Georgia’s elections on Tuesday include a state Supreme Court race unusually heated by the sleepy standards of the state’s bipartisan judicial races, and the heavily Republican 3rd Congressional District south and west of Atlanta. It includes a five-way Republican primary for the vacant seat. .
Two Democratic incumbents, Rep. David Scott and Rep. Lucy McBath, are facing primary challengers in metro Atlanta districts that were re-elected by Republicans after a redistricting lawsuit.
Each party also selects candidates for other Congressional and State Legislature seats and local offices, including sheriff, district attorney, and county commissioner.
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Runoff elections will be held on June 18th in races where no candidate receives a majority.
The main races are:
state supreme court
The May 21 vote is a general election of judicial candidates running without party labels.
Supreme Court Justice Andrew Pinson poses in Atlanta on April 17, 2024. Voters will decide the race between Pinson and former Democratic Rep. John Barrow in the nonpartisan general election on May 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart, File)
Incumbent Judge Andrew Pinson, who was appointed to the nine-member court by Gov. Brian Kemp in 2022, is seeking a six-year term. Former Democratic Congressman John Barrow is opposed.
While Barrow says he believes Georgians have the right to abortion under the state constitution, Pinson said it’s inappropriate to talk about the issue and it’s important not to make racial partisanship. I claim that it is.
Kemp and other conservatives stepped in to support Pinson. Barrow sued in federal court for violating his free speech rights when a state judiciary warned him that his discussion of abortion could violate judicial ethics. Lost the case.
Justices Michael Boggs, John Ellington and Nels Peterson did not dissent. Six judges on the Georgia Court of Appeals are also unopposed, with Jeff Davis and Tabitha Ponder vying for vacancies on the court.
3rd Congressional District
Five Republicans are seeking their party’s nomination to replace Rep. Drew Ferguson, who is retiring after four terms.
Former President Donald Trump has endorsed his former aide Brian Jack as his running mate. Jack, who later worked for then-House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, used his support and Washington connections to lead Trump’s fundraising efforts for his first presidential campaign.
Those seeking the nomination include former state senators Mike Crane and Mike Duggan, former state representative Philip Singleton and party activist Jim Bennett. Mr. Dugan highlighted his success as state Senate majority leader, while Mr. Klain emphasized his religious beliefs and opposition to abortion. Mr. Singleton pledged not to compromise his conservative principles.
The Republican candidate will be the favorite in a heavily Republican district that stretches east along the Alabama border from Carrollton to Columbus and into the Atlanta suburbs around Peachtree City and Fayetteville.
On the Democratic side, Val Almonaud and Maura Keller are seeking the party’s nomination.
13th Congressional District
Scott is seeking his 12th term and is facing six Democratic challengers in the 13th Congressional District, which covers Atlanta’s south and eastern suburbs. Challengers include former East Point City Council member Karen Rene, former South Fulton City Council member Mark Baker and attorney Brian Johnson. On the Republican side, Jonathan Chavez and Josie Cruz Fletcher are running.
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The 13th District has been significantly reconfigured in the new map, moving north and east into Rockdale County and parts of Newton and Gwinnett Counties. Challengers say Scott, 78, is too old to have common sense. Scott said in March that he was seeking another term to increase funding for historically black colleges and universities, such as Fort Valley State University, and provide more support to struggling homeowners. Ta.
6th Congressional District
Mr McBath is running in a new district for the second time in two years. In 2022, he moved to the district that includes parts of Gwinnett and Fulton counties, defeating Democratic incumbent Carolyn Bodeaux in the primary. Last year, Republicans significantly redistricted McBath’s district in a second round of redistricting after a court ordered new maps to correct discrimination against black voters. He then moved to the new Democratic-leaning 6th District in west Atlanta, which has no incumbent.
McBath, whose son was shot and killed, has focused on gun control and reducing gun violence. He also said he wants to work on reducing health disparities in his next term. He faces primary opposition from Cobb County Commissioner Jerica Richardson and state Rep. Mandisha Thomas (D). They claim they are better able to represent the new District 6. The Democratic winner will face Republican Jeff Criswell in November.
2nd Congressional District
Two years ago, Republicans were hopeful they had a chance to defeat 16-term Democratic incumbent Sanford Bishop Jr. in southwest Georgia’s 2nd Congressional District. But Bishop won the election easily. Now, four more Republicans are lining up to take aim at Bishop, who is not opposed by Democratic votes.
Wayne Johnson, a Macon native who worked at the Department of Education under the Trump administration, finished third in the Republican primary two years ago and is seeking the nomination again. Other candidates include Chuck Hand, a Taylor County Republican Party official and construction supervisor who pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of unlawfully demonstrating at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. He was sentenced to 20 days in federal prison and six months probation. Also running are Thomasville resident Michael Nixon, a hospital purchasing director and Air Force veteran, and Columbus resident Regina “Reggie” Riparoto, a longtime conservative activist.
14th Congressional District
Four Democrats in northwest Georgia’s 14th Congressional District are vying for the right to run against Republican incumbent Marjorie Taylor Greene, who has no Republican opponent.
The Democrat is Hiram consultant Clarence Blalock. Retired Army Gen. Sean Harris of Cedartown; Sales Manager Derrick Houston, Dallas resident. and business manager Joseph Lee of Rossville. Harris raised the most money of the four.
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For most candidates, the biggest issue is their distaste for Greene, a Trump ally who recently failed to oust House Speaker Mike Johnson. The winner will face an uphill battle in heavily Republican districts. Two years ago, Democrat Marcus Flowers raised more than $16 million to challenge Greene, but still lost in a landslide.
Other species
The only other incumbent lawmaker facing a major challenge is Republican Rep. Barry Loudermilk. Lori Marie Pesta, a retired banker and longtime Republican activist, and Mike Pons, a former airline pilot, are running against Loudermilk in the 11th Congressional District, northwest of Atlanta. Antonio Daza and Kate Stamper are seeking the Democratic nomination.
Democrats are also choosing candidates to run against Republican incumbents in the 8th District in south and central Georgia, the 10th District in northeast Georgia, and the 12th District around Augusta.
