RICHMOND HILL – Gubernatorial candidate Rick Jackson made a stop in Richmond Hill on Wednesday morning as Election Day draws closer and early voting in Georgia ends this Friday.
The visit was part of a series of meet-and-greet-style events hosted by the Republican nominee in Bryan and Bulloch counties before signing off with a rally Wednesday evening in Thunderbolt at Coach’s Corner Sports Bar.
In front of a sizable crowd, Jackson told his story of his upbringing in foster care, which has become a central focus of his campaign and impetus for running for office, particularly in regards to supporting children and boosting the literacy rate in Georgia's K-12 schools.
Jackson, now the billionaire founder and CEO of Jackson Healthcare, a healthcare staffing company based in Atlanta, promised to eliminate the state income tax and prevent property tax increases tied to rising home values.
"Your property taxes will never go up again because of the valuation increase of your house," Jackson said.
Other Republican notables took the stage in support of Jackson, including Bryan County Sheriff Mark Crowe, state Rep. Ron Stephens and U.S. Rep. Buddy Carter, encouraging those in attendance to vote and to galvanize others as well.
All three men made pointed remarks toward Jackson’s Democratic rival Keisha Lance Bottoms, former mayor of Atlanta from 2018 to 2022, claiming that the city suffered under her leadership.
“I was there in 2020 when we watched Atlanta burn with riots, looting, destruction (and) the alarming breakdown,” Stephens said. “It was absolute pandemonium. Ladies and gentlemen, we don’t need that again.”
Sheriff Crowe said law enforcement across the nation needs strong leadership in elected offices.
“And law enforcement in Georgia needs a strong leader with the intestinal fortitude and a backbone to stand up to these liberal whackjobs and their campaigns,” he said. “They give criminals more rights than they do (to) law enforcement and more rights than they do the citizens that they victimize.”
Jackson urged voters to head to the polls. More than 2 million Georgians have cast their ballots in early voting and more than 3.5 million votes were tallied in the 2022 general election.
“If rural Georgia doesn’t show up, we will lose,” Jackson said.