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Floyd Griffin kicked off his five-day, 30-city bus tour on Sunday morning.
The Secretary of State candidate began the tour at the Black Heritage Plaza here in downtown Milledgeville before trekking east to Sparta, Warrenton and Augusta on Sunday.
Griffin, who turns 78 on May 24, also the date of this year's primary, was riding out in the F.R.E.S.H Communities bus, complete with a "FLOYD GRIFFIN for SECRETARY OF STATE" graphic adorned on the top third of the bus. F.R.E.S.H. Communities is a Waycross/Ware County-based non-profit that aims to empower "every individual with information, opportunities and creative pathways to make healthy life choices and establish a family and community legacy."
"This election is about change, and this election is about executive leadership, executive management and executive experience, and Floyd Griffin is the most experienced person running," said Griffin.
Griffin's campaign website is up-and-running and can be viewed HERE.
Griffin was one of four Democrats to qualify in March, joining Dee Dawkins-Haigler, a "minister/consultant;" John Eaves, an "educator" from Atlanta; Bee Nguyen, a "nonprofit director" from Atlanta; as well as Michael Owens, a "cyber security executive" from Mabelton.
On the Republican side, meanwhile, Baldwin County's current congressman – Jody Hice – was among four GOP candidates to qualify. Hice announced last year that he was giving up his congressional seat to run for Secretary of State, and he made it official last week. Hice has the endorsement of Donald Trump and is favored by Trump. Also qualifying was incumbent Brad Raffensberger, who definitely doesn't have the endorsement of Trump and definitely is not favored by Trump. Rounding out the field for the May 24 republican Primary is David C. Belle Isle, a "business owner/attorney" from Alpharetta and T.J. Hudson, a "county manager" from Soperton.
Hice spoke to the Baldwin County Republican Committee last fall at Northridge Christian Church on Meriwether. He told the crowd that he and his wife prayed about the decision one night, and the very next day Trump operative Mark Meadows called from D.C. and gauged his interest about challenging Raffensberger. Few politicians in Georgia, if any, have been more outspoken than Hice about "election fraud" in 2020 and granted more interviews about the topic.
Griffin would be considered a serious long shot in this year's Secretary of State election. Griffin has surprised in the past, however. In 1994, he became the first African-American since Reconstruction to be elected to the state senate in Georgia from a majority white district. Eight years later, Griffin became Milledgeville's first African-American mayor. Since then, however, Griffin hasn't fared so well in campaigns. He came up short in two subsequent mayoral elections, and also came up short in a 2010 run for state senate and a 2016 bid for state representative.
