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October 22, 2009

Mahan says he can govern Cohutta from Afghanistan

Charles Oliver

Serving in the Army and the Georgia National Guard has allowed Cohutta’s Wesley Mahan to see a lot of the world, he said. And Mahan said he has seen that a small town can provide jobs and economic opportunities for residents while keeping its neighborly atmosphere.

“I’d like to see more jobs come to Cohutta, but I’d like to see it stay a small town,” said Mahan, who is running for mayor of Cohutta against Don Henderson on Nov. 3. Henderson has been mayor since 1969.

Mahan, a communications sergeant who is currently serving in Afghanistan, spoke to The Daily Citizen by telephone and e-mail.

“I’ve seen in it Germany, towns that are still small but they have jobs. And when they build a factory, they don’t destroy the small-town ambiance,” he said. “It’s possible. You just have to want to have a mayor who wants to develop the town but not destroy the town.”

Mahan, 31, says his candidacy isn’t about criticizing Henderson.

“I feel that he has done what he felt had to be done to keep Cohutta from becoming a messy sprawl,” he said. “While I would not have done everything he did I was not in his position so it would be unethical of me to be critical of his actions since I do not have all the information he did.”

Mahan says his service has also taken him to South Carolina and Delaware, and England and Spain.

Mahan joined the Army in 2000. He left active duty in 2006 and joined the National Guard to go back to school. He has an associates degree from the Community College of the Air Force. This is his first run for political office.

“I've been interested in politics for a while, my time on active duty galvanized that,” he said. “Honestly, I think more people should be involved in politics, be it on the community level, state level or street level.”

Mahan says public safety is something that is very important to him

“I would like the city to remain safe. I am not stating in any way that the police in Cohutta are not doing their job, I would just like to see the same level of security stay as the town grows,” he said.

Mahan has been in Afghanistan for almost a year, and he’s due to return home in a few months, though he says the exact date hasn’t been announced. But he says he could fulfill his duties as mayor if elected. E-mail and cell phones allow him to keep in touch with home, he said, and they would allow him to contact other city officials and he says he could attend council meetings via speaker phone until his return.



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