2022 Georgia state elections

Several elections took place in the U.S. state of Georgia in 2022. The general election was held on November 8, 2022. A runoff election for one of Georgia's seats in the United States Senate was held on December 6, 2022. The runoff was scheduled because none of the candidates for Senate received 50% of the statewide vote in the general election. In addition to the Senate seat, all of Georgia's seats in the United States House of Representatives were up for election. Also up for election were all of Georgia's executive officers and legislative seats, as well as one seat on the Georgia Public Service Commission. The Republican Party decisively won every single statewide office in Georgia except for the Federal Senate race which narrowly went Democratic in 2022.The primary election were held on May 24 and primary runoff on June 21

2022 Georgia elections

← 2020 November 8, 2022 December 6, 2022 2024 →

This was the first election following the 2020 United States redistricting cycle.

Federal offices

United States House of Representatives

Main article: 2022 United States House of Representatives elections in Georgia

Following the 2020 election, Democrats held their largest share of Georgia congressional seats since 2008 (and largest in the post-2010 redistricting cycle), with the gain of the 7th district by Carolyn Bourdeaux. In addition, the number of women representing Georgia grew from one to four with the re-election of Democrat Lucy McBath and the elections of Democrats Bordeaux, Nikema Williams and Republican Marjorie Taylor Greene, resulting in the first Georgia delegation with more than one woman in membership.

United States Senate

Main article: 2022 United States Senate election in Georgia

Incumbent Democrat Raphael Warnock won the 2020–2021 special election against incumbent Republican Kelly Loeffler to fill the remainder of former Sen. Johnny Isakson's term. (Isakson had resigned at the end of 2019, and Loeffler was appointed by Governor Brian Kemp following Isakson's resignation.) No candidate in the open election on November 3 received the 50% required by Georgia law to avoid a runoff, a type of election colloquially known as a "jungle primary"^[1]—Warnock received just 32.9% of the vote—and so a runoff election between Warnock and Loeffler was held on January 5, 2021, which Warnock won with 51% of the vote.

Former Republican senator David Perdue, who lost his race to Democratic challenger Jon Ossoff in 2021, filed paperwork to run for this seat.^[2] A week after filing the paperwork, however, Perdue announced that he would not pursue another race for the Senate.^[3] Loeffler considered running again, while former U.S. Representative Doug Collins declined to run after heavy speculation that he would enter the race.^[4][5] Herschel Walker, a professional football player, announced in August 2021 that he would join the Republican primary.^[6]

Governor

Main article: 2022 Georgia gubernatorial election

Governor Brian Kemp was elected in 2018 with 50.2% of the vote. He ran for re-election,^[7] facing primary challenges from former U.S. Senator David Perdue^[8] and several other candidates.

Stacey Abrams, former minority leader of the Georgia House of Representatives and Democratic nominee for governor in 2018, ran unchallenged for the Democratic nomination.^[9]

Kemp easily won reelection, receiving 53.4% to Abrams’ 45.9% (7.5%).

Lieutenant governor

Main article: 2022 Georgia lieutenant gubernatorial election

Secretary of state

Main article: 2022 Georgia Secretary of State election

Incumbent secretary of state Brad Raffensperger ran for re-election,^[10] facing primary challenges from Republican Congressman Jody Hice^[11] and former Alpharetta mayor David Belle Isle.^[12]

State Representative Bee Nguyen,^[13] former Cobb County Democratic Party Chairman, Dr. Michael Owens,^[14] former Darton State College professor Manswell Peterson (withdrawn),^[15] former Fulton County Commission Chair John Eaves,^[16] and former Georgia State Senator and Mayor of Milledgeville Floyd L. Griffin Jr.^[17] all declared their candidacies for the Democratic nomination.

Attorney general

Main article: 2022 Georgia Attorney General election

Republican incumbent attorney general Chris Carr ran for re-election.^[18]

State Senator Jen Jordan ran for the Democratic nomination.^[19] Charlie Bailey, former Fulton County senior assistant district attorney and 2018 Democratic nominee for attorney general, withdrew as a candidate in this race to run for lieutenant governor.^[20][21]

Labor commissioner

2022 Georgia Labor Commissioner election

← 2018 November 8, 2022 2026 →

Nominee Bruce Thompson William Boddie Party Republican Democratic Popular vote 2,030,170 1,766,894 Percentage 52.1% 45.3%

County results Precinct results Thompson:      40-50%      50-60%      60-70%      70-80%      80-90%      >90% Bodie:      40-50%      50-60%      60-70%      70-80%      80-90%      >90%

Commissioner before election Mark Butler Republican Elected Commissioner Bruce Thompson Republican

Incumbent Republican Mark Butler was eligible to seek a fourth term in office, but chose to retire.

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Bruce Thompson, state senator^[22][23]

Eliminated in primary

• Kartik Bhatt, consumer-member of the Georgia Board of Examiners for the Certification of Water and Wastewater Treatment Plant Operators and Laboratory Analysts^[24]
• Mike Coan, former state representative^[25]

Declined

• Mark Butler, incumbent labor commissioner^[22][23]

Polling

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size[a]	Margin of error	Kartik Bhatt	Mike Coan	Bruce Thompson	Undecided
Landmark Communications (R)[26]	May 22, 2022	500 (LV)	± 4.4%	4%	18%	38%	41%
ARW Strategies (R)[27]	April 30 – May 1, 2022	600 (LV)	± 4.0%	4%	6%	11%	79%
Landmark Communications (R)[28]	April 9–10, 2022	660 (LV)	± 3.8%	4%	6%	13%	77%

Primary results

Republican primary results^[29]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Bruce Thompson	637,857	62.65%
	Republican	Mike Coan	312,842	30.73%
	Republican	Kartik Bhatt	67,407	6.62%
Total votes			1,018,106	100.0%

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

• William Boddie, state representative^[30][23]

Eliminated in runoff

• Nicole Horn, entrepreneur^[23][22][31]

Eliminated in initial primary

• Thomas Dean, courier^[32]
• Lester Jackson, state senator^[33][22][23]
• Nadia Surrency, entrepreneur and philanthropist^[32]

Democratic primary results^[29]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	William Boddie	184,446	27.67%
	Democratic	Nicole Horn	167,442	25.12%
	Democratic	Lester Jackson	129,109	19.37%
	Democratic	Nadia Surrency	119,582	17.94%
	Democratic	Thomas Dean	66,107	9.92%
Total votes			666,686	100.0%

Democratic runoff results^[34]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	William Boddie	157,153	62.26%
	Democratic	Nicole Horn	95,262	37.74%
Total votes			252,415	100.0%

Libertarian primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Emily Anderson, printer^[35][36]

General election

Results

2022 Georgia Labor Commissioner election^[37]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Bruce Thompson	2,030,170	52.08%	−0.38%
	Democratic	William Boddie	1,766,894	45.33%	−2.21%
	Libertarian	Emily Anderson	100,960	2.59%	N/A
Total votes			3,898,024	100.0%
	Republican hold

State Superintendent of Schools

2022 Georgia State Superintendent of Schools election

← 2018 November 8, 2022 2026 →

Nominee Richard Woods Alisha Thomas Searcy Party Republican Democratic Popular vote 2,115,728 1,788,671 Percentage 54.2% 45.8%

County results Precinct results Woods:      50-60%      60-70%      70-80%      80-90%      >90% Thomas Searcy:      50-60%      60-70%      70-80%      80-90%      >90%

Superintendent before election Richard Woods Republican Elected Superintendent Richard Woods Republican

Incumbent Republican superintendent Richard Woods sought a third term in office.

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Richard Woods, incumbent superintendent^[38]

Eliminated in primary

• John Barge, former superintendent, candidate for Governor of Georgia in 2014, candidate for superintendent in 2018, and candidate for U.S. House in 2020^[39]

Polling

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size[a]	Margin of error	John Barge	Richard Woods	Undecided
Landmark Communications (R)[28]	April 9–10, 2022	660 (LV)	± 3.8%	17%	30%	53%

Primary results

Republican primary results^[29]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Richard Woods (incumbent)	802,260	72.61%
	Republican	John Barge	302,681	27.39%
Total votes			1,104,941	100.0%

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Alisha Thomas Searcy, former state representative (2003–2015) and candidate for State School Superintendent in 2014^[40]

Eliminated in primary

• Currey Hitchens, lawyer^[40]
• Jaha Howard, Cobb County school board member^[41]
• James Morrow Jr., teacher^[40]

Withdrew

• Everton Blair, member and former chair of the Gwinnett County school board^[42]

Endorsements

Everton Blair (withdrawn)

Federal politicians

• Lucy McBath, U.S. representative for Georgia's 6th congressional district^[43]

State legislators

• Billy Mitchell, state representative^{[citation needed]}

Primary results

Democratic primary results^[29]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Alisha Thomas Searcy	382,792	56.98%
	Democratic	Jaha Howard	100,675	14.99%
	Democratic	James Morrow, Jr.	97,821	14.56%
	Democratic	Currey Hitchens	90,514	13.47%
Total votes			671,802	100.0%

Libertarian primary

Candidates

Did not file

• Ken Pullin, former Republican state representative^[44]

General election

Debate

2022 Georgia State School Superintendent debate

No.	Date	Host	Moderator	Link	Republican	Democratic
Key:  P  Participant   A  Absent   N  Not invited   I  Invited  W  Withdrawn
					Richard Woods	Alisha Thomas Searcy
1	Oct. 17, 2022	Atlanta Press Club	Jeff Hullinger	YouTube	P	P

Results

2022 Georgia State School Superintendent election^[37]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Richard Woods (incumbent)	2,115,728	54.19%	+1.17%
	Democratic	Alisha Thomas Searcy	1,788,671	45.81%	−1.17%
Total votes			3,904,399	100.0%
	Republican hold

Insurance and Safety Fire Commissioner

2022 Georgia Insurance and Safety Fire Commissioner election

← 2018 November 8, 2022 2026 →

Nominee John King Janice Laws Robinson Party Republican Democratic Popular vote 2,107,388 1,788,136 Percentage 54.1% 45.9%

County results Precinct results King:      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%      >90% Laws Robinson:      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%      >90%

Commissioner before election John King Republican Elected Commissioner John King Republican

Incumbent Republican commissioner John King, who was appointed to the position in 2019 after the resignation of Jim Beck, ran for a full term.

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

• John King, incumbent commissioner^[45]

Eliminated in primary

• Ben Cowart, property developer^[46]
• Patrick Witt, former Trump administration official (previously ran for U.S. House)^[47]

Endorsements

Patrick Witt

Executive branch officials

• Donald Trump, 45th president of the United States (2017–2021)^[46]

Polling

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size[a]	Margin of error	Ben Cowart	John King	Patrick Witt	Undecided
Landmark Communications (R)[28]	April 9–10, 2022	660 (LV)	± 3.8%	5%	25%	6%	64%
University of Georgia[48]	March 20 – April 8, 2022	~329 (LV)	± 5.4%	10%	11%	8%	71%
Clout Research (R)[49][A]	March 5–7, 2022	599 (LV)	± 4.0%	–	31%	5%	64%

Primary results

Republican primary results^[29]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	John King (incumbent)	780,649	70.58%
	Republican	Patrick Witt	185,257	16.75%
	Republican	Ben Cowart	140,150	12.67%
Total votes			1,106,056	100.0%

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Janice Laws Robinson, insurance broker^[46]

Eliminated in runoff

• Raphael Baker, insurance broker^[46]

Eliminated in initial primary

• Matthew Wilson, state representative^[50][51]

Endorsements

Matthew Wilson

State officials

• Roy Barnes, former governor of Georgia^[52]
• Sherry Boston, DeKalb County District Attorney^[52]

State legislators

• Shelly Hutchinson, state representative^[52]
• Dewey McClain, state representative^[52]
• Bee Nguyen, state representative^[52]
• Sam Park, state representative^[52]

Primary results

Democratic primary results^[29]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Janice Laws Robinson	326,524	48.70%
	Democratic	Raphael Baker	221,783	33.08%
	Democratic	Matthew Wilson	122,192	18.22%
Total votes			670,499	100.0%

Runoff results

Democratic runoff results^[34]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Janice Laws Robinson	158,734	63.74%
	Democratic	Raphael Baker	90,317	36.26%
Total votes			249,051	100.0%

General election

Debate

2022 Georgia Insurance and Safety Fire Commissioner debate

No.	Date	Host	Moderator	Link	Republican	Democratic
Key:  P  Participant   A  Absent   N  Not invited   I  Invited  W  Withdrawn
					John King	Janice Laws Robinson
1	Oct. 17, 2022	Atlanta Press Club	Jeff Hullinger	YouTube	P	P

Results

2022 Georgia Insurance and Safety Fire Commissioner election^[37]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	John King (incumbent)	2,107,388	54.10%	+3.73%
	Democratic	Janice Laws Robinson	1,788,136	45.90%	−1.09%
Total votes			3,895,524	100.0%
	Republican hold

Agriculture Commissioner

2022 Georgia Agriculture Commissioner election

← 2018 November 8, 2022 2026 →

Nominee Tyler Harper Nakita Hemingway Party Republican Democratic Popular vote 2,068,892 1,751,214 Percentage 53.0% 44.8%

County results Precinct results Harper:      40-50%      50-60%      60-70%      70-80%      80-90%      >90% Hemingway:      40-50%      50-60%      60-70%      70-80%      80-90%      >90%

Commissioner before election Gary Black Republican Elected Commissioner Tyler Harper Republican

Incumbent Republican commissioner Gary Black was eligible to seek a fourth term in office, but instead chose to run for U.S. Senate.

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Tyler Harper, state senator^[53]

Declined

• Gary Black, incumbent commissioner (ran for U.S. Senate)^[54]

Endorsements

Tyler Harper

Governors

• Roy Barnes, former governor of Georgia (1999–2003)^[55] (Democrat)

State legislators

• John Albers, state senator^[56]
• Jason Anavitarte, state senator^[56]
• Brandon Beach, state senator^[56]
• Matt Brass, state senator^[56]
• Dean Burke, state senator^[56]
• Max Burns, state senator^[56]
• Bill Cowsert, state senator^[56]
• Clint Dixon, state senator^[56]
• Greg Dolezal, state senator^[56]
• Mike Dugan, majority leader of the Georgia Senate^[56]
• Frank Ginn, state senator^[56]
• Steve Gooch, state senator^[56]
• Russ Goodman, state senator^[56]
• Marty Harbin, state senator^[56]
• Bo Hatchett, state senator^[56]
• Billy Hickman, state senator^[56]
• Chuck Hufstetler, state senator^[56]
• Burt Jones, state senator and candidate for lieutenant governor in 2022^[56]
• John Kennedy, state senator^[56]
• Kay Kirkpatrick, state senator^[56]
• Sheila McNeill, state senator^[56]
• Jeff Mullis, state senator^[56]
• Chuck Payne, state senator^[56]
• Randy Robertson, state senator^[56]
• Brian Strickland, state senator^[56]
• Carden Summers, state senator^[56]
• Lindsey Tippins, state senator^[56]
• Ben Watson, state senator^[56]

Primary results

Republican primary results^[29]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Tyler Harper	1,029,564	100.0%
Total votes			1,029,564	100.0%

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Nakita Hemingway, cut-flower farmer^[57]

Eliminated in primary

• Winfred Dukes, state representative^[58]
• Fred Swann, mushroom farmer and nominee for agriculture commissioner in 2018^[59]

Did not file

• Deborah Jackson, attorney, former mayor of Lithonia, and candidate for U.S. Senate in 2020^[60]

Endorsements

Winfred Dukes

Statewide politicians

• Mark Taylor, former lieutenant governor of Georgia^[58]

Nakita Hemingway

State legislators

• Donna McLeod, state representative^[57]
• Curt Thompson, former state senator^[57]

Political parties

• Working Families Party^[57]

Organizations

• Indivisible movement^[57]

Primary results

Democratic primary results^[29]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Nakita Hemingway	375,435	56.25%
	Democratic	Winfred Dukes	190,936	28.61%
	Democratic	Fred Swann	101,093	15.15%
Total votes			667,464	100.0%

Libertarian primary

Candidates

Nominee

• David Raudabaugh, salesman^[35][36]

General election

Debate

2022 Georgia Agriculture Commissioner debate

No.	Date	Host	Moderator	Link	Republican	Democratic	Libertarian
Key:  P  Participant   A  Absent   N  Not invited   I  Invited  W  Withdrawn
					Tyler Harper	Nakita Hemingway	David Raudabaugh
1	Oct. 17, 2022	Atlanta Press Club	Condace Pressley	YouTube	P	P	P

Results

2022 Georgia Agriculture Commissioner election^[37]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Tyler Harper	2,068,892	52.97%	−0.11%
	Democratic	Nakita Hemingway	1,751,214	44.84%	−2.08%
	Libertarian	David Raudabaugh	85,656	2.19%	N/A
Total votes			3,905,762	100.0%
	Republican hold

Public Service Commission

On August 19, 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld a ruling by Judge Steven D. Grimberg in the case Rose v. Raffensperger postponing both Georgia Public Service Commission elections which were due to be held on November 8, 2022.^[61] As a result, the following nominees for Districts 2 and 3 were removed from the general election ballot.^[62][63] The elections will be held in 2025.^[64]

District 2

Incumbent Republican Commissioner Tim Echols ran for re-election.^[65]

Republican primary

Nominee

• Tim Echols, incumbent commissioner^[66]

Democratic primary

Nominee

• Patty Durand, former president of the Smart Energy Consumer Collaborative^[66]

Withdrew

• Russell Edwards, Athens-Clarke County commissioner^[66] (endorsed Durand, remained on ballot)^[67]

Primary results

2022 Georgia Public Service Commission District 2 Democratic primary^[68]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Patty Durand	392,357	60.44%
	Democratic	Russell Matthews	256,769	39.56%
Total votes			649,126	100.0%

Libertarian primary

Nominee

• Colin McKinney, physician^[66]

District 3 (special)

On July 21, 2021, Republican Fitz Johnson was appointed by Governor Kemp to fill the vacancy created when incumbent commissioner Chuck Eaton resigned after being appointed to the Fulton County Superior Court. Johnson would run in the special election to serve the remainder of Eaton's term.^[69]

Republican primary

Nominee

• Fitz Johnson, incumbent commissioner^[66]

Democratic primary

Nominee

• Sheila Edwards, public relations professional and community activist^[66]

Eliminated in primary

• Chandra Farley, energy consultant and chair of the Georgia NAACP Environmental and Climate Justice Committee^[66]
• Missy Moore, commercial insurance agency owner^[66]

Primary results

2022 Georgia Public Service Commission District 3 Democratic primary^[70]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Sheila Edwards	358,738	54.68%
	Democratic	Chandra Farley	200,780	30.60%
	Democratic	Missy Moore	96,588	14.72%
Total votes			656,106	100.0%

General Assembly

Main articles: 2022 Georgia State Senate election and 2022 Georgia House of Representatives election

All 56 State Senate and 180 State House seats were up for election. Republicans retained their majorities in both houses, though Democrats gained two seats in the Georgia House of Representatives and one in the Georgia Senate.

District attorneys

9 out of 49 judicial circuits held elections for district attorney.

Judicial elections

Three seats on the Supreme Court of Georgia were up for nonpartisan statewide election to succeed justices Verda Colvin, Carla Wong McMillian and Shawn Ellen LaGrua.^[71] Of these three, only Colvin's seat was contested by attorney Veronica Brinson, the Democratic nominee for Georgia's 25th State Senate district in 2020.^[72] Colvin won the election on May 24 with 68% of the votes.

Colvin's seat

Results by county

Colvin:

•   50–60%
•   60–70%
•   70–80%
•   80–90%

  No votes

2022 Georgia Supreme Court election^[73]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Nonpartisan	Verda Colvin (incumbent)	1,168,175	68.32%
	Nonpartisan	Veronica Brinson	541,628	31.68%
Total votes			1,709,803	100.0%

Elections were also held for three seats on the Georgia Court of Appeals to succeed judges Anne Elizabeth Barnes, Chris McFadden and Trea Pipkin. All three won their races uncontested.^[74]

Local elections

During the regular primary, most counties and several consolidated city-county governments held nonpartisan elections for mayor, select city council or county commission seats, and select board of education seats, including Columbus, Athens, and Augusta.

Ballot measures

Amendment 1

Results by county

Yes:

•   >90%
•   80–90%
•   70–80%

Other:

•   No votes

"Suspend Compensation for Assembly Members and Public Officials Indicted for a Felony Measure"

To suspend compensation for public officials while the individual is suspended from office for a felony indictment.^[75]

Amendment 1

Choice	Votes	%
Yes	3,375,437	88.48
No	439,514	11.52
Total votes	3,814,951	100.00

Amendment 2

Results by county

Yes:

•   >90%
•   80–90%

Other:

•   No votes

"Temporary Property Tax Change for Disaster Areas Measure"

To authorize local governments to grant tax relief to properties that are damaged due to a disaster and located within a declared disaster area.^[75]

Amendment 2

Choice	Votes	%
Yes	3,532,212	91.85
No	313,308	8.15
Total votes	3,845,520	100.00

Referendum A

Results by county

Yes:

•   70–80%
•   60–70%
•   50–60%

"Timber Equipment Exempt from Property Taxes Measure"

To exempt timber equipment owned by a timber producer from property taxes.^[75]

Referendum A

Choice	Votes	%
Yes	2,222,571	59.00
No	1,544,431	41.00
Total votes	3,767,002	100.00

Referendum B

Results by county

Yes:

•   80–90%
•   70–80%
•   60–70%

Other:

•   No votes

"Merged Family-Owned Farms and Dairy and Eggs Tax Exemption Measure"

To expand agricultural equipment tax exemption and produce to include those owned by merged family farms.^[75]

Referendum B

Choice	Votes	%
Yes	2,885,541	76.46
No	888,336	23.54
Total votes	3,773,877	100.00

Notes

1. Key:
   A – all adults
   RV – registered voters
   LV – likely voters
   V – unclear

Partisan clients

1. Poll conducted for King's campaign