If Catoosa County were in Tennessee, instead of Georgia, Larry Black would be its new sheriff.
Black racked up 3,808 votes in the July 31 primary election — almost twice as many as his closest competitor, Gary Sisk, with 1,956 votes.
While Black won by a big margin, it wasn’t decisive. Five Republican candidates sought to replace retiring Sheriff Phil Summers.
Black received more than 43 percent of the vote, but to win in Georgia, candidates need 50 percent plus one vote. That’s different from Tennessee and most other states, where the candidate with the most votes, or a “plurality,” wins.
So now Black and Sisk are battling it out to win the Tuesday runoff election on the Republican ballot.