Chris Burnett Wins District 3 Election Runoff

SANDY SPRINGS, GA -- A new face will soon join the Sandy Springs City Council.

Businessman Chris Burnett was declared the winner Tuesday evening of the special election runoff to fill the District 3 seat.

With 1,649 ballots cast, Burnett received 887 votes while his opponent, Joe Houseman, garnered 762 votes.

On his Facebook page, Burnett said he is "honored" to become the next District 3 City Council member, and "will work as hard as possible to represent you as we work together to make Sandy Springs the best hometown in America."

"Thank you to my family, friends and campaign team for their tremendous support and hard work," he added. "I also want to recognize my opponent, Joe Houseman, and his family and their supporters for their hard work in this campaign. They ran an excellent race."

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A native of Atlanta, Burnett has lived in Sandy Springs for almost 25 years. A graduate of Georgia State University majoring in finance, Burnett also attended the Graduate School of Banking at Louisiana State University. He’s a community banker with more than 35 years’ experience, and helped form the Bank of Sandy Springs.

Burnett is also an active member of the community, serving on the city’s Next 10 Planning Committee; twice served as the Sandy Springs Perimeter Chamber of Commerce board chairman; and is a member of the Holy Innocents’ School Board of Trustees.

Mayor Rusty Paul congratulated Burnett on the win.

“It was a hard fought and well-earned win," he added. "On behalf of the City Council, we are looking forward to working with Chris and value his experience as a business leader in our community.”

The election fills the seat left vacant by District 3 Council member Graham McDonald, who resigned to run for the State House District 52 seat.

Burnett will be officially sworn in prior to the start of the July 19 City Council meeting. The results will be certified at City Hall on Friday.

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Image via Shutterstock