Polls open Tuesday for the Public Service Commission’s Democratic primary runoff, but if last week’s early voting period is any indication, voters should be able to cast their ballots without fear of long waits at the polls.
Fewer than half a percent of Georgia’s approximately 8.4 million registered voters participated in person or via absentee ballot during the five days of early voting, meaning the Democratic nominee for the District 3 seat may be chosen by fewer than 1% of voters statewide.
The few civically engaged Georgians will determine whether Peter Hubbard, a 15-year energy industry expert and founder of the nonprofit Georgia Center for Energy Solutions, or Keisha Sean Waites, a former state representative and former Atlanta City Council member, will take on the Republican incumbent Fitz Johnson for his District 3 seat on the all-Republican commission in the November general election.
Decisions made by the five-member board directly impact Georgia residents. Commissioners decide how much utility companies such as Georgia Power and Atlanta Gas Light can charge customers.
At the Switzer Library in Cobb County, votes trickled through midmorning. Voters saw no lines.
Both Waites and Hubbard have called for change to the all-Republican board, saying power bills are too high.
The current board has approved a series of rate hikes for Georgia Power since 2023, increasing customers’ monthly bills by about $43.
Credit: hand
Credit: hand
Hubbard criticized Johnson and touted his background in energy and his experience as an expert witness before the PSC.
Hubbard’s campaign purchased the internet domain keishawaites.com and filled it with content criticizing Waites’ political history, including her failing to file 2021 campaign contribution disclosures during her race for Atlanta City Council. The website also calls into question Waites’ qualifications for the PSC.
Credit: Courtesy photo
Credit: Courtesy photo
Waites said Hubbard’s “smear campaign” won’t deter her from pushing for lower utility bills and bringing transparency and accountability to the PSC.
“Let’s focus on the facts and compare qualifications — I’m the only candidate ready to deliver from day one,” said Waites.
In the June Democratic primary, Waites led in the polls with about 46% of the vote and Hubbard at 33%, but neither candidate passed the requisite majority threshold to win the party nomination.
The PSC District 3 seat covers Clayton, DeKalb and Fulton counties.
Although PSC candidates run in geographic districts, elections for those seats are conducted statewide. In this runoff, any registered voter can participate in the statewide runoff election if they did not cast a ballot in last month’s Republican primary.
Georgians have from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. to vote in person. But because of low turnout during the primary, 76 of Georgia’s 159 counties will open only one precinct Tuesday. That means some voters will likely need to travel farther than usual to cast their ballot.
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