republican candidates qualified to run in the Jan. 7 special election:
- Neal Florence, 62, a LaFayette pharmacist who's resigning his post as that city's mayor after 23 years in office.
- Steve Tarvin, 62, president and CEO of the recently closed Crystal Springs Print Works textile plant in Chickamauga. Tarvin made an unsuccessful 2012 Republican primary bid against Neal for the seat.
- Doug Woodruff, 50, a Ringgold attorney who in 2012 ran to be Lookout Mountain Judicial Circuit district attorney and lost by 42 votes.
Polls for the Georgia House District 2 seat will be open Jan. 7 from 7 a.m. until 7 p.m. The election will occur in portions of Catoosa, Walker and Whitfield counties. It's a nonpartisan special election with no party primaries. However, each candidate's party affiliation will be listed on the ballot.
A run-off election, if necessary, will be held on Feb. 4.
Candidates paid $400 each in Atlanta to qualify.
For complete details, see tomorrow's Chattanooga Times Free Press.