Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026

Tifton, Georgia

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KEISHA LANCE BOTTOMS

JON OSSOFF

KEISHA BOTTOMS MAKES HISTORY; DEMS WIN GA STATEWIDE RACES

By FRANK SAYLES JR.

Tifton Grapevine

Georgia has elected the nation's first black female governor as Keisha Lance Bottoms defeated Republican Rick Jackson.

Also, in a stunning turnaround, Democrats won all statewide races on Georgia's ballot, and Democratic U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff with 59% of votes easily won re-election over GOP Congressman Mike Collins.

Bottoms, former Atlanta mayor who also served as a prosecutor and Atlanta judge, becomes the state's first woman governor and the first Democrat to win the office since Roy Barnes in 1998.

“Tonight the voters spoke, and I respect their decision," said Jackson. "This was a hard-fought election. Keisha Lance Bottoms deserves our congratulations and our prayers as she prepares to take office.”

Jackson, a billionaire healthcare executive, put more than $200 million of his own money into his race, which was considered a toss-up in the days before the election.

In unofficial results with all Georgia counties reporting results late Tuesday, Bottoms had 54% of the state's vote to Jackson's 46%.

Jackson carried Tift County with 64% to Bottoms' 36%. Tift County, a Republican stronghold, also went for Collins over Ossoff for U.S. Senate, 58% to 42%. In fact, every Republican on the Tift County ballot won election.

In Tift County Board of Education elections, all Republicans won contested races. In BOE DIstrict 4, Richard "Sterling" Haring received 72% of the vote over Democrat LaShawn Benjamin Ealey with 28%. In BOE Distrct 5, Blake McRae got 61% of the vote to Independent Bonnie Sayles's 39%. In BOE District 6, Jerry Baker won with 75% of votes to Independent San Taylor's 25%.

According to election officials, 13,399 Tift countians, more than 49% of the county's registered voters, cast ballots in Tuesday's election.

In other races Tuesday, Congressman Austin Scott, R-Tifton, won re-election to a ninth term.

But in statewide races in Georgia, it appeared Tuesday that Democrats swept, winning the open seats of lieutenant governor, secretary of state, and attorney general.

Also, GOP incumbents lost in all the statewide races: Democrat Katherine E. Juhan-Arnold edged Agriculture Commissioner Tyler Harper of Ocilla by 54% to 46%; Democrat Lydia Powell defeated State School Superintendent RIchard Woods of Tifton, 55% to 45%; Democrat Keisha Sean Waites defeated Insurance Commissioner John King, 54% to 46%; and Nikki Porcher defeated Labor Commissioner Bárbara Rivera Holmes by 55% to 45%, according to unofficial results.

Democrats also won the Public Service Commission seats on the ballot.

MORE THAN 10,000 VEHICLES EXPECTED DURING 5-DAY EVENT THROUGH FLA., GA., & ALA.

By FRANK SAYLES JR.

Tifton Grapevine

The 2027 Hot Rod Power Tour, is heading to Adel next summer.

One of the biggest car events in the U.S., the Hot Rod Power Tour is a five-day journey with more than 10,000 participants anticipated from across the nation and even the world.

Each day, participants drive from one venue to the next beginning Monday, June 7, at the Daytona International Speedway.

From Daytona, the cars head to Gainesville (Fla.) Raceway, then up to South Georgia Motorsports Park in Adel, and to EchoPark Speedway in Hampton, Ga., before finishing the week on Friday on the high banks of Talladega Superspeedway in Alabama.

This past year, a record-breaking 8,253 registered vehicles joined the tour celebrating 100 years of Route 66.

Hot Rod magazine, the tour's organizer, said next year's theme is a celebration of speed: "We’re shifting gears and putting the focus squarely on American speed, with five racing facilities serving as host venues, and a collection of museums, attractions, and automotive destinations rounding out the journey."

The Power Tour last visited Daytona in 1999, and the event has grown much larger since then, said Mike Galimi, Hot Rod magazine's content director.

“Bringing Power Tour back to Daytona 28 years later, with thousands of enthusiasts coming from across the country and around the world, is going to be an incredible way to kick off the 2027 tour. We can’t wait to fill that massive facility with the Power Tour family,” he said.

HALLOWEEN IN DOWNTOWN TIFTON:

A LONG TRADITION

Tifton Grapevine Staff Reports

In Downtown Tifton on Friday evening, a multi-decade tradition continued as merchants and city officials gave out candy to a long line of trick-or-treaters.

Parents with little princesses, cowboys, superheroes, dinosaurs, Disney characters, ghouls, and goblins filled Main Street to collect Halloween candy from merchants, many of them also costumed.

For some parents, it was a chance to relive their own childhood memories of Halloween on Main Street.

"Thank you for providing a safe environment for our kids/grandkids to trick or treat! Thank you to all the stores who participated. It was a great evening," wrote one participant on social media.



Pictured at left is Tifton Police Chief Steve Hyman posing with some young trick-or-treaters in Downtown Tifton.

State Rep. Angie O'Steen, R-Ambrose, gets a sky-high view of Tifton's Short & Paulk Renaissance Project site from a fire department ladder truck. In photo below, Tifton City Clerk Jessica White helps welcome lawmakers to City Hall.

CITY, COUNTY HOST LEGISLATIVE DAY TO DISCUSS PROJECTS

Tifton Grapevine Staff Reports

Federal and state legislators and staff gathered in Tifton last week to discuss accomplishments and projects in the City of Tifton and Tift County.

At Tifton City Hall, Mayor Julie Smith led a presentation discussing major city projects and goals, including upgrades to the Tifton Water Treatment Plant, necessary expansion of the Tifton-Tift County Landfill, Downtown Tifton Main Street and economic development efforts, improving housing and expanding workforce housing.

Following the city’s sit-down presentation, the group visited the Short & Paulk Renaissance Project site to discuss the community revitalization effort currently in progress in South Tifton. Legislators were taken up in the Tifton Fire Department’s ladder truck to see the site and surrounding areas from an aerial perspective. 

Tift County and the Tifton-Tift County Airport Authority then hosted lawmakers at the Henry Tift Myers Airport to view recent improvements and discuss needed expansions.

Attending the city-county sessions were Congressman Austin Scott, R-Tifton; state Sen. Carden Summers, R-Cordele; state Reps. Jaclyn Ford, R-Tifton; and Angie O’Steen, R-Ambrose; representatives of U.S. Sens. Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff, both D-Ga.; and other staffers.

USDA AWARDS $2.9M TO FLINT RIVER DISTRICT FOR FERAL SWINE ERADICATION

By FRANK SAYLES JR.

Tifton Grapevine

A $2.9 million project for feral swine eradication in Southwest Georgia is among 29 USDA partnership projects in 13 states to help respond to the threat feral swine pose to agriculture, landscapes, and human and livestock health.

The Flint River Feral Swine Eradication and Control Pilot Program Project focuses efforts within the Flint River Soil and Water Conservation District.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture said the project expands the district's existing feral swine trap loan program from one location to three, promotes education and outreach activities, aids coordination of aerial feral swine removal efforts, and implements a comprehensive monitoring and evaluation program.

“Feral swine pose a threat to America’s working lands, and through this program, we’re bringing together America’s agricultural producers and partners to combat feral swine and protect agricultural landscapes,” said Natural Resources Conservation Service Chief Colton L. Buckley. “The selected projects will take critical steps to eradicate and control feral swine across the nation where their impact is creating the most harm.”

Projects were awarded in Alabama, Arkansas, California, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Texas.

The Feral Swine Eradication and Control Pilot Program was established by the 2018 Farm Bill to respond to the threat feral swine pose to agriculture, native ecosystems, and human and animal health. The USDA said it is focusing efforts where feral swine pose the highest threat.

Proud New Member of the Tifton-Tift County Chamber of Commerce

KEEP TIFT BEAUTIFUL NAMES NOVEMBER BEAUTY SPOTS

Tifton Grapevine Staff Reports

Keep Tift Beautiful, a citizens advisory board, has awarded the residential and commercial "Beauty Spots of the Month" for November.

The Irwin family residence on Leanne Drive, pictured above, is the Residential Beauty Spot for the month.

The Suites at Cypress Pond on Kent Road in Tifton, pictured below, is November's Commercial Beauty Spot.

Keep Tift Beautiful promotes recycling, community gardening, litter abatement, and outdoor beautification.

TIFTON-TIFT COUNTY CHAMBER OF COMMERCE RIBBON CUTTING

Classy and Sassy Consignment Boutique

217 N. Park Ave., Suite 105, Tifton

Oct. 28

TIFTON GRAPEVINE'S CAT OF THE WEEK

"Snowflake" is one of a roomful of snow white kittens – and those of other colors -- at the Animal Shelter. She is about 8 weeks old and part of a flurry of kittens that has swept through the shelter's cat room. Anybody ready for a cat to grace their home will find choices galore at the Tift County Animal Shelter. Come meet Snowflake and her white siblings and other roommates and help these kittens escape the cat cages for fun and frolic at your home. Visit the Tift County Animal Shelter between 1-6 p.m. Mondays through Fridays on Highway 125 South, or call 229-382-PETS (7387).

TIFTON LIONS CLUB FORMED

~ NOV. 3, 1922

The organizational meeting of the Tifton Lions Club was held Nov. 3, 1922, at the Myon Hotel in Downtown Tifton. W.B. Bennett was elected temporary chairman, and J.G. Herring was elected secretary. C.O. England and Charlie Mathis were named as the membership committee. M.C. Owens, L.P. Thurman, and Wes Hargett were appointed as the program committee.

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