Eight candidates are vying for two open seats on the Cobb County Commission after a judge resolved a long-running redistricting dispute last summer between the state legislature and the county.
The special election on April 29 for the Districts 2 and 4 seats will determine whether Democrats or Republicans gain a majority on the five-member commission. The commission’s countywide chair, Lisa Cupid, is a Democrat, while both District 1 Commissioner Keli Gambrill and District 3 Commissioner JoAnn K. Birrell are Republicans.
It’s an important election for Cobb voters in these two districts because county commissioners are responsible for shaping and funding local policies and services. They oversee the county’s budget, set tax rates, and make decisions on land use and development. They also manage public services like transportation, parks, and emergency response.
Early voting began Feb. 1 for the Feb. 11 primary elections, but so far just 1,243 Cobb residents in Districts 2 and 4 have turned out, according to data from the Cobb County Elections Office.
District 2 candidates
Three Democrats — former state Rep. Erick Allen, Dr. Jaha Howard, and Tracy Stevenson — are competing for the District 2 seat. Allen, Howard, and former candidate Taneisha Whorton – ran for District 2 commissioner in the initial election last May that got canceled, with Howard winning the Democratic primary. Whorton qualified to run but has since withdrawn from the race. Her name will still appear on the ballot.
Allen, a management consultant, represented Vinings from 2019 to 2023 in the state legislature. After an unsuccessful run for Georgia Lt. Governor in 2022, he was elected chair of the Cobb County Democrats.
Howard is a pediatric dentist who has served on both Cobb’s Board of Education and Transit Advisory Board. Stevenson, a retired general contractor, is running for the first time. He’s said he would stress “fiscal responsibility and transparency” as a commissioner, according to the East Cobb News.
The lone Republican candidate, Alicia Adams, initiated the lawsuit that led to this special election, by successfully challenging how the county commission redrew the District 2 and 4 maps for commissioner seats. Whoever wins the District 2 Democratic primary will face Adams in the special election on April 29.
Check out our story on what District 2 candidates said about transit and affordable housing at a public forum last week. Three Democratic candidates – Allen, Howard, and Stevenson – attended, but Adams and Whorton did not.
District 4 candidates
The candidates for the District 4 county commission seat are Democrats Monique Sheffield, who’s the incumbent, and Yashica Marshall, along with Republicans Julien Grhas and Matthew Hardwick.
Sheffield is the current Cobb District 4 Commissioner and a former member of the county’s Board of Zoning Appeals, with a background in economic development and local policy. Marshall, who lives in Mableton, is a lawyer for the Georgia Department of Health.
Grhas, who is originally from the Ivory Coast, owns a local party-equipment rental business with his wife, and is pursuing a second B.A. in business administration at Kennesaw State University.
Hardwick works as a design engineer at Cox Communications and is active in the county’s Republican groups. He’s the First Vice President of the Cobb County Republican Assembly and also serves as the 41st House District Chair for the Cobb County Republican Party.
Why is Cobb holding a special election?
The April 29 special election is necessary, because the state legislature redrew Cobb Commission Districts 2 and 4 last year, following a contentious redistricting battle that began in 2022 when the Republican-led legislature and Cobb’s Democratic-majority county commission clashed over district boundaries.
The dispute started when state lawmakers redrew Districts 2 and 3, placing two sitting commissioners, Democrat Jerica Richardson and Republican JoAnn Birrell, into the same district. The county commission rejected the state-approved map, citing “home rule” powers to adopt its own district map, which was intended to preserve Richardson’s seat – and thus a Democratic majority on the commission.
However, this move prompted Adams – now the sole Republican candidate in the District 2 special election – to sue the county commission. Last July, Cobb Superior Court Judge Kellie Hill ruled in Adams’ favor and reinstated the state-drawn District 2 and 4 maps, triggering a special election for those two districts.
Election information
Voters can cast their ballots at several early voting locations, including the Cobb Elections Office at 995 Roswell Street in Marietta; the Old Clarkdale Park Community Center in Austell; the South Cobb Community Center in Mableton; and the Smyrna Community Center.
Updated precinct cards based on the new county commission district map have been mailed to all Cobb voters, said Cobb Elections Director Tate Fall. “All voters will be receiving updated precinct cards with their polling location and county commission district,” Fall said.
Cobb residents who vote at the Oregon 02 poll should note that it has been permanently relocated to Gathering of Champions Church International, located at 1994 Powder Springs Rd.
The Cobb Board of Elections has approved the following special election schedule for the Districts 2 and 4 county commission seats:
- Start of early primary voting: Feb. 1
- Primary: Feb. 11
- Start of early runoff voting (if necessary): March 3
- Runoff (if necessary): March 11
- Start of early voting for General Election: April 7
- General Election: April 29