Dekalb County Primary Run-Off Voter Guide 2020

Board of Commissioners, District 1

Robert Patrick (D)

• Served on Doraville City Council, worked as a City Planner in Norcross
• Served as VP and Pres. of Dekalb Municipal Association
• Wants to: Fix the aging water and sewer infrastructure in neighborhoods (plans to work with developers, community improvement districts, municipalities, and property owners to collaborate on solutions)

Cynthia Yaxon (D)

• Retired entrepreneur
• Not a career politician – no experience
• Main priorities are to create economic stability,
public safety and accountability for those in office.

Board of Commissioners, District 6

Maryam Ahmad (D)

• A public health data analyst and community activist
• Born and raised in Dekalb, attended public schools and Emory University
• Supports lowering the county’s overall tax rate to try to mitigate some of the negative effects of COVID-19
• “As DeKalb citizens, we have the right to representation, integrity, and sustainability of the district. I want to see the county grow, by always putting the communities’ needs first.”

Edward “Ted” Terry (D)

• Progressive former mayor of Clarkston
• Currently serves on the advisory board for the Global Village Project and as a member of the Dekalb County Board of Health
Priorities are:
• Affordable housing:
– Establish an Affordable Housing Trust to help with down payment assistance, rent payments or critical home renovations or energy efficiency retrofits.
– Legalize tiny homes and cottage court neighborhood developments to support more housing options, addressing the “missing middle” problem.
– Preserve neighborhoods by establishing anti-displacement funds to help eligible low-income families stay in their homes.
• Transit equity, the green new deal, criminal justice reform and voting rights

Board of Education, District 3

Willie R. Moseley Jr.

• Believes in the value of students learning trade skills
• Plans to arrange for mentors programs that will equip high school students with the necessary skills to land them a job in the technical field

Deirdre Pierce

• Cultural competency should be prioritized and intentional in K-12 schools year-round
• Advocates for a full analysis to be conducted to determine the feasibility of implementing a full Financial Literacy program, to be taught daily in some format, to K-12 students
• Focused on grade level preparedness, as well as college and career readiness,
• Supports the District’s Family Engagement Department programs, particularly the free Adult GED program
• Seeks resolution to our teacher shortage, retention and in-school support concerns

Sheriff

Melody Maddox (D) Incumbent

• The current Sheriff of Dekalb County and a former police chief. She is She is the first female to ever hold this position.
• Her top priorities are for the law enforcement of Dekalb County to embrace a culture of Excellence, Accountability and Respect, including in the ways in which the office carries out constitutional responsibilities, the way inmates are treated, and the way they interact with the community.
• Sheriff Maddox does not support 287(g), cooperating with Immigration and Customs Enforcement. • Maddox states that she will continue to connect inmates with needed services and employment opportunities and ensure they are treated with dignity and respect.

Ruth “The Truth” Stringer

• US Marine Corps Vet
• 30 years at Sheriff’s Office
• Appointed and served as Interim Sheriff in 2017
• Her current priorities, if elected, include:
adding a merit system, eliminating the mold issue within Dekalb County Jail, allowing people to visit the jail 24 hours a day, shift differential pay for officers working evening watch, “better locks to prevent inmates from getting out of their cells,” adding mandatory annual defense tactics training for officers to protect themselves, and improving the overall image of the Sheriff’s Office to rebuild the community’s trust.
• Committed to a deep review/restructuring of financial books within the Sheriff’s Office.

State Representative, District 86

Michele Henson (D) Incumbent

• Incumbent since 1991
• Advocate for children and families and providing quality healthcare to all Georgians
• Instrumental in getting children’s dental insurance included in the Peach Care program
• Believes quality public school education should not depend on where you live
• Wants to create solutions to the problems we face and restore the trust in DeKalb County government
• Plans to forge public-private partnerships between industries and local collegesfor job training
• Encourages wearing your masks and practicing social distancing
• Wants to tackle gang violence in communities and makes it clear that this is separate from BLM
• Wants to end sale of professional style fireworks in communities

Zulma Lopez (D)

• Resident of DeKalb County and District 86 for 12 years
• Attorney licensed to practice in the State of Georgia and Puerto Rico. Has her own private firm in DeKalb County for the past 5 years specializing in immigration
• Will invest in education, including expanding preschool programs and ensure that children receive a quality education regardless of location
• Stands for a woman’s right to choose
• Wants to ensure affordable college and technical degree programs, access to affordable healthcare, and that we continuing to bridge the gap of job inequality and insecurity
• Lost her sister to cancer and her family having a hard time financial recovering from her medical expenses
• Believes in expanding Medicaid coverage to poor mothers, including offering more prenatal and postpartum health care
• Publicly threw out all goya products with the hashtag #iwillmakemyownadobo

Superior Court Judge, Stone Mountain Judicial Circuit

Yolanda Parker-Smith

• Has 20 years experience as an attorney. Served at Assistant District Attorney in Fulton County Juvenile Court, a public defender in the Atlanta Judicial Circuit and Assistant District Attorney in Boston
• Active member of both the Florida Bar and the Georgia Bar
• Endorsed by Fulton County Juvenile Judge George G. Geiger and retired Judge George Blau
• Committed to “Compassion, courtesy and community”
• Feels like the poor and vulnerable are too often treated unfairly and with bias
• She prefers to defend juveniles over the State
• The idea of fair and balanced justice motivated her to run for office
• She believes credibility is the biggest issue facing the court system and the courts should be the one place where citizens can be confident that their issues will be based on objective reasoning and facts and not race, gender or income
• Says she would address this by ensuring that her rulings are based on the law and the facts; thus, restoring the citizens’ confidence
• Her and her family volunteered at a COVID testing site

Melinda “Mindy” Pillow

• Over 10 years experience in family law including adoption and child custody
• Wants to ensure fairness for all families in Dekalb
• 2010 Pro Bono Associate of the year at her former firm Kilpatrick before founding her own firm.
• Former President of the Junior League of Dekalb County, Atlanta Bar Association Family Law. Served on the Board of Directors of Leadership Dekalb, Georgia Association of Women Lawyers, Atlanta Bar Association Family Law, Metropolitan Counseling Services and Dekalb History Center. Member of the National Council of Negro Women (NCNW)
• Believes that since this court sees mostly domestic family cases that makes her more fit for the role