Election results Tuesday night were posted on a large screen as they were tabulated, allowing reporters to quickly release reults to their media outlets. SKIP BUTLER/The Daily Tribune News
With 99 percent of precincts reporting in Bartow and Floyd counties, unofficial results showed Coomer earning 2,368 votes to Helton's 2,237. Locally, Helton pulled 1,629 Bartow voters to Coomer's 1,499, while affected precincts in Floyd gave Coomer 869 ballots to Helton's 608.
Coomer now advances to November's general election to face Democrat Dan Ledford.
Voter participation in Bartow went just over 16 percent, a figure that surprised Bartow County Election Supervisor Joseph Kirk, adding that the turnout seemed to be slow and steady all day long.
"We only had 22 [percent] for the primary, so this was a great turnout for a runoff," Kirk said. "I always say it's sad to say, 'This was a great turnout,' but it was much higher than expectations."
Kirk on Monday gave an optimistic turnout prediction of 10 percent. But Tuesday's actual participation rate gave the county its highest runoff turnout in at least the past 10 years, with the previous highest coming in at 12 percent, according to Kirk.
When asked, he said he had "no idea" if the local House race or the GOP's highest-profile election -- that for the nomination for governor -- had the biggest hand in voter participation.
"I know that people were very interested in both races, but I don't know which one in particular drove our turnout," he said.
Statewide, the GOP's top race was too close to call at 10:45 p.m., but with 91 percent of precincts reporting, Nathan Deal's 287,811 votes gave him 50.3 percent of the ballots in the faceoff against Karen Handel. In Bartow, 53.2 percent of Republican voters favored Deal.
The winner will face Nov. 2 the Democratic nominee, former Gov. Roy Barnes.
Former State Sen. Preston Smith, R-Rome, whose District 52 seat included part of Bartow County, was unable to knock off Sam Olens for the GOP's attorney general nomination. With 87 percent of precincts reporting, Olens had 58.8 percent of the statewide vote and will now move on to face Democrat Ken Hodges in the general election.
Bartow voters favored the former local legislator, though, with Smith earning 3,609 votes to Olens' 3,192.
In another GOP race, the Associated press declared just before 10 p.m. that Tim Echols took the nomination for Public Service Commissioner District 2 over John Douglas. Keith Moffett will be the Echols' Democratic opposition in the general election.
Bartow voters favored Douglas, however, with 3,423 choosing him while Echols took 2,727 votes.
GOP voters picked State Sen. Ralph Hudgens as their nominee for the open insurance commissioner seat over Maria Sheffield. With 87 percent of precincts reporting, Hudgens had 55.2 percent of the statewide vote; 54 percent of Bartow voters also favored him.
On the Democratic side, local voters only had one race to weigh in on. Voters across the state gave the nod to Rep. Georganna Sinkfield over Gail Buckner to challenge Republican Secretary of State Brian Kemp in November. Buckner was favored by Bartow's few Democratic voters, however, as they gave her 199 ballots to Sinkfield's 140.
Kirk thanked the county's poll workers for their efforts, which began at 6 a.m. and lasted until their votes were turned in after voting ended at 7 p.m. By 9:30 p.m., all precincts had reported.
"That's a long day," he said, "and for them to get back that fast, that accurately and that well, it's doing a really good job."
-- Some information from the Associated Press was used in this report.