A large panel of candidates running for county, state, and federal offices in Liberty County took part in the NAACP Liberty County Branch forum in Riceboro April 18. Questions about who was invited, who wasn’t, and who didn’t show stirred debate, even from some who weren’t there.
NAACP Liberty County Branch president Lisa Thomas told The Current GA her group invited candidates who had campaigned in Liberty County.
“I didn’t know I needed to notify anyone or get permission from city or county officials to campaign or knock on doors in our district,” Congressional District 1 candidate Defonsio Daniels later wrote on Facebook. Joey Palimeno, Sharon Stokes-Williamson, and Randy Zurcher also said they had not been invited.
School Board chair candidate Kisya Burnett showed up on Saturday but was unhappy she was not seated at the table with other candidates after Thomas said she had failed to RSVP.
Thomas said others who had asked the NAACP branch if they could participate, including Democratic candidate for lieutenant governor Josh McLaurin, as well as Georgia State Senate District 1 candidates Corey Foreman and Barbara Gooby Patrick, were allowed to do so.
U.S. House District 1
Retired Army officer Joyce Griggs repeatedly electrified the crowd with her pitch for Congress: “I am the highest vote-getting Democrat in the last several elections,” she said, adding, “We got 42%. We’re almost there. We can do it. We can turn this district blue.” Griggs said she would reverse health care and DEI cuts that have disproportionately affected Black women.
Griggs previously challenged Carter in 2020, 2022, and 2024. In 2022, Griggs was beset by a late Federal Elections Commission filing and controversy over her federal district court disbarment.
Michael McCord thanked State Rep. Al Williams for helping build his platform, which is focusing on rural healthcare.
“I think this district is more conservative,” McCord later told The Current GA. He noted the last Democratic candidate for Congress, Patti Hewitt, “only got 39% [Hewitt took 38% statewide and 53% in Liberty County]. So I think if we run someone from California, that same recipe, that same campaign, the definition of insanity is doing the same thing and expecting a different result.”
Amanda Hollowell said local officials should not have to travel to Washington for funding that Congress could set aside in the budget. She promised more responsive constituent services, saying “Buddy Carter don’t do that for y’all now.”
She told The Current GA she is “actively in DC” fighting Goldman Sachs Gives, a political action committee “who funded Stephen Miller and Ed Blum and those folks who are trying to roll back DEI.”
She added, “We are at a critical point in this country. We need to make sure we’re helping everyone, stopping this war, and holding this administration accountable.”
Pat Wilver, who is kayaking and walking to meet coastal constituents face to face, said, “My priority is to get money out of the political system,” and that Congress has ceded too much power to the president.
Georgia House 168
The Georgia House District 168 Democratic primary between Williams and challenger Sabrina Newby has grown more pointed.
Last month, Newby turned down the invitation, saying she was “fully booked.” On Saturday, she campaigned at the 12 Gauge Hunting Club’s annual ATV ride in Midway.
Williams took advantage of Newby’s absence, telling the crowd, “Anybody who is not here is not worth your vote.”
Williams denied that the Liberty County Development Authority Board, which he chairs, picks its members. Newby has questioned why engineer Marcus Sacks and attorney Luke Moses sit on the board as business members but live outside Liberty County.
“I don’t have a problem with ignorance; I have a problem with lies,” Williams told the crowd. “Al Williams does not pick the members of the board…. The county commission sends us people to serve on the board. We don’t pick them.”
Newby replied later on Facebook, “To be clear, I never said the incumbent picks the board members. This isn’t about the selection process; it’s about the charter that governs the Liberty County Development Authority.” Newby said the state representative has the power to update the charter, which dates from 1958.
Of the seven LCDA board seats, two are reserved for the county chair and Hinesville’s mayor, four are BOC appointees, and one is appointed by Hinesville’s city council. Elected officials currently serving on the LCDA board include Williams, Hinesville Mayor Karl Riles, and Liberty County Chairman Donald Lovette.
Newby noted some members had served on boards for “decades, and having elected officials serve on these boards creates a conflict of oversight.” She alleged that “lack of accountability” led to “a former employee [being] able to take taxpayer money.”
Former longtime LCDA employee and chief operating officer Carmen Cole has pleaded not guilty to fraud charges after a grand jury indictment. Cole’s alleged activities came to light after the board hired CEO Brynn Grant in 2024; since then, outside auditors say the LCDA has put financial guardrails in place.
Liberty County Board of Commissioners
Two of the four candidates for County Commission District 1, Stanley Brown and Michael Cook, were no-shows, while incumbent Marion Stevens and challenger Larry Baker made their pitches to the crowd.
Former Walthourville mayor and Liberty Consolidated Planning Commission Vice Chair Larry Baker said he revamped that city’s fire department and would work to lower the county millage rate.
Stevens pointed to the county’s fire department upgrades but added, “We must look at growth. It comes at a charge. We have to pay for what we have.” Stevens and his wife face charges of allegedly beating two foster children; they are considered innocent until proven guilty.
District 3 Commissioner Connie Thrift faces challengers Janet Johns and Greg Lachowsky. Thrift said backyard chickens should not be allowed in subdivisions but had no problem with fowl on five-acre rural lots.
Johns said it was important for county board appointees to be “people who are active in the community and who do the work” and that county growth should consider residents’ wishes.
School Superintendent
Incumbent School Superintendent Verdell Jones noted she spends a lot of time going to Washington, D.C., each year to meet with the Georgia Congressional delegation to lobby for funding. She added Liberty County has to educate children from Fort Stewart but cannot collect school property taxes on Fort Stewart.
Former school superintendent Franklin Perry said he doesn’t think the school system is in bad shape, noting the graduation rate had risen from 66% to 92% in 15 years, but says character education is desperately needed to keep kids on track.
Both pointed out that the school board’s job is to make policy that supports teachers and students, not to interfere in day-to-day matters the superintendent handles.
Tim King wants two, not one, assistant superintendents for teaching and learning; separate transitional schools for sixth graders and ninth graders; and a dress code instead of uniforms.
You can watch the complete forum here.
This article appears in 2026 Elections: Candidate lists, news.
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