Sixteen people - 10 Democrats and six Republicans - showed up at the Troup County Government Center on Monday for the first day of early voting for the July 20 primary elections.

Early voting will continue through July 16 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. in the registrar’s office with races for governor and a variety of other state and federal offices. Some ballots will have a contested race for District 5 on the County Commission between incumbent Richard English and Richard Kimbrough, both Democrats.

Everybody will vote on whether to allow Troup County, LaGrange or Hogansville to create redevelopment or tax allocation districts.

Under the measure, which was approved last year in West Point, a developer could receive a bond issue for certain costs and retire the bonds through increased taxes on the property. The local governments and school board would continue to receive the same property taxes that were owed before the development started, and would get the full tax benefit once the bonds were retired in no more than 30 years.

Wayne and Dianne Chastain, 63 and 64, respectively, said they didn’t quite understand the referendum, but voted for it Monday.

“We’re both disabled and can’t stand in long lines on election day,” she said, explaining why they went to the polls early.

She chose a Democratic ballot and he chose a Republican one. In the governor’s race, she voted for Attorney General Thurbert Baker and he voted for Insurance Commissioner John Oxendine.

She didn’t go for former Gov. Roy Barnes because “our daughter was a school teacher when he was governor and he didn’t do teachers right then. He cut their salary and my daughter had to spend her own money for classroom supplies.”

Wayne Chastain said he knows Oxendine is “under an ethics investigation over campaign contributions and I’m willing to change my mind if the ethics charges are true.”

But he said Oxendine has helped family members and friends with insurance problems, and helped a doctor friend get his license back.

Joel Martin can be reached at jmartin@ lagrangenews.com or (706) 884-7311, Ext. 235.