Qualifying for the City of Statesboro's Municipal General Election opened on Monday, August 16th. On the ballot in the November 2 election are the offices of Mayor and City Council Seats 1 and 4.
Leah Harden the cities Clerk and Election Superintendent said that all three incumbents qualified today to seek re-election.
The incumbents include Jonathan McCollar is the incumbent Mayor, Phil Boyum serves at the district 1 representative and John Riggs serves as the district 4 representative.
In addition for the office of Mayor, Statesboro resident Ernest Larry Lawton qualified.
In district 4 Kristine (Kris) Yager-Rushton qualified to challenge incumbent councilman John Riggs.
At the end of the day on Monday, Councilman Phil Boyum was the only person qualifying in district 1.
Office of the Mayor:
Jonathan McCollar, Incumbent
- Ernest Larry Lawton (No picture provided at this time)
City Council District 1:
Phil Boyum, Incumbent
City Council District 4:
John Riggs, Incumbent
Kristine (Kris) Yager-Rushton
Introducing Kris Yager-Rushton
Kris Yager-Rushton is a 13 year resident of Statesboro. She is employed by Georgia Southern University in Advancement Services.
In her role at GS she is a prospect researcher for development. For fun she teaches a spin/cycle class at the Recreation and Activities Center on the Statesboro campus.
She is married to Edward who is tenured faculty and teaches graphic design in the Betty Foy Sanders Department of Art.
They have two rescued Bulloch County kitties named Caleb and Piper.
Kris and Edward enjoy are biking, camping, hiking and traveling. Kris also loves to cook.
One unique thing about Kris is that she is a transplant recipient. Because of this she has fundraised for Donate Life Georgia and Lifelink, the procurement agency for Florida, Georgia and Puerto Rico.
Kris was even featured in the 2015 The Faces of Transplantation calendar and has been a featured speaker for Donate Life Georgia/Lifelink of Georgia on their Donor Remembrance ceremonies.
Kris and Edward are supporters of the Averitt Center for the Arts and enjoy viewing many of their shows and gallery exhibitions.
She is also a past board member of the Statesboro Farmers Market as well as a past board member of the University's Staff Council.
When asked by Grice Connect aout her reasons for running for City Council Kris Yager-Rushton responded:
"I would like to see Statesboro grow into an even better and more sustainable community. It's been a delight living here and some good changes have happened, but we still have some work to be done. I would like to see more sidewalks, bike lanes, and improved accessibility between our downtown and campus. Both downtown and campus have many things to offer the other and our community is richer because of them both," said Kris Yager-Rushton.
"I also care about new development in Statesboro. Green spaces are needed now more than ever before as they help to enrich our neighborhoods and our community as a whole. I chose to live in the city so that both my husband and I could easily get to work, shop locally, and lead a life enriched by strong community ties. I love Statesboro and am eager to represent the citizens of District 4."
Multiple calls to Mr. Lawton were not successful due to a busy signal at the number he provided when qualifying. Grice Connect could not locate Mr. Lawton on social media. Hopefully we will reach him soon and share his qualifications and interest in running for Mayor.
Qualifying continues through Friday, August 20th at 4:30 p.m. at Statesboro City Hall
The qualifying fee for Mayor is $560 and for city council it is $227.
You can visit the My Voter Page on the Georgia Secretary of State's website by clicking here to register to vote or to see what district you live in.
The last day to register to vote in the upcoming city election is October 4, 2021.
Click here for a Grice Connect story on qualifications that includes more information and the district maps.
