By John Fredericks / Staff

As the clock ticks down the final hours to the all-important August 10 Republican gubernatorial run-off election between Roswell's Karen Handel and former Congressman Nathan Deal, one question remains unanswered. This key eleventh hour query  has the potential to derail Handel's perceived juggernaut toward the nomination, and swing the election to Deal.

Why has virtually the entire North Fulton House delegation, save Wendell Willard (R-Sandy Springs), lined up behind Nathan Deal?

Deal has enlisted the enthusiastic support of former House Speaker, Mark Burkhalter (R-Johns Creek), House Speaker Pro-Tem, Jan Jones (R-Milton), House Ways and Means Subcommittee Chairman, Chuck Martin (R-Alpharetta), House Energy and Utilities and Telecommunications Vice Chairman, Harry Geisinger (R-Roswell) and House Ethics Committee Chairman, Joe Wilkinson (R-Sandy Springs).

And now insiders at the capitol have confirmed that even Willard is second- guessing his support, and may abandon Handel's candidacy on Monday as well.

No doubt, these five -- and maybe six -- very powerful North Fulton legislators know Handel better than anyone. They've worked closely with her for over a decade, starting when she was CEO of the North Fulton Chamber of Commerce, then Chair of the Fulton County Commission, and finally as Secretary of State. Most importantly, on paper, one would think that these five local officials would be her key Gold Dome supporters if she made it to the governor's mansion. Yet they not only oppose her election, all five are working diligently to elect Deal, her rival. Jones did a one-week fly around the state, Martin is knocking on doors in his district, Geisinger is putting up yard signs, and Wilkinson is working the phones – all for Deal.

CHUCK MARTIN ON HANDEL: A RISKY PRIMARY PROPOSITION

Martin, a House member since 2002, currently serves on five committees: Chairman – Appropriations/Public Safety; Budget and Fiscal Affairs Oversight; Energy, Public Utilities & Telecommunications, Science and Technology as well as Ways & Means, where he chairs sub-committees.

"I'm supporting Nathan Deal because he is the real conservative and the best qualified candidate in this race," Martin said. "I'd like to support my neighbor, but our challenges in this state are too great and the stakes are too high to take that level of risk. In this primary run-off, I can't in good conscious roll the dice on Georgia's future," the Alpharetta legislator added.

"Nathan Deal has the experience we need," said Martin. "Nathan worked with former Speaker of U.S. House of Representatives, Newt Gingrich in balancing the budget; Deal supports the exemption of the first $7,000 of individual income from state income tax. As Governor, Nathan will cut personal income taxes and small business income taxes. He has specific plans to get people back to work in Georgia; he will put money and power back in the hands of regular Georgians."

Martin says that as much as he has probed, Handel has "no specific plan" for the state. He dubbed Handel's candidacy "a paper campaign" that is a "house of cards" devoid of  "real substance." Martin says her policy positions are "vague" while representing "sound bites" rather than "real specific plans" to move Georgia forward. "Her candidacy is based on cliché's and one-liners with no meat on the bone," concluded Martin.

Martin confirmed that although he has known Handel since her first position at the Chamber of Commerce, he maintained that she has never detailed her resume to the voters. ‘Karen’s website states, she was an executive with KPMG and CIBA Vision’, but she gives no specifics," Martin continues. "Running for governor is a job interview, and she has never released her detailed resume, like Nathan Deal, and the other candidates did. A picture with White House officials is not a substitute for verifiable experience and credentials." He states adamantly, “Deal’s experience stands ‘head and shoulders above’ his opponent.”

JAN JONES: DEAL KNOWS HOW TO CREATE JOBS

"I’m supporting Nathan Deal in the run-off election because I trust him to keep Georgia moving forward," stated Jones. "His broad experiences and rich perspective serving Georgians have prepared him to help solve the tremendous challenges we face."

Jones, the daughter of a career soldier, says his U.S. military service -- Deal was a Captain in the U.S. Army -- taught him why ideas matter. 

"He’s uniquely qualified and committed to stand up to the Obama administrtion’s determined efforts to take over healthcare, education, and private industry," Jones added.

"I care deeply about education and its role in changing lives and making our state more prosperous. So does Nathan: as a father, a grandfather and a son, as well as, the husband of a teacher, he’ll partner with me, and others in the House to continue reforming education," Jones explained.

The House Speaker Pro-Tem was adamant in her assessment that Deal has created jobs as a small businessman, whereas his opponent has not. "Nathan knows that the best stimulus plan is not a government check, but a job! Through a flatter, fairer tax system and jobs-friendly efforts, he’ll get Georgia back to work," Jones promised.

Concerning Handel, Jones was not as enthusiastic. "I know Karen and I like her, personally. I supported her efforts over the last eight years in running for three other political offices. Should she win the Republican nomination, I’ll work hard to help her prevail over Democrat Roy Barnes in November. Ultimately, as conservatives, we’re are all on the same team to assure Georgia remains a beacon for job creation, personal freedoms and rich opportunities for its citizens."

But the popular legislator, who some hail as the most commanding woman in the state, claims Deal is the better candidate. "At this particular and trying time for our state, I believe Nathan is the most qualified person to lead Georgia as governor. The economic and many complex challenges we face are a monumental concern to me during the greatest global recession since the Great Depression. Nathan is up to the challenge. Without a doubt," she concluded.

When asked what impact former GOP VP candidate Sarah Palin was having on the race, Jones said the jury was still out. "I admire Sarah Palin and, like many others, I was energized by her presence on the McCain ticket.

"On the other hand, I trust Georgians to make the serious selection of governor based on experience and qualifications, not as an endorsement by someone, however well-regarded, celebrity-status or not,  who is unfamiliar with our candidates and our state’s challenges," Jones said.

"Personally, what makes a difference with me is the support of those that really know Georgia, the candidates and our issues.  Newt Gingrich endorsed Nathan because of their long relationship. Newt trusts him after serving together as congressmen fighting the Washington elite for conservative principles. Mike Huckabee supports Nathan because they fought federal mandates on states together when Mike was governor of Arkansas. The 100 Republican members of the Georgia General Assembly that support Nathan have their ears to the ground all over the state. They feel passionately that Nathan can partner with them to keep making progress on water, transportation, education and lower taxes," she reasoned.

JOE WILKINSON: "READY, FIRE, AIM" NOT THE RIGHT APPROACH

House Ethics Chairman Joe Wilkinson, a retired Navy Captain who has represented part of Sandy Springs for 10 years, says he has been a friend of Handel's since 2000. "I have vigorously supported Karen for a very long time," Wilkinson said, "but I can no longer be associated with her gubernatorial primary run, and I have withdrawn my support from Handel. I am now actively working for the election of Nathan Deal," the veteran Naval officer said.

Wilkinson says his decision to abandon Handel "has been a very sad and disappointing time both for myself and my family. I served with Karen on the North Fulton Chamber, and I helped with her campaigns in 2002, 2003 and 2006." Wilkinson explained that he was not happy with the way Handel has conducted herself in her gubernatorial campaign. "Karen turned on the Republican House Caucus. She used a broad brush and criticized too many good and decent public servants for what I consider political purposes," the Sandy Springs lawmaker said. "I found this to be unacceptable."

Wilkinson explained that the rift in their relationship dates back to last year, when he says she "threw the Republican House leadership under the bus" with her "sex, lies and lobbyists propaganda."

The House Ethics Chairman said he was aghast at the underlying false nature of her campaign. "When Republicans took over the House in 2005, Georgia was ranked 33rd by independent watchdog agencies as having one of the weakest ethics laws on the books in the country. But after just 28 legislative days, in about two months time, we guided a sweeping ethics reform bill through both chambers, and our rating went from 33rd to the sixth toughest ethics state," he pointed out. "As Republicans in the 2004 general election, we made ethics reform a centerpiece of our pledge to the voters, and we carried through on our promise immediately."

Wilkinson said that by 2011 Georgia could be ranked in the top three of having the toughest ethics laws in the nation.

"So for Karen Handel to say that we failed to pass tough ethics laws is a false and disingenuous statement,” Wilkinson said.

Wilkinson surmised that Handel attempted to capitalize politically on the sudden demise of former House Speaker Glenn Richardson, who resigned in disgrace last December. "Some of Karen's senior staff said that I should have publicly called for Richardson's resignation when rumors of impropriety first hit. But I had to wait until our investigation was complete, and I had the all facts. Once we had the evidence, we were able to proceed. We followed the rule of law and the rules of the House and were not swayed by political expediency. Glenn resigned his speaker position four days later."

"In marketing, we call her approach: 'ready-fire-aim.'"

Wilkinson says Handel's characterization of his committee's new ethics legislation, as merely "window dressing" is "false, and quite frankly, most offensive."

The one-time Handel supporter says the "last straw" was in June when the Handel camp launched another disparaging press release on the General Assembly's House ethics reforms, referring to those as "too little, and too late."

"I had to withdraw my support then," Wilkinson explained.

HARRY GEISINGER: HANDEL'S LACK OF VISION HAUNTS HER

Veteran Roswell legislator Harry Geisinger, a former official in the Reagan administration and a Republican candidate for Georgia governor himself in 1974 says he is thoroughly disappointed in Handel. "Karen has not finished one job she has started, nor completed one term in any office she has held," the sage House member said.

"She should have at least finished out her Secretary of State role, and completed her task at hand, before pursuing another, higher elected office."

Geisinger further maintains that the Handel candidacy lacks any signs of a coherent vision. "Handel has no plan that I can see to solve the state's woes, whether it be overcrowded schools, water, transportation and most critically, jobs for our citizens. These are the same concerns as our residents of Georgia."

Geisinger says Handel has put her self-interest first. "Karen has placed her winning this election ahead of the issues at hand. As a result, she is willing to destroy any opponent at any cost, regardless of the consequences to the greater good. This is not what I believe the voters of Georgia want, or what the state legislators want to hear. They crave solutions and hope. Handel offers up negative ads and slick sound bites in its place."

"The big unanswered question for Handel is how does she plan to lead us through these troubled times? Until she answers that, I can't support her in this primary campaign. Frankly, I don’t believe that Karen Handel has the background, the experience or the temperament to be the chief executive of this state."

Geisninger then contrasted Handel to Deal, who he supports. "I've known Nathan Deal for some 40 years. He has the demonstrated qualifications, the big vision and the specific solutions to our challenges to lead Georgia effectively. Most important, Nathan Deal has the temperament to work with the legislature, the various departments of government and our citizens to move the state forward."

MARK BURKHALTER: Former House Speaker Supports Deal

Former House Speaker Mark Burkhalter, a North Fulton icon, universally credited for the creation of North Fulton's new cites -- Johns Creek, Milton and Sandy Springs -- donated the maximum $6,100 allowed by law to the Deal campaign last year.

But, if Deal narrowly loses to Handel, the former Congressman might be kicking himself after the balloons and party hats are being discarded on Wednesday morning. That's because he failed to engage the former House Speaker in his campaign. Burkhalter, revered as one of the top political minds in the nation, let alone Georgia, says the Deal campaign has not asked him to be actively involved in the campaign. Had Deal reached out to Burkhalter, he may have seen himself in the lead with two days to go, rather where is now, which is in a virtual tie with Handel.

Burkhalter ran Mitt Romney's Georgia presidential campaign in 2008. Although Mike Huckabee barely carried the state, Romney had an impressive showing for a Mormon in a southern Baptist bastion. In so doing, Burkhalter raised nearly $4 million for the Romney campaign, more than any other state chairman in the country.

The run-off election is Tuesday, August 10.