Georgia Democrats seek ‘course correction’ after GOP’s decisive win

U.S. Rep. Nikema Williams, an Atlanta Democrat who chairs the state party, said a “course correction” was needed but said the contours of that recalibration would come after internal debate.

“I know my work now is more important than ever because we have a lot of people who need a voice in this political process,” Williams said.

DeKalb County Commissioner Ted Terry, a former senior party official, signaled a return to a more confrontational political approach toward a second Trump administration that echoed the pushback that greeted his first.

“For people who are concerned about the future of Georgia, the work begins today. I am preparing for the possible return of the resistance movement,” said Terry of the anti-Trump initiatives that swept liberal communities in 2017.

Katelyn Myrick/AJC

Katelyn Myrick/AJC

Savannah Mayor Van Johnson told our AJC colleague Adam Van Brimmer that as heart wrenching as the defeat is for Democrats, it also creates an opportunity to rebuild the party ahead of the 2026 midterms.

“We now have data, and I think that we just have to take our disappointment and turn it into energy and resolve,” he said. “We know what works because we did it in 2020 and it worked. We just had a different game plan.”

To Johnson, a potential statewide contender, the answer is throwback grassroots retail politicking to “get that message out on the ground.”

“This campaign was much more digital, much more TV, and less on the ground. We have to be on the ground. We have to be in these communities that we would not expect to do well in and pick people apart,” he said.

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Jacquelyn Martin/AP

Jacquelyn Martin/AP

GOOD MORNING. President-elect Donald Trump has added to his lead by winning Michigan. That means Trump swept the so-called “blue wall” states of Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. Trump has won every swing state so far, with just Arizona and Nevada left to be called. He is leading in those states.

Here are three things to know for today:

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Arvin Temkar/AJC

Arvin Temkar/AJC

D.C. GOP TRIFECTA. Every incumbent on the ballot in Georgia’s congressional delegation won reelection on Tuesday. Republican Brian Jack will join them in Washington after winning the open seat in Georgia’s 3rd Congressional District.

Now that we know who will be representing Georgia in Congress, our attention turns to what they might accomplish there. And with Republicans in control of the White House and Senate, and poised to retain a majority in the House, GOP lawmakers said they look forward to implementing Trump’s America First agenda.

“Now, we have the opportunity to rightsize the economy, secure our border, restore our respect on the world stage, combat the fentanyl crisis, reestablish law and order in our cities, and make America great once again,” U.S. Rep. Buddy Carter, R-St. Simons Island, said in a statement late Tuesday.

Ben Hendren for the AJC

Ben Hendren for the AJC

Meanwhile, Democratic U.S. Sens. Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock will have to adjust to being in the minority party for the first time since they were elected. They will lose their subcommittee chairmanships and Ossoff will need to calibrate his approach to governing as he ramps up his 2026 reelection campaign.

The change in the balance of power is likely to motivate Democrats, and even some Republicans, to get as much done during the lame-duck session that starts when lawmakers return to Washington on Tuesday.

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Hyosub Shin/AJC

Hyosub Shin/AJC

TAXES WIN. President-elect Donald Trump had a good night in Georgia on Tuesday. And so did taxes.

Voters in 30 counties approved at least one special purpose local option sales tax, commonly known as SPLOST. These are 1% sales taxes to help local governments build things like schools, roads and other facilities. Those 30 counties include 21 won by Trump and nine won by Vice President Kamala Harris.

Most Georgia local governments get their money from property taxes. But it’s difficult to convince voters to increase them. Voters are more willing to raise sales taxes, which have a broader impact as it includes spending from people who live elsewhere. These special taxes also apply to food and beverages, including alcohol, which are exempt from the state sales tax.

Not all of these taxes are new. Some have been on the books for years, and voters keep renewing them. Even so, sometimes these proposals can be a hard sell. Voters in two metro Atlanta counties — Cobb and Gwinnett —  rejected sales tax increases aimed at public transit projects. And voters in Jackson County said “no” to an increase for road construction projects.

“I deeply respect the choice of our residents, but the fact remains that we still must create solutions to ease congestion,” Gwinnett County Chairwoman Nicole Love Hendrickson said, according to the AJC’s Alia Pharr and Sara Gregory.

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Courtesy photos

Courtesy photos

HOUSE 100. Democrats took a small bite out of the Republican majority in the state Legislature on Tuesday, knocking out two incumbents.

It was a bright spot for the party on a night dampened by President-elect Donald Trump’s decisive victory. But Georgia Republicans on Wednesday were giddy to hold on to 100 of the 180 seats in the state House of Representatives. Things could have been much worse for them after a court-ordered redistricting made several seats more competitive.

Republican state Reps. Mesha Mainor and Ken Vance were both ousted by Democrats on Tuesday. Bryce Berry defeated Mainor, who was elected as a Democrat in 2020, but switched parties last year. Floyd Griffin defeated Vance.

Ben Gray for the AJC

Ben Gray for the AJC

But in Gwinnett County, Republican Rep. Matt Reeves won by 627 votes over Democrat Michelle Kang, a Korean American running in a district with one of the highest percentages of Asian American voters in the state (as reported by the AJC’s Michelle Baruchman). And Republican Sandy Donatucci was leading incumbent Democratic state Rep. Farooq Mughal by just 87 votes.

Republicans just missed picking up two other seats. Democratic state Rep. Mack Jackson leads Republican Tracy Wheeler by just 47 votes in House District 128. And in House District 145, Democrat Tangie Herring leads Republican Noah Harbuck by 251 votes.

“We’ve shown the country that Georgia remains a red state, with big wins up and down the ticket,” said Speaker Pro Tem Jan Jones, R-Milton, who defeated Democrat Debra Shigley on Tuesday.

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Brynn Anderson/AP

Brynn Anderson/AP

LAST ONE STANDING. President-elect Donald Trump and Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis have long been on a collision course. Willis is doggedly pursuing Trump in court, seeking to convict him of eight felonies in connection with his failed attempt to overturn the 2020 election results.

But their showdown got a lot more complicated on Tuesday when Trump won a return to the White House. His victory likely will delay Willis’ case until at least 2029 when Trump leaves office. And even then Willis could be thwarted by the U.S. Supreme Court. But the case against other co-defendants will likely continue.

The AJC’s Tamar Hallerman and Bill Rankin have been following Willis’ case from the start. They wrote about the challenges facing Willis, who won a second term of her own on Tuesday.

“The DA is known for her drive and hard-headedness. Some of her allies previously suggested it would take nothing short of a court order to stop her from prosecuting Trump,” they wrote.

The stakes are high. Once in office, Trump is likely to appoint an attorney general who will halt the two federal cases against him, leaving Willis’ case as the last one standing.

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Susan Walsh/AP

Susan Walsh/AP

ABORTION VOTE. Tuesday’s contest was the first presidential election since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. While voters in several states passed measures securing abortion rights, the issue did not move the needle for Vice President Kamala Harris in any meaningful way.

That is a tough realization for Democrats who believed the issue would motivate voters who wanted to restore abortion rights nationally. That includes Erin McCollum, a Smyrna woman whose miscarriage complications turned to sepsis after doctors told her they could not intervene in her miscarriage because of Georgia’s abortion restrictions.

“If people don’t care about abortion now, they’re probably not going to care about it in future elections,” McCallum told The Washington Post. “This was probably our best shot.”

While the abortion issue wasn’t enough to help Harris on Tuesday, reproductive rights fared well in ballot measures across the country. Of the 10 states that voted on proposals to enshrine abortion rights in their constitutions, seven passed: Arizona, Colorado, Maryland, Missouri, Montana, Nevada and New York. Measures failed in three states: Florida, Nebraska and South Dakota.

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Jason Getz/AJC

Jason Getz/AJC

LISTEN UP. Today on “Politically Georgia,” the hosts discuss down-ballot races in Congress and the Georgia Legislature. Then, Republican Lt. Gov. Burt Jones talks about the election, the upcoming legislative session and the 2026 races. Also, former state Democratic Sen. Jen Jordan talks about white women voters.

Be sure to download the AJC’s Politically Georgia podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. Episodes are uploaded by noon each day, just in time to have lunch with us. You can also listen live at 10 a.m. EDT on 90.1 FM WABE. Have a question for the show? Give us a call at 770-810-5297.

On Wednesday’s show, the hosts analyzed the election results and Ryan Anderson of GeorgiaVotes.com talked about turnout. Plus, Georgia Democratic Party Chair Nikema Williams, who is also a congresswoman from Atlanta, and Georgia Republican Party Chair Josh McKoon joined the show.

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Evan Vucci/AP

Evan Vucci/AP

ONE TO WATCH. Keep an eye on President-elect Donald Trump’s media company now that he’s on his way back to the White House.

Trump owns a majority of Trump Media & Technology Group, which runs the social media service Truth Social. It’s now a major source of his wealth, as his stake is worth about $4 billion, according to The New York Times.

The company’s share price jumped 35% in the hours after the Associated Press declared Trump the winner of the presidential election early Wednesday morning. Things settled down later in the day as the company’s share price was up about 5.9% by the end of the day.

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Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP

Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP

TODAY IN WASHINGTON:

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Nathan Posner for the AJC

Nathan Posner for the AJC

SHOUTOUTS. Today’s birthday:

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AS ALWAYS, send your best scoops, gossip and insider info to greg.bluestein@ajc.com, tia.mitchell@ajc.com, patricia.murphy@ajc.com and adam.beam@ajc.com.