DAWSON COUNTY, Ga. — Longtime Dawson County Board of Education member Will Wade said he is finalizing plans to run for District 9 State Representative. He is expected to make an official announcement this week.

Wade is senior vice president and marketing executive at Southern Bank & Trust and a member of the school board since 2004. He earned his undergraduate degree in business administration from the University of North Georgia and a master’s degree in banking and business from the University of Georgia. Later this year, he will earn a second graduate degree in banking from Wharton Business School.

Wade has devoted many years to public service and, in 2017, was named to Georgia Trend’s 40 Under 40. He was appointed by Gov. Sonny Perdue to serve on the Georgia Mountains Regional Commission in 2010. He was selected vice chairman of Georgia Mountains Workforce Development in 2012, president of the Georgia School Board Association in 2017 and, last year, Gov. Brian Kemp appointed him to the Georgia Student Finance Commission in the 9^th district.

Wade is married to Dr. Jennifer Sheffield-Wade, a career educator. The couple has two children, Jenna and Walker.

Zack Tumlin

Zack Tumlin

Zack Tumlin is an attorney with law offices in Dahlonega and Dawsonville. He earned a Political Science degree at North Georgia College and State University and law degrees from Mississippi College and the University of Georgia.

He is chairman of Governmental Affairs for Dahlonega-Lumpkin County Chamber of Commerce. He serves on the Foundation Board for Northeast Georgia Health Systems and previously served on the Board of Directors for the South Enotah Child Advocacy Center.

He and wife Laura have two daughters, Tallye Kate, 3, and Vera Haynes, one month.

Steven Leibel

Steven Leibel

Steven Leibel, a personal injury lawyer who lives in Lumpkin County and has a successful practice in Cumming, announced last week that he will run for the Georgia State House in District 9.

He has a bachelor’s degree from Queens College, City University of New York and earned his law degree from Emory University. He is also a certified mediator and a graduate of the North Central Georgia Law Enforcement Academy. This will be his first campaign for public office.

“I have no other objective than to make things better for the people of this district,” he told Fetch Your News. I care about the community. I see things that need to be done and I want to give back. We lack good quality development that will provide good quality jobs. Technology is lacking. We need to improve healthcare. I bring an excellent skill set to the campaign.”

Qualifying starts at 9 a.m. Monday, March 2nd and ends at noon Friday, March 6. Election Day is Tuesday May 19th.

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