Georgia PSC candidate will remain on ballot while appealing disqualification

FULTON COUNTY, Ga. - A Democratic candidate running for the Georgia Public Service Commission will remain on the ballot a day after he was disqualified by Georgia Republican Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger.

Daniel Blackman appealed the ruling and will remain in the race while the appeal goes through the court system, Blackman's lawyer says.

The backstory:

Earlier this week, an administrative law judge recommended Raffensperger disqualify Blackman, a former U.S. Environmental Protection Agency regional administrator, from the District 3 seat because he did not show he lived there long enough.

Voters statewide elect commission members, but they must live in one of five districts for at least 12 months before an election. District 3 includes the core metro Atlanta counties of Fulton, DeKalb and Clayton. All five commissioners are currently Republicans.

Administrative Court Judge Dominic Capraro said in his ruling Blackman didn’t prove he met the qualifications to run in part because he moved to Fulton County in October but voted in Forsyth County on Nov. 5. He switched his registration to his Fulton County address in April, right before signing up to run for the District 3 seat.

Blackman said he moved to Fulton County for work in October while his wife and kids temporarily remained in Forsyth County where they could finish the school year. After that, they plan to live together in Fulton County. Blackman said he waited to register to vote at his new address in order to comply with Georgia’s rules that require address changes to be registered at least 30 days before an election.

What they're saying:

Blackman’s lawyer, Matthew Wilson, said Chief Judge Ural Glanville of the Fulton County Superior Court approved a request to keep him on the ballot until the appeal is ruled on.

"We are very confident that at the end of this process Daniel will be deemed a qualified candidate for PSC because all of the facts and all of the law are on his side," Wilson said.

 The Democratic primary is June 17. Early voting is underway now.

Dig deeper:

Three other Democrats are set to run in the primary. Keisha Sean Waites, a former state House member and former Atlanta City Council member, most recently lost a bid to become Fulton County clerk of Superior and Magistrate Courts. Peter Hubbard has worked for the Georgia Center for Clean Energy Solutions. Robert Jones has worked on energy for both the government and private companies.