This article was originally published by the Rockdale Citizen on April 22, 2008. Retyped and posted with the permission of the Rockdale Citizen.

Debate in Sheriff's Race
Akies, Ferguson to square off Saturday

By: Jay Jones
STAFF REPORTER

Tuesday, April 22, 2008

CONYERS - Democratic candidates for Sheriff Donald Ferguson and ARandy Akies will face each other Saturday in the first debate of the local political season this year.

The Rockdale County Democratic Party is holding the debate during its April meeting at 10 a.m. Saturday inside the Johnson Park Center. Trenna Ross, a local party officer and Conyers real estate agent, will serve as moderator during the debate.

Ruth Wilson, chairwoman of the Rockdale County Democratic Party, explained the candidates will respond to questions drawn partly from the audience and partly from questions prepared in advance and pulled out of a fish bowl during the debate.

"I can tell you that the debate will be a mixture of questions in terms of the format of questions, as well as the content of the questions," Wilson said. "Some will be factual, some will be opinion and some will be hypothetical."

Both men are running against each other in the party's primary election on July 15. The winner will be the Democratic candidate in the November General Election.

If either man is elected in November, he will become the first black sheriff for Rockdale County, There are 10 black sheriffs in Georgia, according to the Georgia Sheriff's Association.

Three-term incumbent Sheriff Jeff Wigington is seeking re-election and has no announced opponents, so far, in the Replublican pimary.

Ferguson, 49, has empahsized additional training and accreditiation for all deputies and jail personnel in his campaign. He is a captain with the Fulton County Sheriff's Office and serves as the accreditation manager of the Fulton County Jail.

Akies, 33, has promoted community policing in his campaigns and would see more cooperation between the sheriff's office and the Conyers Police Department. Akies is a sergeant with the DeKalb County Sheriff's Office and supervises a shift of deputies.

In other news, the Democrats will host candidates running in the special election for the Georgia House 93rd district seat left vacant following last month's resignation of Rep. Ron Sailor, D-Decatur, who gave up his seat after his conviction of Federal laundering charges.

The event will be held at the party's next regular meeting at 10 a.m. May 8, also at Johnson Park. Rockdale County Democratic Party Communications Chairman R.J. Hadley said the event will be an informal meet-and-greet for residents and voters.

The special election will be held May 13. The polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on election day. Residents will also have the opportunity to cast a ballot during the advance coting period from May 5 through May 9. Voting booths for advance coting will be set up at the Rockdale County Board of Elections and Voter Registration office at 1400 Parker Road.

The 93rd district includes six voting precincts in Rockdale County - Rockdale, Flat Shoals, Salem, Smyrna, St. Pius and Stanton.

Jay Jones can be reached at jay.jones@rockdalecitizen.com

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