September 8, 2011
Running in Ward VI against a popular incumbent was going to be tough. Running in Ward VI when you have the baggage of a previous felony conviction was going to be even tougher. Running for the Ward VI when you owe two previous years worth of property taxes and are apparently in the midst of bankruptcy proceedings could be nearly impossible.
Now that qualifying is over, the Herald has begun its due diligence process. Namely that consists of taking all of the candidates and running background checks through the legal system, checking tax records and state offices to make sure they are and have been doing what they are supposed to do.
A quick check with the Dougherty County Tax office shows that out of all the candidates seeking public office this campaign season, only one has any outstanding taxes...Victor Edwards.
According to public records, Victor and his wife Juanita owe a total of $1,509.18 in back property taxes. More than $778.51 from 2009 and $569.89 from 2010.
Ordinarily, after two years of non-payment, the property would find itself on the auction block. But the tax department has apparently received a notice of pending bankruptcy, which, under Georgia law, prevents county's from transferring property until the bankruptcy proceedings are resolved.
Now some will say that Edwards' financial issues are his own. And to an extent, they would be right. But when one runs for public office, one's finances are often the first to be scrutinized under the doctrine of "how one keep's one's own house is often an indicator of how they'll treat yours if invited in."
Now whether Edwards' financial woes are a product of a struggling economy or a symptom of a larger fiscal management problem is unknown
Comments
Quantraveious 8 months, 2 weeks ago
All worthy candidates must have a strong background of fiscal responsibility. Period.
Abytaxpayer 8 months, 2 weeks ago
Wow what arrogance ‘Mr. Victor” won’t pay his property tax. “$1,509.18 in back property taxes. More than $778.51 from 2009 and $569.89 from 2010” But he pays $450.00 to run for office. He wants to be in control of Albany’s money and he is in bankruptcy. This is just pure Arrogance that he thinks he has any leadership to offer Albany. Guess he figures if Albany is STUPID enough to settle for # 34 at the school board he can be a Albany “Leader” too.
Cranky 8 months ago
My lord, where do these people come from who run for office? Do they have a brain in their heads? Don't they even care that the public will know they have these outstanding tax bills due and are behind 2 and 3 years? Have they no pride? And yet they want to run for public office? OMG..and this person has a prior FELONY conviction and is running for office? Come on Albany is this the best you can do? And here I thought Blakely was the laughing stock, with our "I wanna be mayor but forget about me being a less than upstanding sorta guy." Goodness, we have the kind of people country songs are written about and you have the kind of people that should be in some rap video.
myside 7 months, 2 weeks ago
When you seek political office your success is determined by your political connections and not by your personal qualifications. That's just the way it works. That's why we are in the mess we are.
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