Ron Stephens disavows support for Chatham Elections Board candidate Robin Greco

Robin Greco, a candidate for the Chatham Board of Elections, was under the impression she was endorsed by Georgia House Rep. Ron Stephens, one of the Savannah area's longest serving and most respected Republican elected officials.

Stephens disputes the claim and says that he hasn't endorsed anyone for the position, at least not intentionally. He agreed to support Greco, thinking she was Jasmine Polley, a candidate for the Savannah-Chatham School Board.

Stephens points to his $500 campaign contribution to Greco's opponent, incumbent Marianne Heimes.

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"Honestly, I misunderstood," Stephens said. "I didn't think much of it until it dawned on me that she was running against Marianne. And Marianne is a good friend."

Stephens gave the endorsement, albeit unintentionally. And Greco used it for her campaign, like any candidate who sought and received an endorsement would. 

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Greco is a political newcomer. This is her first foray into politics. She worked as an operating room nurse at the Georgia Institute of Plastic Surgery for 19 years.

She said the endorsement from Stephens was a big win. She put his face alongside her other endorsers, Sheriff John Wilcher and Chatham Commissioner Dean Kicklighter, on her campaign mailers. 

"I was very excited. I have never been in politics before. An actual endorsement? How crazy is that?" Greco, reached by text message, wrote. "I had no help, just me putting out signs, just my friends and sweet people who I have been talking to for years that I have become friends with."

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Stephens is not new to politics. He's served in the Georgia House since 1997, chairs the House Economic Development and Tourism committee and sits on several of the House's most powerful committees, such as Ways and Means, Appropriations and Rules.

"I'm sorry if there's confusion," Stephens said. "And I apologize that it came across this way."

Greco is part of a three-way race for one of the two Republican seats on the Board of Elections. Heimes and Jennifer Salandi are the other two candidates.

Will Peebles is the enterprise reporter for Savannah Morning News. He can be reached at wpeebles@gannett.com and @willpeeblessmn on Twitter.