WARNER ROBINS, Ga. — Bethany Ballard is the latest Houston County native to be elected as a public official.
Next month, she'll take the Georgia house district 147 seat.
Between beginning her campaign in May and being elected in November, Bethany Ballard says she's learned a lot along the way.
"Everything you do, everything the legislature does, it affects people. Their real lives and real situations," she said in a sit-down.
The representative-elect says leadership changes are happening with the death of David Ralston, the Georgia House speaker. However, she says Georgia representatives plan to stick to challenging issues like workforce development.
"I expect a continued emphasis on attracting industries, especially to non-metro counties. I mean, Atlanta has grown by leaps and bounds, but there's a whole rest of the state out there," Ballard explained.
The list of her issues expands through Central Georgia and across the state. One of those issues targets military families. It takes 90 days for a military spouse who moves out of state to transfer their occupational license. Ballard wants to cut that down.
"Maybe 60 days or 30 days so these military spouses can come in if they are licensed in a career field in another state, they can come to Georgia and jump right into the workforce if that's what they want to do and that benefits the state, it benefits our military communities, it makes us a more military friendly state," she explained.
Holding the seat is a full-circle moment. Ballard once worked for Representative Heath Clark, who held the seat before her election. As she prepares to take his place, she says he's given her this advice:
"One of the things that he told me was making sure that family comes first because long after you have been in the legislature and decided to go home, your family is going to be there," she said.
Ballard also wants to work on adoption and foster care reform.
She says the house will prioritize education. The representative-elect will be sworn in on Jan. 9, the first day of the 2023 general assembly.