The mayor of Camilla, Georgia, Kelvin Owens, and two former election officials, Rhunette Williford and Cheryl Ford, have been jailed on felony charges related to attempts to halt a local election last November. The charges stem from the disqualification of Venterra Pollard, a city council member and Owens’ ally, from a city council race.
Owens, Williford, and Ford face felony charges for allegedly interfering with the election process and misdemeanor counts of conspiring to commit election fraud. Williford and Ford, the former elections superintendent and deputy superintendent, also face additional misdemeanor charges for failing to perform their duties as public officers.
The controversy began when Pollard, who was removed from office for not being a Camilla resident, ran again in the special election. After a judge ordered Pollard’s disqualification, the city was instructed to post signs stating that votes for him wouldn’t be counted. The incident sparked chaos in the rural southwest Georgia town of about 5,000 residents. Owens and the two former election officials were indicted by a grand jury and are currently being held at the Mitchell County jail
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