Election results for the Georgia midterm primaries are coming in this evening. At least two of the primaries in the state are listed as “battleground” races and one will determine if frequent headline-maker Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene will be on the November ballot.
According to Ballotpedia, the state’s single U.S. Senate Republican primary is a battleground race and the gubernatorial election is also a battleground race.
Gary Black, Josh Clark, Kelvin King, Jonathan McColumn, Latham Saddler and Herschel Walker are running in the primary to appear as the Republican candidate on ballots in November. Black, King, Saddler and Walker have led fundraising efforts, said Ballotpedia. As of 8 p.m. Tuesday, Walker had more than 67% of the vote.
“We just won the Republican primary!” said Walker’s campaign site.
Black has served as the state’s agriculture commissioner and began his career at the Georgia Farm Bureau, where he led young farmer leadership development program, according to his campaign website. He also spent 21 years as president of the Georgia Agribusiness Council.
King was raised in Georgia by a single mother and his family “oftentimes struggled to make ends meet,” according to his campaign page. He was an All-Conference football player at the United States Air Force Academy and served 5 years in the Air Force as a Contracting Officer. King made the rank of Captain before leaving the military for a successful corporate career focused on construction.
Saddler attended the University of Georgia and pursued a master’s in international affairs at Georgia Tech. He was also a Navy SEAL officer for eight years, served as Director of Intelligence Programs on the National Security Council, and worked as a White House Fellow.
“After leaving government and military service Latham served on the senior leadership team at Synovus in Atlanta,” said his campaign page.
Herschel Walker is a former NFL player. He was one of the top professional running backs from the time he joined the Dallas Cowboys in 1986 to his retirement in 1997 and has been named one of the best running backs of all time, according to the Academy of Achievement. He has also suffered from mental health issues, said the academy.
In November, Walker is expected to run against incumbent Democrat Sen. Raphael Warnock, who had more than 96% of the vote compared to primary challenger Tamara Johnson-Shealey as of 8 p.m. Tuesday. Warnock took office last year. He defeated incumbent Republican Sen. Kelly Loeffler by 2 percentage points.
A primary runoff for the Senate race is scheduled for June 21 and a general runoff election is scheduled for Dec. 6.
George Litchfield of the Conservative Party and Chase Oliver, a Libertarian, are also expected to run in the November general election.
Incumbent Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp is running against Catherine Davis, David Perdue, Kandiss Taylor, and Tom Williams in the Republican primary. Kemp had more than 74% of the vote as of 8 p.m. Tuesday.
Kemp is expected to run against Democrat Stacey Abrams, who ran uncontested in the Democratic primary. Abrams, a former member of the U.S.
House of Representatives, gave up her seat in 2017 to run in the 2018 gubernatorial election. She lost to Kemp by around 1.4%.
Shane Hazel, a Libertarian, and Independent candidates Elbert Bartell and President Boddie, are also running in the general election for governor in November.
None of the May 24 primaries for the 14 U.S. House seats up for election in Georgia were listed as battleground races by Ballotpedia. However, one race will determine whether Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene is on the November ballot.
Earlier this year, a group of voters filed a lawsuit aiming to get Greene disqualified from running in November that claimed she played a pivotal role in the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. This month, a judge ruled that the voters hadn’t produced sufficient evidence to back their claims and that Greene is qualified to run, according to the Associated Press.
Free Speech for People, a national election and campaign finance reform group that filed the suit on behalf of five voters, plans to appeal the decision, said the outlet.
Greene had more than 70% of the vote in the Republican primary for the 14th district seat as of 8 p.m. Tuesday, indicating that she will appear as the Republican candidate on the November ballot. In the Republican primary, Greene is running against Eric Cunningham, James Haygood, Charles Lutin, Jennifer Strahan and Seth Synstelien.
According to the non-profit Poynter Institute, Greene “has embraced wild conspiracy theories, sympathized with QAnon, and has expressed xenophobic, anti-Muslim and anti-Semitic sentiments,” and is often in the media.
Wendy Davis, Marcus Flowers and Holly McCormack ran in the Democratic primary. As of 8 p.m. Tuesday, Flowers had 78% of the vote. Libertarian Angela Pence is also expected to be on the ballot.
A primary runoff is scheduled for the 14th district on June 21 and a general runoff is scheduled on Dec. 6.
Related
Related
