Dems, Tea Party, GOP Unite to Co-host Reapportionment Meeting

State Sen. Jack Murphy (R-27), Rep. Mike Dudgeon (R-24) and Rep. Mark Hamilton (R-23) plan to attend a at the Forsyth County Administration Building scheduled for 6:30 p.m. on Aug. 8

The meeting, which is being sponsored jointly by the Forsyth County Tea Party, Republican Party and Democratic Party, was originally scheduled for Aug. 3, but Tea Party Founder Steve Voshall says it was moved to Aug. 8 to accommodate all members of the state delegation.

Cumming Mayor Ford Gravitt, city council members and Forsyth County commissioners have also been invited to attend, but organizers say they have not received confirmation yet. 

While it is extremely rare for Democrats, Republicans and Tea Party members to agree on any issue, leaders of all three organizations are firmly united in their belief that Forsyth County should not be split up into multiple voting districts. The General Assembly meets in special session next month to redraw the state's political boundaries.

"The lines will be drawn for the next 10 years and we need to be able control our own destiny," Voshall said. "We're unified in the commitment we have from all parties."

Asked if he was surprised by that unity, Voshall said, "Not at all. It's refreshing that different parties with different ideas can come to a mutual agreement. It's too bad it can't be done at the national level."

Democratic Party Chairwoman Sharon Gunter said, "When people think about this, they think only of the impact that it will have at the congressional level. But it has great impact at the state, county and city level as well. When people move to a certain area, they want to feel like they are part of a community, to choose which school they send their children to. All that can change if the county is split. We need that sense of community and wholeness and that is why we are so united."

In a written statement, Republican Party Chairman Ethan Underwood called on the state's legislators to "locate all of Forsyth County within a single congressional district with the counties to the west side of Lake Lanier that are dealing with the same transportation and water supply issues as Forsyth County."

Dudgeon said he agrees that Forsyth County should not be split up. "I believe the county should be left whole and I've expressed that sentiment to the chairmen of both reapportionment committees."

Dudgeon says lawmakers hear the same plea from virtually every county in Georgia. "Of course that isn't possible," he said. "But the intensity level in Forsyth County is far greater than anything he has seen anywhere else. "I look forward to seeing that same level of intensity expressed at this meeting so I can carry that message back with me to Atlanta."