Who is the Ben Hill County Clerk of Superior Court?

Kimberly Newell (Republican) is the Clerk of Superior Court of Ben Hill County, Georgia.

Who is the Ben Hill County Coroner?

Steven "Mark" Shealy (Republican) is the Coroner of Ben Hill County, Georgia.

Who is the Ben Hill County Sheriff?

Lee Cone (Republican) is the Sheriff of Ben Hill County, Georgia.

Who is the Ben Hill County Tax Commissioner?

Barry Foster (Republican) is the Tax Commissioner of Ben Hill County, Georgia.

Who are the Ben Hill County commissioners?

Howard "Hal" Wiley (At-large); Bennie Calloway (District 2, Post 1); Hope S. Harmon (District 2, Post 2); John William Mooney (District 3, Post 1); Daniel Cowan (District 3, Post 2).

Who is on the Ben Hill County School Board?

David Garrison (Board of Education Member, District 2); Tyler Clemons (Board of Education Member, District 3); Austin Futch (Board of Education Member, District 6); Andy Johnson (Board of Education Member, District 7).

What is the population of Ben Hill County?

About 17,089 people, with a median age of 38.7; the median household income is $41,758 and 25.2% live below the poverty line (Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–2024 5-year estimates).

What is the unemployment rate in Ben Hill County?

4.2% in September 2026 (preliminary): 292 people unemployed in a labor force of 6,955, against 3.8% a year earlier (Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics, not seasonally adjusted).

How many local governments are there in Ben Hill County?

5 in the Census Bureau's 2022 Census of Governments: 1 county, 1 municipal, 1 school district and 2 special district governments.

Ben Hill County, GA elected officials: county commissioners, sheriff, school board and cities

Who holds every elected county, school board, city and special-district office in Ben Hill County: 13 seats on 6 elected bodies.

Board of Commissioners

Ben Hill County Board of Commissioners

Office	Who holds it now
County Commissioner, At-large	Howard "Hal" Wiley Republican source
County Commissioner, District 2, Post 1	Bennie Calloway Democratic source
County Commissioner, District 2, Post 2	Hope S. Harmon Democratic source
County Commissioner, District 3, Post 1	John William Mooney Republican source
County Commissioner, District 3, Post 2	Daniel Cowan Republican source

County officers

Office	Who holds it now
Clerk of Superior Court	Kimberly Newell Republican source
Coroner	Steven "Mark" Shealy Republican source
Sheriff	Lee Cone Republican source
Tax Commissioner	Barry Foster Republican source

School Board

Ben Hill County Board of Education

Each member is elected by the voters of their district.

Office	Who holds it now	Next term
Board of Education Member, District 2	David Garrison source	Re-elected (elected unopposed)
Board of Education Member, District 3	Tyler Clemons source	Re-elected (elected unopposed)
Board of Education Member, District 6	Austin Futch source
Board of Education Member, District 7	Andy Johnson source	Re-elected (elected unopposed)

How many local governments Ben Hill County has

The Census Bureau's 2022 Census of Governments counts 5 local governments in Ben Hill County. This page lists the ones whose offices are elected.

Kind of government	Census count (2022)	Listed on this page
County government	1	1
Cities, towns, villages and townships	1	0
School districts (school boards)	1	1
Special districts (elected boards)	2	0

Census Bureau, 2022 Census of Governments: Government Units Listing (census.gov).

About these counts

The Census Bureau counts every independent local government once, in the county it assigns it to: the one it mostly serves or where it's based. A city or district that crosses county lines is counted in only one county, so it may be listed on this page but counted elsewhere, or the other way around. Many special districts, such as housing authorities, have appointed boards, and some places have more than one elected body, so the two columns measure different things. School systems run by a county, city or the state aren't counted as separate governments, though their boards may be listed here; in some states the Bureau counts community or state colleges as school districts. The counts are as of 2022.

Who lives in Ben Hill County

17,089people

38.7median ageU.S.: 38.9

$41,758 household incomeU.S.: $80,734

25.2%below the U.S.: 12.5%

13%of adults 25+ with a bachelor's degreeU.S.: 35.7%

$112,700median home valueU.S.: $332,700

3.1%unemployed (of the labor force)U.S.: 5.2%

2.7%born outside the U.S.U.S.: 14.1%

6.6%of adults are veteransU.S.: 6.2%

19%U.S.: 8.4%

40.7%of renting households pay of income on rentU.S.: 51.1%

25.8%of homeowners with a mortgage pay of income on housing costsU.S.: 28.1%

Race and Hispanic origin: Hispanic or Latino 6.8% · White 53.3% · Black 37.9% · Asian 0.4% · Other or more than one race 1.6% (Hispanic or Latino people can be of any race; the other groups are non-Hispanic.)

Census Bureau, 2020–2024 5-year estimates (data.census.gov).

About these figures

The American Community Survey asks about 3.5 million households a year about who lives there, their work, income, schooling and housing. The 5-year estimates pool 2020–2024 answers so that every county and district has enough of them. They're estimates with a (larger for smaller places), and they're different from the once-a-decade census count. "Median" means half are above and half below. Household income is before taxes and includes everyone in the household. The unemployment share here is the survey's five-year average, so it differs from the monthly rate in the BLS jobs report. Race and Hispanic origin are as people describe themselves.

Health insurance means any coverage, private or public (such as Medicaid or Medicare), when people answered; the share is of everyone except people on active military duty and people living in institutions such as prisons and nursing homes. The housing shares are of renting households, and of homeowners with a mortgage, for whom the Census Bureau can compute them (households with no income, or renters who pay no cash rent, are left out). Rent here is gross rent, rent plus utilities; owner costs include the mortgage, property taxes, insurance, utilities and fees.

Jobs in Ben Hill County

4.2%September 2026, preliminary. A year earlier: 3.8%. Georgia: 3.5%.

292people unemployedSeptember 2026, preliminary.

6,663people employedSeptember 2026, preliminary. Counted where they live, not where they work.

6,955in the September 2026, preliminary.

Yearly average unemployment rate, 2016–2025.

Every month, last two years

Month	Rate	Unemployed	Employed	Labor force
September 2026 (preliminary)	4.2%	292	6,663	6,955
August 2026	4.2%	286	6,595	6,881
July 2026	4.0%	272	6,564	6,836
June 2026	4.3%	294	6,564	6,858
May 2026	3.9%	264	6,591	6,855
April 2026	3.1%	212	6,597	6,809
March 2026	3.8%	262	6,668	6,930
February 2026	3.9%	276	6,734	7,010
January 2026	4.4%	302	6,606	6,908
December 2025	3.8%	261	6,635	6,896
November 2025	4.9%	342	6,701	7,043
October 2025	not collected (2025 federal shutdown)
September 2025	3.8%	270	6,768	7,038
August 2025	4.1%	284	6,660	6,944
July 2025	4.4%	306	6,612	6,918
June 2025	4.4%	301	6,600	6,901
May 2025	3.7%	256	6,619	6,875
April 2025	3.3%	233	6,782	7,015
March 2025	3.8%	273	6,825	7,098
February 2025	3.8%	272	6,915	7,187
January 2025	4.1%	288	6,804	7,092
December 2024	3.8%	267	6,748	7,015
November 2024	3.7%	262	6,772	7,034
October 2024	4.3%	303	6,778	7,081

Yearly averages

Year	Rate	Unemployed	Employed	Labor force
2025 (11 months)	4.0%	281	6,720	7,001
2024	3.9%	279	6,902	7,181
2023	3.4%	252	7,109	7,361
2022	3.5%	253	6,950	7,203
2021	4.2%	299	6,760	7,059
2020	5.5%	383	6,592	6,975
2019	4.5%	314	6,649	6,963
2018	4.7%	331	6,689	7,020
2017	6.2%	438	6,585	7,023
2016	6.5%	466	6,651	7,117

Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics, : BLS publishes county figures only that way, so they rise and fall with the seasons; compare a month with the same month a year earlier rather than with the month before. Georgia's figure above is on the same basis; seasonally adjusted, as in BLS's monthly state release, it was 3.3% in September 2026. The latest month is preliminary and is revised the next month, and BLS revises earlier years each spring. People are counted where they live. October 2025 wasn't collected during the 2025 federal government shutdown, so 2025's yearly average covers 11 months.

Crime reported in Ben Hill County

408.4 per 100,0002025. Georgia: 296.9.

1,887.9 per 100,0002025. Georgia: 1,409.3.

0murders2025, 69 violent crimes in all.

Earlier years

Year	Violent	Rate	Property	Rate
2025	69	408.4	319	1,887.9
2024	71	413.1	365	2,123.5
2023	156	914.8	461	2,703.3
2022	132	766.5	509	2,955.5
2021	107	649.2	513	3,112.3
2020	83	500.9	511	3,083.7
2019	71	426.0	558	3,347.7
2018	65	385.1	625	3,703.3
2017	70	407.0	686	3,988.6
2016	70	403.7	685	3,950.6

By police agency (2)

Agency	Year	Violent	Property	People served
Fitzgerald Police Department	2025	33	257	8,768
Ben Hill County Sheriff's Office	2025	36	62	8,129

Crimes to the county's city and county police agencies (FBI Uniform Crime Reporting, Return A), per 100,000 people they serve. Years with incomplete reporting are left out. Crime in Georgia · the U.S.

Police staffing

3.26 per 1,000 residents2025, 2 agencies serving 16,897 people.

55sworn officers2025, full-time, as of October 31.

36civilian staff2025, full-time.

Agencies counted (2), 2025

Agency	Officers	Civilians	People served
Ben Hill County Sheriff's Office	29	27	8,129
Fitzgerald Police Department	26	9	8,768

Earlier years

Year	Officers	Per 1,000	Civilians	Agencies
2025	55	3.26	36	2
2024	57	3.32	30	2
2023	53	3.11	32	2
2022	47	2.73	33	2
2021	48	2.91	33	2
2020	49	2.96	30	2
2018	52	3.08	26	2
2017	56	3.26	31	2
2016	71	4.09	10	2

Full-time employees of the county's city police departments and sheriff's office, as each reported them to the FBI (Uniform Crime Reporting, Law Enforcement Employees), per 1,000 people in the areas those agencies serve (the FBI's population figures). A year is shown only when every one of these agencies sent a count; a count under half or over double the agency's own counts in nearby years is treated as not sent. Towns policed under contract by another agency are counted through that agency. State police, campus and other agencies aren't included. Sheriffs' offices often also run the county jail and courthouse security, so their staff counts include those jobs.

Quick answers

Who is the Ben Hill County Clerk of Superior Court?: Kimberly Newell (Republican) is the Clerk of Superior Court of Ben Hill County, Georgia.
Who is the Ben Hill County Coroner?: Steven "Mark" Shealy (Republican) is the Coroner of Ben Hill County, Georgia.
Who is the Ben Hill County Sheriff?: Lee Cone (Republican) is the Sheriff of Ben Hill County, Georgia.
Who is the Ben Hill County Tax Commissioner?: Barry Foster (Republican) is the Tax Commissioner of Ben Hill County, Georgia.
Who are the Ben Hill County commissioners?: Howard "Hal" Wiley (At-large); Bennie Calloway (District 2, Post 1); Hope S. Harmon (District 2, Post 2); John William Mooney (District 3, Post 1); Daniel Cowan (District 3, Post 2).
Who is on the Ben Hill County School Board?: David Garrison (Board of Education Member, District 2); Tyler Clemons (Board of Education Member, District 3); Austin Futch (Board of Education Member, District 6); Andy Johnson (Board of Education Member, District 7).
What is the population of Ben Hill County?: About 17,089 people, with a median age of 38.7; the median household income is $41,758 and 25.2% live below the poverty line (Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–2024 5-year estimates).
What is the unemployment rate in Ben Hill County?: 4.2% in September 2026 (preliminary): 292 people unemployed in a labor force of 6,955, against 3.8% a year earlier (Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics, not seasonally adjusted).
How many local governments are there in Ben Hill County?: 5 in the Census Bureau's 2022 Census of Governments: 1 county, 1 municipal, 1 school district and 2 special district governments.

Officeholders as of November 6, 2026, from the Georgia Secretary of State's official results of each seat's last election (the November 2024 general, or a special election since), and for seats up in 2026 whose 2022 result the SOS site doesn't carry, the incumbent the SOS marks on that seat's 2026 primary, nonpartisan or November contest; officials appointed since then may differ; each name links to its source. Officials change between elections (appointments, resignations), and the body's own website is the authority. Party is shown only for offices elected on a partisan ballot.

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