A few words of congratulations may be in order. From an original field of six contenders, Elizabeth BJ Mathis won the Republican runoff election against Fred Auletta to become the next Chairman of the Henry board of commissioners.

Unofficially, she garnered 53.5 percent of the 8,349 votes cast. Mathis has become Henry County's first female chairman-elect for the Board of Commissioners.

A supporter celebrating with Mathis on Tuesday was Palm Beach Restaurant co-owner Cindy Steele-Kilen. Steele-Kilen lost a bid for the second district commission seat to Rick Jeffares in the July primary.

"B.J. Mathis is going to take care of us," said Steele-Kilen. "She's going to make sure this county is going to be a place where people want to live. We're just ecstatic, because she gives the individual person a chance."

Since Mathis began her campaign for chairman some voices have opposed her holding the office. Her record as a district commissioner was called into question because Nash Farm was acquired through eminent domain at a cost over $8 million. As 2008 progressed it seemed Mathis's misteps continued. She gave mixed signals to citizens concerning traffic mitigation while designating new SPLOST III roads to surround a proposed mall, and even sent a letter to the Georgia DOT calling a widened bridge on Jodeco Road her highest priority. At a time when additional lanes on I-75 was under discussion, the bridge project was promoted only because of the mall.

In April the board of commissioners renamed Nash Farm to remove the connotation of a battlefield. They also designated the park open to the public and setup a long range plan for extending its uses beyond Mathis's oversight.

Expansion of the Life Management department also came under scrutiny as the proposed spending would increase the county budget and remove drug education functions from the Juvenile Courts. The board took action to curtail Mathis's plan for the department by holding up the annual county budget until the confusion could be straightened out.

The very low voter turnout provided only 8% of registered voters. Mathis won the chairman seat with only 4,466 votes - about 4% of registered voters. The only people with a right to complain about taxes, waste in government or traffic are the ones who actually voted. Apathy among voters, while so many folks are not happy with the status quo, is puzzling.

There is great opportunity for the board of commissioners to unify for the benefit of the county. There is also great reason to believe that many votes will be tied, causing one stalemate after another.

As Dutch said:

The only hope we have is that the other commissioners will keep her under control. I'm actually more concerned about what happens in two years when we could get 2 Democrats on the board with Mathis. I've lived here almost 50 years and love this county, but I'm thinking in terms of an exit strategy.

It is a sure bet that Mathis will bring new perspective to the Chair. And she will face many challenges.