All three incumbents for the Polk County Commission are among those who qualified to retain their offices today as the weeklong period allowing candidates to jump into races officially began this morning.

So far, Commissioners Linda Liles, Hal Floyd and Gary Martin are all in the race to keep their seats in District 2, District 3 and District 1 respectively.

Liles, who faces her second election after she won the office in 2020, said that she was the first into the office today to submit her name and paperwork to retain the office.

“I’m very excited about running again,” Liles said. “I’ve enjoyed the two years that I have been a commissioner, and we’ve gotten a lot done in that time. However, there’s still a lot left to accomplish, and I want to thank voters who support me for giving me an opportunity to continue the good work we as a board have accomplished so far.”

She added that “we’ve put a lot of focus during the past two years on public safety and have implemented programs and initiatives that focus on increasing the safety of our local citizens. Additionally, we’re working on Quality of Life issues as well, which is one of the areas that I focused on in my previous campaign.”

Liles points toward a recent vote from the County Commission to provide $300,000 to the cities of Cedartown and Rockmart to use toward projects specifically focused on Qualify of Life improvements, like expanding recreation opportunities and economic development.

“This board is working together for the betterment of our county and our citizens,” Liles said. “I want to thank the voters who supported me and ask for your support again to give me another opportunity to continue.”

Martin, coming up on the end of his first term in office, will face a challenger in former Commission candidate James Vines. Vines qualified as well this morning.

Floyd will additionally face a challenger as Jeff Hawkins also qualified to run for the District 3 seat as well.

He said that he’s ready for another four year term as well, and even though he could retire and enjoy spending time with his grandchildren, Floyd isn’t ready yet to call it quits.

“My health is good for an almost 80 year old guy,” Floyd said. “And the board has appreciated me serving as chair and leading the way in recent years, and other commissioners have encouraged me to continue to serve as long as I am able. God willing if I win, I will continue to serve with humility and integrity as a Commissioner.”

Thus far, Commissioner Linda Liles does not face a challenger in the race.

Locally, the races this year include the trio of County Commission seats, four school board seats and the Superior Court Judge seat held by Judge Meng Lim.

He additionally qualified this morning to seek office. He’ll face a challenger in local attorney Andrew Roper, who officially made his campaign live on Sunday night on social media.

Roper is expected to make a further announcement soon.

So far, no incumbents or challengers have qualified for the School Board as of this afternoon.

Check back for more updates on qualifying as they become available.