ALBANY, Ga. (WALB) - As Lee County heads toward a runoff election for the District 1 school board seat, incumbent Donna Ford is speaking publicly about issues dominating the race.

Ford agreed to an interview with WALB after a primary election in which voters rejected the ESPLOST renewal and her opponent, George Houston, led the race with 41.9% of the vote to her 37.5%.

“I’m going for it again, and it’s a good thing because I believe so much in the children and the schools, you know, that I feel like, you know, it is a personal calling—a personal devotion that I have, you know, towards truly the future of our children,” Ford said.

ESPLOST and funding

The runoff follows voters’ rejection of the school system’s ESPLOST renewal—a one-percent sales tax that helps pay for school construction and other capital projects.

Ford addressed the failed ESPLOST vote, saying that there is a solution to help fund at least part of the roofing and HVAC replacement projects needed at the middle and high school.

“You do have to have money, and it’s got to be in the budget to be able to afford these things. And the state is wonderful, because when you’re doing certain projects, we can apply for grants, and they will fund a portion of it,” she explained.

Property tax controversy

The runoff will come amid the growing property tax controversy for the county and the school board.

>> READ MORE: Property tax rebates owed to Lee Co. residents after ‘erroneous rollback rate’ discovered, commission says <<

The Lee County Board of Commissioners said residents overpaid approximately $1.5 million to the county, and the Lee County School System has not released an estimated amount in alleged overpayments from the previous year’s property tax payments. Ford said the county is now working to correct the issue.

“We’re determining, you know, the exact amount that needs to be for the digest. And the digest was given to the city of Smithville, the city of Leesburg, you know, the Board of Education and the commissioners. And from that, everybody made their budget. And so now, we’re going back, and we’re going to get a new digest. And we will once again look at our budget. And, you know, from that point, we’ll make decisions,” Ford said.

Public trust and communication

Another issue raised throughout the campaign has been public trust and communication between elected officials and residents. Ford said she does not personally use social media and believes more direct, in-person conversations can help rebuild confidence between residents and elected leaders.

Ford now heads into a runoff race against challenger George Parrish Houston, who led the primary vote count with 534 votes but fell short of the 50-plus-one threshold needed to win. The runoff election is set for June 16.

Thursday, May 21, WALB spoke with Houston about why he said he is “hungry for change” when it comes to the future of Lee County Schools.

This is a developing story, and WALB will bring you more from Ford’s interview both on air and online. Stay with us for updates.

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