You know, what concerns me as much as anything is to know who really is running Forsyth County. Is it really those five so-called “commissioners?” Or do those commissioners, or at least a controlling interest of the five, have others, on the outside, sort of helping them to make their decisions?
Or, is it perhaps the Forsyth County Attorney, sort of running things, maybe himself with some outside guidance?
This is Hank Sullivan, candidate for the District 1 County Commission seat presently occupied by my Commissioner, Kerry Hill. And the reason I’m asking these questions is that, over the past couple of years I’ve learned much that raises these and other questions for me to consider.
It all started in the Spring of 2023, when I learned that newly-appointed Republican members of the Forsyth County Board of Elections were not being placed into nomination according to the democratic procedures outlined in a local ordinance, enacted by the Georgia Legislature in 2014. I discovered through my research, and frankly, through some public admissions by one of the people involved, one present member of the BRE, Joel Natt, had just been unlawfully nominated and appointed, for now what has now become a 3rd term.
Now, after working with the newly-elected Forsyth County Republican Party, and after they themselves confirming that the process used to nominate Mr. Natt, now for a third time, did not follow the prescribed, democratic procedures in the law, they provided that information to the county commissioners, and advised that body that Forsyth County Republican Party was tendering the name of a new different individual to represent the party going forward, whose nomination DID follow the law. All of this was done well within the time requirements of the law before Mr. Natt’s new term would commence.
Yet in subsequent commissioner meetings after commissioner meetings, the item concerning the county Republicans tendering a new, lawfully-nominated name, never seemed to make it onto an agenda.
Knowing all that I describe, I decided to ask the commissioners, in person, why they were not acting on the name of the replacement nominee to Mr. Natt. At a public meeting, I spoke to the commissioners during public participation and asked them why they were not acting on the new nomination, to replace the nomination of Natt, apparently unlawfully submitted. None would answer my question.
So, I stayed after the meeting to speak with Chairman John. A bystander was videoing the conversation and you can watch and listen here.
After repeatedly asking Chairman John to give me his own personal opinion on whether the Natt nomination had been lawful, he repeatedly refused to answer, stating only that according to County Attorney Ken Jarrard, “it is not completely clear.”
Now, what struck me about Chairman John’s final answer, was that it is the five elected county commissioners who conceive of the county ordinances, and who approve the county ordinances before they become law. Yet I stood with the Chairman of the County Commission, and given the facts and the statements by the Republican Party, he either could not, or would not, venture an opinion on whether the law in question was actually followed. He would only refer to Mr. Jarrard, the county attorney. That seemed very strange.
Not to be deterred, I wrote a letter copying each of the commissioners and asking for them to instruct Mr. Jarrard to answer my question. Only two commissioners, Cindy Mills and Todd Levent, would assent to my request. The three commissioners, Alfred John, Laura Semanson and even my own representative on the commission, Kerry Hill, failed to respond. Thus, even to this day, the very simple question made respectfully by this county taxpayer of 40 years, continues to be ignored.
And that is why I asked at the outset, who is really running this county? Is it the five elected commissioners? Or could it even be the county attorney, or maybe even others whose purposes include keeping Joel Natt on the Forsyth County Board of Registrations and Elections.
As you can see, I cannot compel an answer from either the board of commissioners or the county attorney, from where I presently sit, right next to you, on the outside. You see, we are mere taxpayers. And what I just shared with you is the first, among many reasons I will share with you in the future, that the voters of the 1st district should elect me to represent them next May in the 2026 Republican primary.
I am the one who has asked these questions, and I am the one who can demand answers, once I am in the room.
And in the meantime, I hope you will support my campaign by clicking on the following link and contribute whatever you can to help. My very first reason for running is to hold our county commissioners accountable to the taxpayers. If that is an important issue to you, please help me, to help you, and contribute to my campaign.
Thank you.
