| Former Georgia state senator and Milledgeville mayor Floyd L. Griffin has announced his intent to run for the State House District 149 seat, newly created after a Northern Georgia District court judge ruled the state's congressional and legislative boundaries violated the Voting Rights Act of 1969.
Griffin has been a leader in the fight for voting rights for Black voters in Georgia for decades. He lived through the discriminatory poll tax laws that were put in place to keep Blacks in the South from voting.
After years spent as a civil rights activist, Griffin accomplished in 1994 what many political experts deemed impossible by defeating an incumbent Georgia state senator in a majority white district.
A few years later, Griffin made another unprecedented achievement in becoming the first African American mayor of the old capitol city of Milledgeville.
Griffin feels this newly drawn district is important for African American voters, especially in the wake of widespread voter suppression attempts in 2020.
The new district covers a significant portion of Baldwin County, part of Bibb County in east Macon, and a section of Jones County. Griffin seeks to once again fight for his community and constituents to ensure all have equal access to voting.
"I'm excited about the potential to serve this district and assure all of its communities have all it needs, including easy access to voting" Griffin stated.
Griffin holds an associate degree in funeral service from Gupton Jones College, a Bachelor of Science degree in building construction from Tuskegee University, and a Master of Science in contract and procurement management from Florida Institute of Technology. He also graduated from the Army Command and General Staff College as well as the National War College.
In 1967, Griffin joined the U.S. Army and served as a helicopter pilot, instructor pilot, and commander of a construction engineering company in Vietnam. Also during his Army tenure, he commanded an engineer construction battalion at Fort Stewart.
After 23 years of esteemed and honorable service, Griffin retired as an army colonel. He later took over the family business, along with his siblings, and ran a well-respected funeral home in the Milledgeville area.
Griffin currently resides in Milledgeville with his wife, Nathalie Huffman Griffin. They have three sons and four grandchildren. |