RJ Hadley (born Rakeim Jerhal Hadley on January 14, 1969) is an American activist and former Tax Commissioner of Rockdale County, Georgia. In 2008 he was a delegate to the

Democratic National Convention The Democratic National Convention (DNC) is a series of presidential nominating conventions held every four years since 1832 by the United States Democratic Party. They have been administered by the Democratic National Committee since the 1852 ...

representing Georgia. Hadley is a graduate of

Dartmouth College Dartmouth College (; ) is a private research university in Hanover, New Hampshire. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, it is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the American Revolution. Although founded to educate Native A ...

. He has worked in the public sector as juvenile justice social worker for the State of

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

. He has also held software technology positions in the United States and abroad with the

Federal Aviation Administration The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is the largest transportation agency of the U.S. government and regulates all aspects of civil aviation in the country as well as over surrounding international waters. Its powers include air traffic m ...

Motorola Motorola, Inc. () was an American Multinational corporation, multinational telecommunications company based in Schaumburg, Illinois, United States. After having lost $4.3 billion from 2007 to 2009, the company split into two independent p ...

, and

Logica Logica plc was a multinational IT and management consultancy company headquartered in London and later Reading, United Kingdom. Founded in 1969, the company had offices in London and in a number of major cities across England, Wales and Scotl ...

. In 2009, he was appointed Chief of Staff for Rockdale County. He served as the Chief Operating Officer for Affordable Housing CDC, a non-profit housing and economic development organization, until his election as Tax Commissioner in 2012. In

2010 File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...

, Hadley sought the Democratic Party's nomination for Senate in Georgia, losing to Labor Commissioner

Mike Thurmond Michael L. Thurmond (born 5 January 1953) is an American author, attorney and politician serving as the chief executive officer of DeKalb County, Georgia. A Democrat, he was previously a representative in the Georgia Assembly. Thurmond served as ...

. On January 29, 2011, he was elected vice-chair of County Parties with the

Democratic Party of Georgia The Democratic Party of Georgia is the affiliate of the Democratic Party in the U.S. state of Georgia. It is one of the two major political parties in the state and is chaired by Nikema Williams. President Jimmy Carter was a Georgia Democrat. Sinc ...

Personal life

He is married to noted bird veterinarian Dr. Tarah Hadley. They met at

Dartmouth Dartmouth may refer to: Places * Dartmouth, Devon, England ** Dartmouth Harbour * Dartmouth, Massachusetts, United States * Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, Canada * Dartmouth, Victoria, Australia Institutions * Dartmouth College, Ivy League university i ...

Political activism

Hadley was an early volunteer for the Barack Obama presidential campaign when an Obama campaign office opened in

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

in 2007. He went on to volunteer for the Obama campaign throughout Georgia,

South Carolina )''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

, and

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

. In 2008, he was chosen by the Obama campaign to serve as an At-Large delegate at the Democratic National Convention in

Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

. He was also the campaign manager for Richard Oden who became Rockdale County's first African-American Chairman in 2009.

2010 U.S. Senate campaign

In 2009, Hadley announced his campaign to seek the Democratic Party of Georgia's nomination for

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

to replace Johnny Isakson, a Republican. For nearly a year he ran unopposed until Labor Commissioner Michael Thurmond entered the race in the last week of qualifying. In the primary election held on July 20, 2010, Hadley garnered 15.7% of the popular vote.

Rockdale County Tax Commissioner

In 2012, Hadley was elected Tax Commissioner in Rockdale County. He defeated Republican incumbent Dan Ray with 51.73% of the vote.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hadley, RJ 1969 births Living people Dartmouth College alumni People from Conyers, Georgia African-American people in Georgia (U.S. state) politics County officials in Georgia (U.S. state) 21st-century African-American people 20th-century African-American people

Personal life

Political activism

2010 U.S. Senate campaign

Rockdale County Tax Commissioner

Further reading

References