Representative Regina Quick is being tapped to fill a vacancy on the Western Judicial Circuit. Governor Nathan Deal has announced he is appointing Quick to fill the vacancy created by the retirement of the Judge David Sweat. The appointment will take effect upon Quick’s swearing in. She currently represents District 117, which includes parts of Clarke, Barrow, Jackson, and Oconee counties.
Athens attorney Lisa Lott has announced her intention to enter the race for Quick's Superior Court position for the May 2018 election. Lott is currently in the Western Judicial Circuit’s Public Defender’s Office. She served as a prosecutor in Gwinnett County before that.
Republican Houston Gaines has announced he will run for the District 117 seat being vacated by Quick in the wake her resignation to accept the Superior Court position. In a release sent out today from the campaign, it was announced that Gaines has raised more than $110,00 in less than two months. A consultant for nonprofits, Gaines ran Mayor Nancy Denson’s last campaign.
Others running for the seat include Athens Attorney Deborah Gonzalez who is running as a Democrat. She has been practicing law for more than 20 years. This is her first time seeking public office.
The third candidate to announce is Doug McKillip, who running as a Republican. He once held the seat his is trying to reclaim after losing to Quick in 2012, when he left the Democratic Party to become a Republican. He has been an attorney for 26 years.