The candidate qualifying for the general primary election, held on July 20, will begin on Monday at 9 a.m. and conclude on Friday at noon, according to a press release from the Spalding County Office of Elections and Voter Registration. The qualifying will take place in Room 110 of the Spalding County Courthouse Annex on East Solomon Street.

Representatives from both the local Democratic and Republican parties will be present to qualify candidates for the offices of State Court solicitor general (currently held by Griffin Howell III), county commissioner for District 2 (currently held by Dave Phillips) and county commissioner for District 5 (currently held by Eddie Goss).

The registration fees are $1,350.00 for State Court solicitor general and $420.06 for county commissioner, said Spalding County Elections Supervisor Terry Colling.

The basic requirements for qualifying as a county commissioner are that the candidate be 18 years of age or older, a registered voter and a resident of his or her district. On the days of qualifying, candidates will then need to fill out a form and pay their fee.

So far, only former Spalding County Fire Chief Chipper Gardner has publicly announced his intention to seek office. Gardner, who will run as a Republican, will challenge incumbent Eddie Goss for the county commissioner seat in District 5.

Asked how many people have expressed interest in qualifying already, Colling said, “Not a whole lot, but that doesn’t mean anything. We’ve had a lot of people show up on the days of qualifying.”

If a primary runoff is needed in any race, it will be held Aug. 10. The general election is Nov. 2.