Democrat Keisha Lance Bottoms, the former Atlanta mayor, has been elected governor of Georgia, becoming the first Black woman elected governor in US history and defeating Republican businessman Rick Jackson in Tuesday's election.
Bottoms won despite facing a large campaign spending deficit, with Jackson pouring more than $200 million of his personal fortune into the race. Her victory makes her the first Democrat to prevail in a Georgia governor's race since 1998.
"What we do in this moment will echo through history," she said ahead of Election Day. "Let's choose hope over fear, progress over division, and come together to build a better Georgia for everyone."
The race was the third consecutive Georgia gubernatorial election with a Black woman leading the Democratic ticket. Stacey Abrams lost to outgoing Governor Brian Kemp in 2018 and 2022, and Kemp was barred by law from seeking a third term.
Bottoms, who was an adviser to former US President Joe Biden, often avoided emphasising the historic nature of her candidacy, instead focusing on policy. She called for expanding the Medicaid insurance program, raising Georgia's minimum wage to $15 per hour, increasing pay for teachers and other public employees, pausing data center development and repealing Georgia's ban on abortion after the sixth week of pregnancy.
"This is a life and death issue," she said of the abortion ban, citing cases of women dying from miscarriage and pregnancy complications because physicians fear criminal prosecution under the law. She also pledged to "make sure we are protected from the harmful policies of Donald Trump," reminding voters that Jackson said he wanted to govern like "Trump with a Southern tone" and become the president's "favorite governor."
"I'm not running to be his favorite governor," Bottoms said during the rivals' lone debate. "I'm running to work on behalf of people like you."
Bottoms disputed Jackson's claims that he understood Georgians' economic struggles, pointing to his company, Jackson Healthcare, and its lucrative government contracts, and accusing him of trying to "buy this election" with money made from taxpayers. She withstood Jackson's attacks on her record as mayor, including ads featuring clips of protests after the 2020 police killings of Atlanta resident Rayshard Brooks and Minneapolis resident George Floyd. Jackson also hammered Bottoms for not seeking a second term as mayor.
"It's a longstanding playbook to paint Atlanta as this big bad place," Bottoms told the Associated Press.
In addition to electing its first Black woman governor, Georgia reelected its first Jewish senator, Democrat Jon Ossoff, who serves alongside the state's first Black senator, Raphael Warnock. Democrats also were trying Tuesday to flip control of the state House, though Republicans were heavily favoured to defend their Senate majority, leaving Bottoms likely to face at least one GOP-led chamber.
Analysis
Why This Matters
- Bottoms' victory breaks a historic barrier: she is the first Black woman elected governor of any US state, and only the fourth Black person ever elected governor.
- Georgia continues its transformation into a two-party battleground, with Democrats now holding the governor's office and both US Senate seats in a state Republicans had dominated for decades.
- Her policy agenda, including Medicaid expansion and repealing the six-week abortion ban, could reshape the lives of hundreds of thousands of Georgians if she can work with a likely Republican-controlled legislature.
Background
Georgia has emerged as a key swing state in recent election cycles. Kemp's departure after two terms created an open race, and Jackson's personal wealth made him a formidable opponent despite his political inexperience. The state has also been a focus of national attention for its closely contested Senate races, which Democrats have won three times since 2016.
Key Perspectives
Keisha Lance Bottoms: says her priorities are expanding Medicaid, raising the minimum wage to $15, increasing public employee pay, pausing data center development, repealing the six-week abortion ban and resisting what she called harmful policies from the Trump administration.
Rick Jackson: argued Bottoms abandoned Atlanta by not seeking a second term as mayor, and his ads highlighted the 2020 protests and killings of Rayshard Brooks and George Floyd to criticise her record.
Bottoms, in response: disputed Jackson's self-made outsider image, cited his company's government contracts, and accused him of using taxpayer-derived wealth to try to "buy this election."
What to Watch
- Whether Democrats can flip the Georgia House, which would change the balance of power Bottoms faces in the legislature.
- Whether Bottoms moves quickly on Medicaid expansion and the abortion ban, and how state Senate Republicans respond.
- How her promised pause on data center developments affects Georgia's fast-growing tech economy and its political fallout.
Checked
12 claims in this story checked against 3 sources: 11 supported.
Show each claim
- SupportedKeisha Lance Bottoms became the first Black woman elected governor of Georgia.OPB: “Democrat Keisha Lance Bottoms has made history as the first Black woman to be elected governor of Georgia”
- SupportedBottoms’s win flipped Georgia’s governor’s office to Democrats for the first time since 1998.OPB: “She becomes the first Democrat to prevail in a Georgia governor’s race since 1998.”
- SupportedBottoms said, “What we do in this moment will echo through history.”OPB: ““What we do in this moment will echo through history,” she said ahead of Election Day.”
- Reports differJackson spent more than $200 million of his personal fortune on the race.Washington Examiner: “Jackson poured nearly $200 million of his own money into his campaign.”
- SupportedBottoms was an adviser to former US President Joe Biden.Al Jazeera – Breaking News, World News and Video from Al Jazeera: “Bottoms, an adviser to former US President Joe Biden, was propelled to victory”
- SupportedThis was the third consecutive Georgia gubernatorial election with a Black woman leading the Democratic ticket.OPB: “It was the third Georgia gubernatorial election in a row with a Black woman leading the ticket.”
- SupportedBottoms said of Georgia’s abortion ban, “This is a life and death issue.”OPB: ““This is a life and death issue,” she said of the abortion ban”
- SupportedBottoms pledged to “make sure we are protected from the harmful policies of Donald Trump.”OPB: “And she pledged to “make sure we are protected from the harmful policies of Donald Trump,””
- SupportedDuring the rivals’ lone debate, Bottoms said, “I'm not running to be his favorite governor. I'm running to work on behalf of people like you.”OPB: ““I’m not running to be his favorite governor,” Bottoms told voters during the rivals’ lone debate. “I’m running to work on behalf of people like you.””
- SupportedBottoms accused Jackson of using money made from taxpayers to try to “buy this election.”OPB: “And she accused him of using the money he made from taxpayers to try to “buy this election.””
- SupportedBottoms told the Associated Press, “It's a longstanding playbook to paint Atlanta as this big bad place.”Al Jazeera – Breaking News, World News and Video from Al Jazeera: ““It’s a longstanding playbook to paint Atlanta as this big bad place,” Bottoms told the Associated Press news agency.”
- SupportedDemocrats were trying to flip the state House, while Republicans were heavily favoured to defend their Senate majority, leaving Bottoms likely to face at least one GOP-led chamber.OPB: “Democrats were trying Tuesday to flip control of the state House, though Republicans were heavily favored to defend their Senate majority and give Bottoms at least one GOP-led chamber to navigate.”