As Katherlyn Geter's campaign manager, I will respond to Mr. Exum's baseless claims about our campaign. The Geter campaign team was composed of seven women, only two of whom were not African American.
Our volunteer base, many of whom live in District 5 and attend church with Mrs. Geter, consisted of over 60 volunteers who worked tirelessly to ensure Mrs. Geter had a chance to win. We made calls and knocked on doors for three solid months, long before UnifiEd Action PAC made an endorsement of Katherlyn. The robocall you mention to District 5 Voters was made by the campaign at my direction.
This "Caucasian invasion" you speak of is simply hateful rhetoric, akin to a radio show that aired this past weekend. And please do check campaign finances, donations, and endorsements before you say any candidate is "beholden to no one."
"Mrs Geter grew up in District 5, goes to church in District 5, does ministry work with her church in District 5, assists clients with Healthcare in District 5, and graduated from Tyner High, in District 5.
At the moment Mrs Geter lives .2 miles outside the district line, in a portion that has been cut out of the district. Her campaign has been clear about this since Day 1, including in a statement published in this very publication. By the time of her swearing in she will have moved further into the district with her two sons.
The Tennessee Election Commission confirmed that a candidate is not required to live in the district while they are running for the seat, but are required to live there once they serve.
Mrs Geter won the race because she and her team worked tirelessly, and listened to the needs of the voters. The majority of voters of District 5 determined it was time for a change. Mrs. Geter will continue to listen to every constituent of District 5 for the entirety of her duration in office, regardless of whom they voted for in a primary.
Perhaps it was Mr Exum's own bias and privilege that would lead him to assume a woman could never win a local race?
Jennifer Gregory
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Funny you say she won on her own. I was initially happy she had pulled a huge upset. Then I started looking at financial disclosures for the Geter campaign and other local campaigns and discovered what many lazy and uninformed voters do not know. It shows that Ms. Geter took two contributions from the UnifiEd Action PAC. One in the value of $2,368.25 and the other in the amount of a $1,010 contribution. So who will Ms. Geter now answer to? That is the big question we all want to know.
Credit where credit is due. In areas of informed voters, UnifiEd actually turned voters against Brent Lambert according to the exit poll taken outside the East Ridge precinct at the Community Center. Of 25 polled voters, 18 said UnifiEd was a negative image to his campaign and negatively influenced their vote.
Jordan "Zane" Rogers
East Ridge