Milledgeville's Griffin eyes state House seat

Veteran Milledgeville politician Floyd Griffin Jr. says he will consider trying a return to the state Legislature in Atlanta in an election this year.

"I'm announcing my intent to run for House seat 145," said Griffin, a Democrat.

The district covers all of Baldwin County and part of Putnam.

Griffin, 71, said he thinks that he is the best-qualified person for the office. He also said it is time for incumbent Rusty Kidd, an independent, to leave office.

"Kidd has lost the trust and confidence of the citizens here in this district, especially in Milledgeville and Baldwin County, because of his involvement and heavy-handed approach with the consolidation effort," Griffin said.

Milledgeville and Baldwin voters rejected a proposal to merge their two governments last year. Kidd was a strong supporter of the measure and carried the bill in the state Legislature that set up the vote.

Griffin ran for mayor of Milledgeville in a special election last year, and from the start, strongly criticized Kidd's charter plan.

The primary election for the state House seat is on May 24 and qualifying begins on March 7.

Griffin also said he will step aside if a more qualified candidate with a better chance of winning shows up.

"I have been encouraged, recruited ... by citizens here in the community to run for this position," Griffin said. "I'm not overly enthused about going back to Atlanta but I think it's an obligation since I've been asked to do this and I'm the most qualified person in this district."

Griffin was elected to the state Senate in 1994 and left in 1998 to run for lieutenant governor. He was mayor of Milledgeville from 2002 to 2006.

To contact writer Maggie Lee, email mlee@macon.com

This story was originally published February 4, 2016 at 9:35 PM with the headline "Milledgeville's Griffin eyes state House seat ."