Jeff Chapman Politician
Jeff Chapman (born July 14, 1959) is an American public servant and former businessman. In 2004, he was elected to the Georgia State Senate, and subsequently reelected for two additional terms. He was a Republican candidate in the 2010 race for Governor of Georgia. In 2012, he was elected to the Georgia House of Representatives.Chapman is a fiscal and social conservative and has positioned himself as a supporter of private property rights through his fight against what he considered the inappropriate use of eminent domain. He previously had served on the Glynn County Commission. He was the owner of Chapman Waste Disposal and sold the company to Waste Management in the early 1990s.Chapman is noted for his opposition to the Jekyll Island State Park land scam, which was struck between developer Linger Longer Communities and the Jekyll Island Authority board of directors — an agency appointed by Georgia’s Governor. That deal provided Linger Longer with millions of dollars in incentives as well as the right to build privately owned timeshares on oceanfront public land. It also gave Linger Longer first right of refusal for any Jekyll development project over the next 25 years.In his editorial calling for the cancellation of the JIA-Linger Longer deal, Chapman wrote that, Competitive bidding is a core principle of the free market system and, if followed, would allow the JIA to obtain the best product at the lowest price and for the highest net gain. Doling out exclusive rights to Linger Longer for the next 25 years, as the JIA has done, disrespects free enterprise values, disadvantages other developers, and invites further abuse of public trust.Chapman’s editorial put the Jekyll land deal under a public spotlight. Ten days later, the agreement with Linger Longer was cancelled.