By late Wednesday evening, it appeared that Georgia’s 14 Congressional District races were set. While some districts still have votes left to be counted, and election results are still unofficial, it appears that all of the congressional incumbents facing primaries in Georgia won their races outright. The only one in question at the time of this writing was the 13th District race where incumbent David Scott was on the edge of heading to a runoff.
Reports initially had Scott in an August runoff with former State Rep. Keisha Waites. However, Scott edged past the 50 percent mark Wednesday evening with 170 of 180 precincts reported. He needed to hold that margin to avoid the runoff. The fact that Waites pushed Scott this close was a surprise to many. Scott is seeking his 10th term in office and out-raised Waites by a large margin — he reportedly had $240,801 in the bank at the last reporting, while Waites reported $875.
Former East Point Mayor Jannquell Peters and Michael Owens, the former Cobb County Democratic Party chairman, were also on the Democratic ticket.
Small business owner Becky Hites of Douglas County won the Republican nomination over another Douglas County resident, Ceasar Gonzales, 68 percent to 32 percent.
14th Congressional Race:
The race to replace outgoing Congressman Tom Graves in the 14th District drew a crowd of Republicans. And with all but two precincts reporting, it appears that construction executive Marjorie Taylor Greene will face neurosurgeon John Cowan in an August runoff.
Greene received 14 percent of the vote in the nine-candidate Republican Primary, and Cowan brought in 19 percent. Greene originally ran in the 6th Congressional District, but she moved to the 14th District.
Surprising many in that race, former State School Superintendent John Barge tallied 9 percent of the votes. State Representative Kevin Cooke and former state rep Bill Hembree were also in the race but each managed only 7 percent of the votes.
Surprises in the 9th District
When Congressman Doug Collins announced that he was leaving the House to run for the U.S. Senate, a crowd of Republicans jumped into the race — including a former Congressman and several current state lawmakers.
Late Wednesday it appeared that State Rep. Matt Gurtler and gun store owner Andrew Clyde were headed for a runoff. Unofficial results had Gurtler with 21 percent of the vote and Clyde with 19 percent. State Representative Kevin Tanner had 15 percent, former U.S. Rep. Paul Broun had 13 percent and State Senator John Wilkinson had 12 percent.
The winner of the runoff will face the winner of the Democratic runoff between Brooke Siskin (41 percent) and Devi Pandy (33 percent).
7th Congressional Race:
The Republican nomination is set for the 7th Congressional race to replace retiring Congressman Rob Woodall. But the top two Democrats are headed for a runoff. Carolyn Bourdeaux, who faced Woodall in 2018, pulled in 46 percent of the vote, while State Representative Brenda Lopez Romero received 14 percent. Lopez Romero (District 99) has represented west Gwinnett County since 2017 and is the principal attorney with The Lopez Firm in Norcross.
The winner of the August showdown will face Republican newcomer Rich McCormick, who defeated state lawmaker Renee Unterman by a solid margin (55 to 18 percent).
Handel wins 6th District Nomination
Former Congresswoman Karen Handel is looking to win her 6th District seat back and return to Washington. And Tuesday, she set up a re-match with Democrat Lucy McBath when she handily defeated four other Republicans for her party’s nomination. Handel pulled in 75 percent of the vote in her race. Her closest opponent, Joe Profit, got 15 percent of the vote.
Handel, former Georgia secretary of state, won a special election over Democrat Jon Ossoff in 2017, but narrowly lost to McBath in 2018.
Other incumbents win outright
The following incumbents won their primaries outright: U.S. Rep. Buddy Carter, a Republican in the 1st District; U.S. Rep. Hank Johnson, a Democrat in the 4th; 5th District Rep. John Lewis, a Democrat; and Republican Rep. Austin Scott in Georgia’s 8th.
