The runoff between Casey Cagle and Brian Kemp was of course the talk of election night, but looking past that race, (which Kemp ran away with) there were a myriad of other contests down the ballot across the state.
The battle for the Republican nomination for Lt. Governor, a heated affair throughout, was the closest race on the ballot. Former state Rep. Geoff Duncan appears to have pulled off the upset, defeating state Sen. David Shafer by a margin of just 1,700 votes. With less than a 1% margin between the candidates, the race is eligible for a recount should Shafer request one. If the result holds, which seems likely, Duncan will face Democrat Sarah Riggs Amico in November.
State Rep. Brad Raffensperger had a slightly less stressful night, defeating former Alpharetta Mayor David Belle Isle in the GOP runoff for Secretary of State by more than 20% of the vote. Raffensperger will now go head to head with former U.S. Rep. John Barrow in what figures to be a slugfest.
Otha Thornton Jr. won the Democratic nod for State School Superintendent, cruising past Sid Chapman by roughly 20%. He will take on Republican incumbent Richard Woods this fall.
The Democrats also had a pair of runoffs for congressional seats. In U.S. Rep. Karen Handel’s 6th District it was gun control activist Lucy McBath who advanced over Kevin Abel by 7% – some 2,000 votes. The general election figures to be a high profile one, with McBath looking to bring in millions (more) from outside sources as she contests what has become a relatively purple district.
Meanwhile in the 7th District U.S. Rep. Rob Woodall will face Dem Carolyn Bourdeaux in the general. She defeated David Kim last night in the runoff by 4%.
There were also a handful of runoffs in the state House – most noteworthy among them the race between Republican incumbent Paulette Rakestraw and opponent Joseph Gullett. Gullett knocked off Rakestraw in the Hiram-based district, which she had served since 2011.
In Cobb County Ginny Ehrhart, wife of former Rep. Earl Ehrhart, narrowly defeated fellow Republican Thomas Gray by 2% of the vote. She will be favored over Democrat Jen Slipakoff come November.
Over in Gwinnett, former House Majority Caucus Chair Donna Sheldon won over Robin Mauck in the GOP runoff. Back in politics after a failed congressional race in 2014, she will face Dem Donna McLeod this Fall.
A slew of Superior Court Judgeships also had runoffs Tuesday. Among them: the Atlanta Circuit, which saw Kevin Farmer defeat Fani Willis, while the Gwinnett Circuit had Tracey Mason prevail over Veronica Cope.
We will have more takeaways from last night’s results later in the week.
