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Two Thomas County women qualify to run for State House Dist. 173

As of Tuesday, Rep. Darlene Taylor has drawn at least one competitor in her reelection bid to represent District 173 in the Georgia House of Representatives. Taylor, a Republican from Thomasville, qualified on Monday to seek reelection, and on Tuesday, Margaret “Twitty” Titus, also of Thomasville, qualified to run for the seat as a Democrat.
Titus is scheduled to formally announce her candidacy at Davis Park in Cairo on Monday.  
Taylor, who has served in the General Assembly since she was sworn into office January 2011, announced her plans to seek reelection at a Presidents Day Tribute Dinner held in Thomasville on Feb. 24.
“The outpouring of support and magnitude of encouragement in the wake of this announcement has been quite humbling,” Taylor says. She says she believes “that a true respect for life at all stages and ages, listening to the people, tenacity when seeking resolutions, securing district infrastructure improvements, and earnest relationship building” are all hallmarks of her service.  
Titus says, “Our residents want a government that’s fair, efficient, and sustainable. To achieve that, we need energy, creativity, and optimism. Passivity and the status quo have not worked. Positive, progressive change needs to happen here.”
The candidate elected to the District 173 seat will represent parts of Thomas and Decatur counties and all of Grady County in the Georgia legislature. If either Taylor or Twitty draws opposition in her own party, they would go head to head in Primary voting on May 22. Winners of the Primary election would compete in the General Election balloting on Nov. 6. If no one else qualifies this week to run for the seat, Taylor and Twitty will face each other in the General Election.
Titus is familiar with state politics under the Gold Dome as her father, Theo Titus, represented Thomas County in the legislature as a Republican from 1988 to 1998. Twitty Titus explains her change of affiliation saying, “the Republican Party today is not my father’s Republican Party.”
Titus is executive director of Woodleaf Senior Care in Thomasville. She graduated from Central High School in Thomasville, Loyola University and the Loyola University School of Dentistry. She has four adult children and several grandchildren.
Titus says she advocates for regional economic revitalization, business incubators, green energy policies, efforts to attract movie production to Southwest Georgia, family-friendly policies, and less poverty.
Taylor says she is confident “the best days are just ahead for Georgia” and she wants to “lead the charge to ensure that South Georgia shares in this momentum.” In the House of Representatives, Taylor chairs the Committee on Information and Audits and serves on the following committees: Agriculture and Consumer Affairs, Appropriations, Governmental Affairs, Insurance, Public Safety and Homeland Security, and Transportation.
Taylor works in the insurance industry as chairman and CEO of TBR, Taylor Benefit Resource in Thomasville. She and her husband, John, have two adult sons and several grandchildren.

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