David Ralston
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David Ralston (March 14, 1954 – November 16, 2022) was an American attorney and a Republican politician who was a member of the
Georgia House of Representatives The Georgia House of Representatives is the lower house of the Georgia General Assembly (the state legislature) of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. There are currently 180 elected members. Republican Party (United States), Repu ...
from 2003 until his death. From 2010 onwards, he was also its 73rd Speaker of the House.Legislature biography
/ref> Ralston was the longest-serving Republican Speaker in state history and the longest-serving Speaker of the Georgia General Assembly since Tom Murphy.


Biography

David Ralston was born in Ellijay, Georgia. He attended Young Harris College, graduated from North Georgia College and State University, and later from the
University of Georgia School of Law The University of Georgia School of Law (Georgia Law) is the law school of the University of Georgia, a Public university, public research university in Athens, Georgia. It was founded in 1859, making it one of the oldest American university law ...
. From 1992 to 1998, he served as a member of the
Georgia Senate The Georgia State Senate is the upper house of the Georgia General Assembly, in the U.S. state of Georgia. The Georgia State Senate and the lower house of the General Assembly, the Georgia House of Representatives, comprise the bicameral leg ...
. In 1998, Ralston was the Republican nominee for attorney general of Georgia, but lost the election to Thurbert Baker. In 2002, he was elected to the Georgia House of Representatives for the 7th district. He was elected to serve as Speaker in 2010, following the resignation of
Glenn Richardson James Glenn Richardson (commonly known as Glenn Richardson) (born January 12, 1960) is an American attorney and the former Speaker of the Georgia House of Representatives, in the state of Georgia. In late 2009, following the announcement of a ...
.Aaron Gould Sheinin, 'Republicans back Ralston for speaker', in ''
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution ''The Atlanta Journal-Constitution'' (''AJC'') is an American daily newspaper based in metropolitan area of Atlanta, Georgia. It is the flagship publication of Cox Enterprises. The ''Atlanta Journal-Constitution'' is the result of the merger ...
'', December 17, 200

/ref> As such, he is the first state House Speaker from north Georgia in more than 150 years.Ashley Fielding, 'State leaders put North Ga. in seat of power', in '' The Gainesville Times (Georgia), The Gainesville Times'', January 10, 201

/ref>


Legislative accomplishments and priorities

Ralston spearheaded economically conservative initiatives, including passing the first-ever income tax cut in the state in 2018 and eliminating the sales tax on manufacturers. In the wake of the
murder of Ahmaud Arbery On February 23, 2020, Ahmaud Arbery, a 25-year-old black man, was murdered during a racially motivated Hate crime laws in the United States, hate crime while jogging in Satilla Shores, a neighborhood near Brunswick, Georgia, Brunswick in Glynn ...
, Ralston led the effort to pass a state hate-crimes law. Additionally, Ralston passed reforms to Georgia's election process, most recently the Election Integrity Act of 2021. Although Ralston and Republicans said these efforts were to increase voter security within the state, critics said that they are intended to disenfranchise voters and lower turnout.


Controversies


State Bar reprimand

In 2014, Ralston was investigated by the Georgia Supreme Court following a complaint that he had ignored a client's case for years and had failed to communicate. In 2016, Ralston and the State Bar of Georgia reached a settlement, with the Georgia Bar issuing a minor reprimand and Ralston admitting to inadvertently breaking State Bar rules, ending a years-long dispute. He had previously faced disbarment.


Court case delays

In February 2019, the ''
Atlanta Journal-Constitution ''The Atlanta Journal-Constitution'' (''AJC'') is an American daily newspaper based in metropolitan area of Atlanta, Georgia. It is the flagship publication of Cox Enterprises. The ''Atlanta Journal-Constitution'' is the result of the merger ...
'' and
WSB-TV WSB-TV (channel 2) is a television station in Atlanta, Georgia, United States, affiliated with ABC. It is the flagship television property of locally based Cox Media Group, which has owned the station since its inception, and is sister to rad ...
reported that Ralston regularly used his position as speaker to benefit his Blue Ridge-based private law practice. A 1905 state law ( O.C.G.A. § 17-8-26) requires judges and prosecutors to defer to the schedules of any member of the general assembly who is also a practicing lawyer, and as speaker, Ralston was able to claim scheduling conflicts any time of year. By delaying court cases in this manner, Ralston was able to keep his clients free on bond for months or even years, while weakening court cases over time by letting memories fade and evidence expire. Some of Ralston's clients retained him specifically for these reasons. Journalists found that over the course of 21 cases, Ralston requested delays 57 times, and that on 76 of the 93 conflicting days, the legislature was not in session; he would commonly delay individual cases over a dozen times each. Charges against Ralston's clients who benefited from this include
drunk driving Drunk driving (or drink-driving in British English) is the act of driving under the influence of alcohol. A small increase in the blood alcohol content increases the relative risk of a motor vehicle crash. In the United States, alcohol is in ...
,
child molestation Child sexual abuse (CSA), also called child molestation, is a form of child abuse in which an adult or older adolescent uses a child for sexual stimulation. Forms of child sexual abuse include engaging in sexual activities with a child (whet ...
, and assault. In April 2019, an independent researcher reviewed Ralston's court cases across eight counties and found that from 2010 through 2019, Ralston delayed 226 cases a total of 966 times. Multiple attorneys wrote formal complaints to various judges regarding Ralston's delays. In response, Ralston said that the researcher "does not understand the legal system or the criminal justice system... nddidn't have anything critical to say about my performance as speaker." The original law allowing this was amended over a century later in 2006 by SB 503. Previously, the law allowed representatives to delay court hearings only during the legislative session and for the following three weeks. A committee was formed to reconcile differences between the house and senate versions of SB 503, and Ralston himself was named a member. His exact role in crafting the current law's language is unknown. Little to no pushback from judges has been found. Ralston had been known to seek revenge on political opponents and, as speaker, controlled two seats on the investigative panel of the state judicial qualifications commission. Further, the Georgia legislature made itself exempt from the Georgia Open Records Act.


Reaction

In response, Ralston stated that he would "continue to represent the people of the 7th House district, and... continue being speaker of the House." He also lashed out at reporters, saying the media is interested in "profit not truth." On February 22, 2019, after more than a week of relative silence from both Republican and Democratic lawmakers—due to what the ''AJC'' calls "a reluctance seemingly rooted in Ralston's substantial political power"—state representative David Clark of Buford (98th district) introduced a resolution in the Georgia house (HR 328) calling on Ralston to resign as speaker, saying he felt "betrayed" and stating that Ralston "absolutely abused his power. He used his seat, and he's hurting people." Out of 180 total members, just nine other state representatives, all Republicans, signed Clark's resolution: * Michael Caldwell (
Woodstock The Woodstock Music and Art Fair, commonly referred to as Woodstock, was a music festival held from August 15 to 18, 1969, on Max Yasgur's dairy farm in Bethel, New York, southwest of the town of Woodstock, New York, Woodstock. Billed as "a ...
, 20th district) * Kevin Cooke ( Carrollton, 18th district) * Sheri Gilligan ( Cumming, 24th district) * Matt Gurtler (
Tiger The tiger (''Panthera tigris'') is a large Felidae, cat and a member of the genus ''Panthera'' native to Asia. It has a powerful, muscular body with a large head and paws, a long tail and orange fur with black, mostly vertical stripes. It is ...
, 8th district) *Jeff Jones ( Brunswick, 167th district) *
Colton Moore Colton Chase Moore (born October 10, 1993) is an American auctioneer and politician who represents Georgia's 53rd Senate District in the Georgia State Senate. He previously represented Georgia's 1st House District in the Georgia House of Represe ...
( Trenton, 1st district) *Ken Pullin ( Zebulon, 131st district) *David Stover ( Newnan, 71st district) *Scot Turner ( Holly Springs, 21st district) Gurtler told the ''AJC'' to "remember that legality and morality don't always align;" Moore wrote a letter to Ralston stating that "District 1 and many citizens across our great state believe you should no longer serve as the leader of Georgia's largest governing body"; Pullin said Ralston's "actions may be legal according to state law, but they're not ethical or moral;" Turner stated that he felt "compelled by a sense of duty to call for the speaker to put the gavel down."
Griffin The griffin, griffon, or gryphon (; Classical Latin: ''gryps'' or ''grypus''; Late and Medieval Latin: ''gryphes'', ''grypho'' etc.; Old French: ''griffon'') is a -4; we might wonder whether there's a point at which it's appropriate to talk ...
representative Karen Mathiak (73rd district) initially signed the resolution, but later removed her signature. Local Republican conventions in DeKalb, Gwinnett, and Rabun counties called for Ralston to resign, as did the ''Gainesville Times''. Meanwhile, politicians from both sides of the aisle defended Ralston. The governor's office said governor
Brian Kemp Brian Porter Kemp (born November 2, 1963) is an American politician serving as the 83rd governor of Georgia since 2019. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, Kemp served as the state's 27th Georgia Secretary of Sta ...
looks forward to working with Ralston. Butch Miller, Georgia senate president pro tempore, said that Ralston " oesabove and beyond as a citizen legislator." Former Republican governor
Nathan Deal John Nathan Deal (born August 25, 1942) is an American politician and former lawyer who served as the 82nd governor of Georgia from 2011 to 2019. A Republican, he previously served as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives. Deal served ...
said he knows Ralston is "an honorable person," and former Democratic governor
Roy Barnes Roy Eugene Barnes (born March 11, 1948)Cook, James F. (2005). ''The Governors of Georgia, 1754-2004, 3rd Edition, Revised and Expanded.'' Macon, GA: Mercer University Press. is an American attorney and politician who served as the 80th governo ...
stated it was "foolhardy to call for alston'sresignation." Many other state representatives expressed support for Ralston; after the allegations surfaced, at a closed-door meeting of Republicans at the Capitol, Ralston received a "spontaneous" round of applause. House majority whip Trey Kelley of Cedartown (16th district) stated " 's really unfair to the speaker, because he also has a pretty important duty and an absolute right of privilege that exists between him and his client." Speaker pro tem Jan Jones of Milton (47th district) called Ralston a "man of integrity." Kasey Carpenter of Dalton (4th district) said Ralston "operated within the confines of the law. If you don't like the law, let's change the law." Ringgold representative Dewayne Hill (3rd district) said, "I hate that this is all coming about... This takes away from us doing and concentrating on the people's needs." Gainesville representatives Emory Dunahoo (30th district) and Lee Hawkins (27th district) both said they were withholding judgment for now. Conservative commentators were less supportive, with former radio host
Neal Boortz Neal A Boortz Jr. (born April 6, 1945) is an American author, former attorney, and former libertarian radio host. His nationally syndicated talk show, ''The Neal Boortz Show'', which ended in 2013, was carried throughout the United States. The ...
declaring that Ralston should face ethics charges, and WSB radio host
Erick Erickson Erick Woods Erickson (born June 3, 1975) is an American conservative talk radio host, blogger, and former politician. He hosts a three-hour weekday talk show on WSB 95.5 FM and 750 AM in Atlanta, which is syndicated to other radio stations aro ...
said Republicans " nabledthis and etit happen." The Georgia Democratic Party released a statement declaring that "Speaker Ralston has abused his power as a public servant to delay and deny justice for crime victims," while former gubernatorial candidate
Stacey Abrams Stacey Yvonne Abrams (; born December 9, 1973) is an American politician, lawyer, voting rights activist, and author who served in the Georgia House of Representatives from 2007 to 2017, serving as minority leader from 2011 to 2017. A member ...
was more restrained, saying that she would "leave it to Speaker Ralston to determine if he's meeting his obligations both as an attorney and as a legislator."


Changing the law

On February 25, 2019, Ralston declared in an "emotional" speech to the Georgia house that he would establish a bipartisan panel to look into how the law should be changed; he also stated that as an attorney, he would not accept any new criminal cases for now. Ralston's speech received a standing ovation. Representative Scot Turner applauded the move to change the law, but said that Ralston still has "a lack of recognition that his actions have caused people harm." The panel returned a draft law which would allow attorneys and their clients to oppose similar requests for leave, leaving it to the judge to determine the best course of action. The draft was introduced as House Bill 502 and it became law on May 7, 2019. Speaking to the ''Augusta Chronicle'', Ralston said that "to the extent there's a perception that's a problem, then I think we've dealt with it." However, the ''AJC'' reported skepticism of the new law due to the fact that "judges have already had the ability to push back on the speaker, but rarely did".


COVID-19 response

During the 2020 U.S. coronavirus pandemic, Ralston strongly opposed expanding use of mail-in ballots, under the reasoning that it would increase turnout, the possibility of fraud, and hurt Republican candidates. According to Ralston, "This will be extremely devastating to Republicans and conservatives in Georgia. Every registered voter is going to get one of these. … This will certainly drive up turnout." Ralston later clarified that his concerns were strictly about the likelihood of fraud: "It’s really not a question about higher turnout... It’s just that the election needs to be secure and it must have integrity. If it doesn’t, I think our chances obviously are problematic.”


Personal life and death

Ralston had two children and worked as an attorney in
Blue Ridge, Georgia Blue Ridge is a city in Fannin County, Georgia, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 1,253. The city is the county seat of Fannin County and the largest city in the county. History Prior t ...
. He was married to Sheree Ralston, and was a member of the Fannin County
Chamber of Commerce A chamber of commerce, or board of trade, is a form of business network. For example, a local organization of businesses whose goal is to further the interests of businesses. Business owners in towns and cities form these local societies to a ...
and the Blue Ridge Mountains Arts Association. On November 4, 2022, Ralston announced he would not seek another term as House speaker, citing health concerns. He died 12 days later at Piedmont Hospital in Atlanta.


See also

* List of speakers of the Georgia House of Representatives *
Georgia House of Representatives The Georgia House of Representatives is the lower house of the Georgia General Assembly (the state legislature) of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. There are currently 180 elected members. Republican Party (United States), Repu ...


References


External links

*
David Ralston at ballotpedia.org
, - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Ralston, David 1954 births 2022 deaths 20th-century American lawyers 21st-century American lawyers Republican Party Georgia (U.S. state) state senators People from Blue Ridge, Georgia People from Gilmer County, Georgia Georgia (U.S. state) lawyers Speakers of the Georgia House of Representatives Republican Party members of the Georgia House of Representatives Young Harris College alumni University of North Georgia alumni University of Georgia School of Law alumni Place of death missing Candidates in the 1998 United States elections 21st-century members of the Georgia General Assembly