Democrat Keisha Lance Bottoms won Georgia’s race for governor on Tuesday, November 3, 2026, defeating Republican Rick Jackson to flip the battleground state’s top office for the first time in 24 years and becoming the first Black woman elected governor of a U.S. state.
Bottoms, the former mayor of Atlanta and former Biden administration official, secured the victory after a campaign against Jackson, a healthcare executive. The Associated Press called the race just before 9:30 p.m. on Election Day. Her triumph ends more than two decades of Republican control in the Governor’s Mansion, a streak that began when Sonny Perdue won the office in 2002.
Overcoming a Massive Financial Disadvantage
Bottoms faced an enormous spending gap throughout the race. Jackson pumped more than $100 million of his own money into his campaign, with pro-Jackson groups spending or reserving nearly $76 million in general-election airtime against about $8 million for Lance Bottoms and her allies, according to campaign tracking. Early voting opened on October 13, with more than 190,000 ballots cast on the first day, setting a midterm record.
The choice in this race is between duty and dereliction. You don’t build an organization from nothing, create thousands of jobs, or help the least of these by walking away. You stay, you solve, you finish, and you put Others First. Keisha walked away. I never will. pic.twitter.com/lNnSwel91S
In the final weeks of the race, national Democrats rushed to her aid. High-profile surrogates, including former President Barack Obama, who endorsed her in a video spot, Maryland Gov. Wes Moore, and Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, campaigned for her across the state, while she also regularly appeared alongside Sen. Jon Ossoff, one of Georgia’s two Democratic U.S. senators.
Before running for governor, Bottoms served as mayor of Atlanta for a single term from 2018 to 2022. During her time leading the municipal government, the city managed the coronavirus public health crisis alongside the civic protests experienced by other major metropolitan areas during that period. Rather than seeking a second term, she chose to step down and subsequently worked from 2022 to 2023 as a presidential advisor to Joe Biden and director of the White House Office of Public Engagement. Jackson had accused her of abandoning Atlanta and laying the groundwork for a more dangerous city, but she ultimately triumphed over attacks that painted her as an ineffective mayor.
Candidates Clash over Tax Cuts and Data Centers
Her platform additionally emphasized protecting the right to choose, safeguarding voting rights, and ensuring children have opportunities to reach their potential.
Bottoms stated that she backs a moratorium on new data centers to protect communities from out-of-control growth.
Jackson ran as an outsider with a tax-cutting platform, pledging to halve the state income tax and freeze property taxes, while emphasizing public safety and reducing government regulation. During a contentious Republican primary campaign in the spring, Jackson frequently compared himself to Trump, allowing Bottoms to use his own words against him in the general election, including slamming him during their sole debate for having stated he wanted to be Trump’s favorite governor. Jackson had received Donald Trump’s endorsement after winning a June runoff against Burt Jones, who lost the runoff and never publicly backed his rival despite private urging from Trump. In the closing stretch, Jackson leaned on the outgoing governor, campaigning with Brian Kemp and promising to build on Kemp’s legacy, while also keeping his remarks brief at a Trump rally in Dalton.
Preceding the election, Sabato’s Crystal Ball moved the race to Lean Democratic in its final ratings on November 2, while the Cook Political Report and Pluribus News rated it a toss-up.
Tonight the voters spoke, and I respect their decision. This was a hard-fought election. Keisha Lance Bottoms deserves our congratulations and our prayers as she prepares to take office.
Rick Jackson
A Historic Night in State and National Politics
Bottoms will succeed the term-limited Republican Gov. Brian Kemp, inheriting a legislature where Republicans maintain a majority in at least one chamber, which puts up significant barriers to Republicans’ agenda since she will hold veto power that could effectively kill much of the new business. Addressing supporters at her election night watch party at the Marriott Marquis Atlanta on Tuesday, November 3, 2026, she emphasized unity and a rejection of chaos.
Georgia is not defined by one moment in time, or by one person. It’s been defined by all of us, and I will be a governor for everyone in this state. Georgia, we sent a message loud and clear that we want a leader who will put Georgia first and will stand up to all the chaos coming out of Washington, D.C.
Keisha Lance Bottoms
Bottoms’ historic win coincided with other notable electoral milestones across the country. On the same evening, Stacey Plaskett was elected governor of the U.S. Virgin Islands, becoming the first Black woman elected governor of a U.S. jurisdiction, and in Florida, Republican U.S. Representative Byron Donalds was elected governor, becoming the first Black Republican to be elected governor in the United States.
Earlier coverage: Keisha Lance Bottoms Elected First Black Woman Governor in US History