Columbia County District 3 Commissioner Candidates participate in forum

COLUMBIA COUNTY, Ga. (WFXG) - It's a major political year with voters heading to the poll voting on multiple items. While the headliner is the Presidential Election, there are several local and state races voters should keep their eyes on. 

In Columbia County people are keeping an eye on who will be elected to the district 3 Commission Seat.

We are two weeks away from the May 21st election in both Richmond and Columbia County.

Tuesday evening, The Columbia County Chamber of Commerce Political Action Committee hosted a candidate's forum.

People gathered at Evans High School to learn more about the Republican Candidates who are running for Columbia County Commission, Board of Education, and Georgia State House Representative for District 131.

There are only two Republican Candidates who are running for the district 3 Commission seat and that is Rickey Merideth and Michael Carraway.

That seat was formerly held by now Georgia House District 125 Representative Gary Richardson. 

Rickey Merideth is a veteran and business owner with experience in the hospitality industry. His platform focuses in on Seniors, Veterans, and Small Businesses.

"We have a lot of people from For Eisenhower that live over here. So, we have to reach out to organizations and partner with them as a county. So, we can help them settle down in the community." Merideth said

Merideth wants to promote initiatives that will provide adequate housing, quality education, and access to health care for those veterans in the community.

Candidate Michael Carraway says that infrastructure is important for Columbia County to continue to grow.

"We have to stay in front of the infrastructure issues in Columbia County. I think that my set of skills are uniquely qualified to do that," Carraway states.

Carraway has experience as a building contractor, developer, and entrepreneur. He is also the candidate who received an endorsement from Gary Richardson, who held the seat before him.

"We really need to pay attention to who we put in those positions because they make the decisions," said Daniel Jackson, a voter. 

Early voting will end on May 17 with the General Primary Election coming around on May 21st.