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Your Guide to Runoffs and a Special Session Looms
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This Week in Georgia
Georgia's political focus has quickly shifted to the June 16 runoff elections. Early voting runs June 8 through June 12. The Republican gubernatorial runoff between Lt. Gov. Burt Jones and businessman Rick Jackson continues to be a nasty, mud-slinging affair, while Keisha Lance Bottoms secured the Democratic nomination outright without a runoff. Mike Collins and Derek Dooley square off in the Senate Republican runoff.
The Congressional Black Caucus sent letters to more than 250 major corporations this week, urging them to oppose Republican-led redistricting efforts, calling them coordinated attempts to silence Black voters. Georgia Representatives Lucy McBath, Nikema Williams, Sanford Bishop, and Hank Johnson were among the signatories.
Atlanta continues preparing for the 2026 World Cup, with security and transportation coordination ramping up around Mercedes-Benz Stadium and Centennial Olympic Park as the city braces for hundreds of thousands of international visitors.
Finally, a federal appeals court ruled that Georgia's Medicaid approval system for children failed to meet federal standards for medically necessary care, a decision with potential long-term implications for healthcare policy statewide.
A Voter’s Guide to the Georgia Runoffs
Last week’s primary elections resulted in former Atlanta mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms securing the democratic nomination for governor with a 56.2% majority vote. In light of this, other statewide races now advance to runoff elections as we prepare for voting in November.
Overseeing state Senate proceedings, influencing committee assignments, and serving next in line to the governor in the instance the role becomes vacant, the lieutenant gubernatorial race is between candidates Nabilah Parkes and Josh McLaurin.
CBS News
Josh Mclaurin currently represents Georgia State Senate District 14, who previously served two terms in Georgia’s House of Representatives from the 51st district. His campaign focuses on addressing the rising cost of living, strengthening workers’ rights, and advancing progressive healthcare and reproductive rights legislation. Speaking towards his campaign priorities, he has vehemently affirmed he is “unafraid of cheap political attacks and will fight for the rights, safety, and overall well-being of vulnerable people as if they are my own family,” from Republican policies and the Trump movement.
Nabilah Parkes recently represented Georgia State Senate District 7 before her resignation in March 2026. She made history as Georgia’s first Muslim and South-Asian woman elected to the Georgia Senate. Moreover, she’s worked as a campaign manager for Mayor Andre Dickens and a campaign member for Jason Carter and Hillary Clinton. Since starting her campaign, she has built a progressive brand centered on healthcare access and affordability, voting and civil rights, and improving Georgia’s education system. Highlighting her campaign’s focus on advocacy and democratic priorities, Parkes said, "When our rights are under attack, we stand up and fight back. It's what I've done as a Senator and a mom. And it's what I'll do as Georgia's next Lieutenant Governor."
One point of controversy in the race emerged after Parkes resigned from the state Senate during the legislative session in order to focus on fundraising and campaigning for Lieutenant Governor. Her resignation left District 7 without representation during the final weeks of the session, while McLaurin remained in office and continued serving his district.
Fighting for Fair Elections: The Road to a Blue Secretary of State
The Secretary of State is responsible for overseeing state elections, registering businesses and corporations, granting professional licenses, and regulating securities and charities. The office maintains official public records and archives, and protects consumers by regulating various financial and vocational activities.
The Secretary of State runoff is between Penny Brown Reynolds and Dana Barret.
Penny Brown Reynolds is a former Fulton County state judge and has served in both state and federal government roles. Her campaign emphasizes a commitment to protecting voting rights and small businesses.
Dana Barret is a Fulton County commissioner, a small business owner, and a former technology executive. Her campaign focuses on protecting voter rights, strengthening election administration, and supporting small business growth.
Jackson & Jones: A Billionaire and a Protégé
Georgia Recorder, May 19, 2026
The Republican gubernatorial runoff has handed Georgia Democrats something rare: a head start. While Keisha Lance Bottoms claimed a decisive Democratic primary victory, Republicans are still fighting each other for the right to lose in November.
Rick Jackson, a billionaire himself, described himself as "Foster care to billionaire.” This slogan defines political newcomer Rick Jackson's campaign, the most expensive in Republican ad spending in the nation this cycle. His legislative record is thin, with two foster care-related bills over eight years, but his checkbook has not been. Jackson has poured over $80 million of his own money into the race, more Republican ad spending than any candidate in the nation this cycle. It is hard to believe a candidate of such wealth could truly understand the plight of most Georgians.
Burt Jones is no newcomer. He served as a state senator from 2013 to 2023 before rising to Lieutenant Governor under Brian Kemp. With Kemp's two terms up, Jones has positioned himself as the next Trump loyalist in line. This week, his 2020 record is back in the spotlight, with renewed attention on his role as one of 16 fake electors who attempted to overturn Georgia's presidential results. He was never charged, but the story has not gone away. Nor should it.
A Divide and an Opportunity
The race between them has featured a defamation lawsuit, personal attacks, and the kind of nasty infighting that has come to define today's GOP. It is less a primary than a demolition derby.
Georgia Democrats hope to capitalize. Ossoff has already declared that he and Bottoms will campaign as partners, united at the top of the ticket. Together, they have a real shot at making history, electing the first Black female governor in United States history. That window opens June 16th. Republicans will still be swinging at each other when it does.
The 2030 Project is proud to stand with Beth and Michelle. We've been on the ground with them in their districts and have witnessed firsthand their passion and leadership.
Now the work begins in earnest. Five endorsed candidates. Five winnable districts. Tuesday proved we have the right people to get the job done. However, you can help, wherever you live; we are going to need you between now and November.
Special Session Preview
Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC, April 2, 2026
On May 13th, two weeks after the Supreme Court's ruling in Louisiana v. Callais gutted a major provision of the Voting Rights Act, Governor Kemp called the General Assembly back to Atlanta for a special session beginning June 17th. The proposed congressional maps would take effect for the 2028 elections, and early analysis suggests Republicans are targeting around two additional House seats. Georgia's 2nd District, currently represented by Democrat Sanford Bishop, is considered the most likely gerrymandering target. But the session is not limited to congressional maps. Republicans will also redraw Georgia's State House and State Senate districts, meaning the maps that will govern statehouse races through the end of the decade are also on the table.
The session's agenda goes beyond redistricting. It also includes finalizing funding and implementation logistics for SB 189, a 2024 law that bans QR codes on ballots. The provision passed two years ago but was never fully funded or implemented, and a July 1st deadline is now forcing the issue. Republicans installed the current voting system in 2019 for over $100 million, a move Democrats opposed from the start in favor of hand-marked ballots. Concerns are already mounting about whether a new system can realistically be put in place before November.
Democrats have reserved particular criticism for Lt. Governor Burt Jones, who delayed votes on SB 214 and SB 568 before Sine Die. They allege Jones, now a Republican runoff candidate for governor, deliberately stalled the legislation to create the pretext for a special session, giving Republicans political cover to redraw the maps. With Georgia's Supreme Court now entirely appointed by Republican governors, there is no judicial check on whatever maps emerge.
Democrats have called it what it is: a coordinated effort to dilute Black voting power that echoes the tactics of the Jim Crow era. With the VRA gutted and the courts stacked, the playbook is not subtle.
Until next time,
Fund year-round organizing. Flip the GA State Legislature.
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