As Fulton DA Race Heads to Runoff, Candidates Spar on Corruption Claims & Police Prosecutions
With most precincts counted, veteran prosecutor Fani Willis' lead is still short of avoiding a runoff with her former boss.
June 10, 2020 at 07:38 AM
4 minute read
Now facing a runoff against Fani Willis in the race for Fulton County district attorney, incumbent Paul Howard signaled Wednesday that he intends to cast his Democratic opponent as an ally of police unions and Republicans.
But Willis, a veteran prosecutor who worked for Howard for 16 years, countered Wednesday that she is "a proud Democrat and the daughter of a civil rights leader." Willis also called out Howard for "incompetence and corruption."
With 360 of the county's 366 precincts completely reported, Willis had garnered just under 41% of the vote compared with Howard's nearly 34%, out of more than 92,000 ballots counted. A second challenger, Christian Wise Smith, was trailing with nearly 26% of the vote.
Willis must secure 50% plus one vote in order to avoid a runoff with her former boss.
On Wednesday, Willis said about 70,000 Democratic ballots that were mailed in or deposited in drop boxes at designated precincts on Tuesday in Fulton County must still be tallied.
"I look forward to earning each and every vote as we continue the campaign," Howard said Wednesday. "Unfortunately, Fulton County and Atlanta have now for the time in our histories, joined several urban cities that are seeing police unions taking major roles in the outcome of local political races."
Howard has been criticized by Atlanta Police Chief Erika Shields and the International Brotherhood of Police Officers over his decision to charge six police officers for the violent arrest of two Atlanta college students who were tazed and pulled from their car during demonstrations over the death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police. Howard, in turn, accused the IBPO of "being out of touch with reality" and engaging in a politically motivated plan to influence Tuesday's primary in order "to end police prosecutions in Fulton County."
Howard's campaign also has been challenged by accusations of sexual harassment and retaliation raised by two women who worked in his office—claims he has denied. He is also under investigation by the state ethics commission over alleged campaign financial disclosure law violations.
Howard said the Atlanta Police Union and former Atlanta City Council member Mary Norwood, a Republican and two-time candidate for mayor, have both endorsed Willis. "I do not believe that Republicans like Mary Norwood should interfere with or attempt to influence a Democratic primary," he said. "Democratic candidates should not take the donations, particularly, when this interference is taken to support police misconduct. I believe this attempt to influence the district attorney's race represents an extreme union and Republican position, inconsistent with the views of most of the honest, hardworking police officers and citizens of our county."
Willis said she is gratified that voters demonstrated support for her plans for reform. "They overwhelmingly rejected Paul Howard's corruption and divisiveness last night, giving him only a third of their votes," she said. "It is no surprise he would resort to the same desperate lies he has been using the last few weeks."
She also contended that Howard, instead of focusing on progressive criminal justice initiatives, focused instead on "avoiding accountability" for bolstering his salary with nonprofit funds in a potential violation of state campaign finance laws and in efforts to defend two sexual harassment complaints.
Howard, a Fulton County prosecutor and the county's former solicitor general, took office as the county's first African American district attorney in 1997. Willis, a veteran prosecutor who worked for Howard for 16 years, rose to become executive assistant DA in charge of the complex case division before leaving to open her own practice in 2018. If Willis—who stepped down as chief judge of South Fulton's municipal court to challenge Howard—wins, she will become Fulton County's first African American woman to hold the office.
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