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Shafer wins Senate seat with 55% of
vote Republican David Shafer trounced three opponents Tuesday to win the 48th state Senate District seat. In a special election to replace senator-turned-judge Billy Ray, Shafer received 55 percent of the vote. Republican former Rep. Bobby Reese finished second with 34 percent. Communications consultant J.D. Elliott, a Democrat, got 7 percent, and mortgage banker Nathan Warnock, who claimed no party affiliation, drew 4 percent. Shafer said his campaign theme of fighting overdevelopment --- and its side effects such as traffic and school overcrowding --- resonated with voters. "It's not a victory for me," Shafer said Tuesday night during a victory party at the Red Lobster in Duluth. "It's a victory for our message of doing everything we can to protect our quality of life." Reese, who resigned his House seat to run in the special election, said he was disappointed, but "the people had their say." Shafer, 36, of Duluth, could be sworn in as early as today. He'll serve the remaining 10 1/2 months of Ray's term. With more than 310,000 residents, the 48th District is the most populous in Georgia. But fewer than 9,000 voters went to the polls Tuesday. Turnout was 8 percent in Forsyth, 6 percent in Gwinnett and 2 percent in Fulton. Shafer, the former executive director of the state GOP, spent at least $80,000 on the campaign, far more than any of his opponents. That fund-raising advantage showed at the polls. Several voters said they had received campaign mail from Shafer but no other candidates. Duluth resident Claude Wells said he voted for Shafer because of the candidate's stand against abortion. Buford resident Fazia Mentouri supported Shafer because of his promise to clean up Lake Lanier. She said she stopped taking her two sons to the lake a few years ago because the shoreline had become filthy. "It used to be a pleasure to go every afternoon. That's gone, and I'm very disappointed," she said. "It's getting worse. Many of my friends don't go any more, either." State Rep. Mark Burkhalter (R-Alpharetta) said he was looking forward to working with Shafer. "He definitely knows the political ropes, and there will be no on-the-job training when he gets down there and gets sworn in," Burkhalter said. "I think he's a solid, sensible Republican, and we need more of them like that." As the election drew near, Shafer and Reese traded accusations over campaign literature. Reese said he was victimized by Shafer's "rumors and lies." Shafer said Reese's attacks backfired. "I think the results reflect a stinging repudiation of those type of campaign tactics," Shafer said. DAVID SHAFER FILE | ||||||||||||||||||||
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