Who is running in Chatham County, Georgia in 2026
- Board of Education, District 2 (special election)
- Mary Snowden, Valarie Grimes and Alfred Henry Jackson Jr.
- U.S. Senator
- Jon Ossoff and Mike Collins
- Governor
- Keisha Lance Bottoms and Rick Jackson
- Lieutenant Governor
- Josh McLaurin and Greg Dolezal
- Secretary of State
- Penny Brown Reynolds and Tim Fleming
- Attorney General
- Tanya Miller and Brian Strickland
- Commissioner of Agriculture
- Katherine Juhan-Arnold and Tyler Harper
- Commissioner of Insurance
- Keisha Sean Waites and John King
- Commissioner of Labor
- Nikki Porcher and Barbara Rivera Holmes
- State School Superintendent
- Lydia Powell and Richard Woods
- Public Service Commission, District 3
- Peter Hubbard and Fitz Johnson
- Public Service Commission, District 5
- Shelia Edwards and Josh Tolbert
- U.S. Representative, District 1
- Amanda Hollowell and Jim Kingston
- State Senator, District 1
- Corey Foreman and Ben Watson
- State Representative, District 161
- David Dillie and Bill Hitchens
- State Representative, District 164
- Stephanie Burgess and Ron Stephens
- State Representative, District 166
- Pat Daley and Jesse Petrea
Chatham County
No contested county office is on the November ballot. The County Commission District 4 seat (Brian Hussey), the school board presidency (Roger Moss) and school board Districts 4, 5, 6 and 8 were all decided in the May 19 nonpartisan election, along with the Superior Court and Recorder's Court judges. The only countywide offices on this ballot are four party seats on the Board of Elections.
Unopposed
No contestBoard of Elections: two seats are filled by Republicans and two by Democrats. The party nominees chosen in May are Jody Voss (R, Member 1), JaQuan O. Oliver (D, Member 2), James Hall (R, Member 3, incumbent) and Trish Brown (D, Member 4, incumbent).
Savannah-Chatham County Public Schools
School board races are nonpartisan. District 2 is a special election for the rest of the term of Dionne Hoskins-Brown, who had to resign the seat to run for board president in May. The board appointed Mary Snowden to hold the seat until this election. If no one gets a majority, the top two go to a December 1 runoff.
Board of Education, District 2 (special election)
Vote for oneToss-up. Neither Snowden nor Grimes has a public record we could rate; we lean to Snowden for her three decades teaching in the district. Alfred Henry Jackson Jr. has no public profile we could find.
Mary Snowden
Not enough info (best choice in this race) NonpartisanValarie Grimes
Not enough info NonpartisanHer campaign says she wants "every child in District 2, regardless of which school they attend" to have "the same quality of education." We found no independent news coverage of her.
Sources: Campaign site, The Ballot Brief
Alfred Henry Jackson Jr.
Not enough info NonpartisanQualified on the last day; we found no campaign site, statements or news coverage.
Sources: Chatham County Board of Elections
State and federal
Partisan races. All of Chatham County is in the 1st Congressional District, open this year because Buddy Carter ran for the U.S. Senate. Governor, U.S. Senate and the other statewide races are in the Georgia statewide section.
U.S. Senator
Vote for oneThree write-in candidates have also qualified: Christina Loren Clement (Republican), Elbert Bartell and Cassandra Easton (independents).
Jon Ossoff
Seems like good people (best choice in this race) DemocratRan unopposed for the Democratic nomination for a second term. In the Senate he voted for the American Rescue Plan, the Inflation Reduction Act and the 2023 bipartisan debt ceiling deal.
Sources: Wikipedia, Black Vote Watch
Mike Collins
Not good people RepublicanWon the June runoff with Donald Trump's endorsement and later picked up Gov. Brian Kemp's.
Sources: Wikipedia, The Current
Governor
Vote for oneOpen seat.
Keisha Lance Bottoms
Seems like good people (best choice in this race) DemocratAs mayor she signed an ordinance ending cash bail for low-level city offenses, which Republicans are now using against her. Endorsed by Joe Biden, Eric Holder, Rep. Sanford Bishop and the federal employees' union AFGE.
Sources: AJC, AFGE, Campaign site
Rick Jackson
Not good people RepublicanBeat Trump-backed Lt. Gov. Burt Jones in the runoff, then took Trump's endorsement in July after running primary ads attacking how Brad Raffensperger handled the 2020 election. The IRS sued his investment firm in 2024 seeking $38 million over income it says went unreported.
Sources: Wikipedia, Axios Atlanta, FOX 5 Atlanta
Lieutenant Governor
Vote for oneOpen seat.
Josh McLaurin
Seems like good people (best choice in this race) DemocratGreg Dolezal
Not good people RepublicanAfter the 2020 election he called for a special session on voter fraud claims and admitted sending absentee ballot applications with deliberately altered signatures to test the system. Led the 2025 Senate hearings into Fani Willis over her Trump prosecution, and wrote the 2024 private school voucher law.
Sources: Democracy Docket, Capital B Atlanta, Campaign site
Secretary of State
Vote for oneOpen seat. The secretary of state runs Georgia elections.
Penny Brown Reynolds
Seems like good people (best choice in this race) DemocratSays "the people are owed integrity" and that she would run elections as impartially as she ran her courtroom. Endorsed by Roy Barnes, EMILY's List and the Georgia Association of Black Women Attorneys.
Sources: iVoterGuide, Democratic secretaries of state
Tim Fleming
Not good people RepublicanHas said there were "irregularities" in Georgia's 2020 presidential election. Sponsored bills to ban absentee ballot drop-offs the weekend before Election Day and pull Georgia out of a national voter-roll accuracy compact.
Sources: Wikipedia, Democratic secretaries of state, Campaign site
Attorney General
Vote for oneOpen seat.
Tanya Miller
Seems like good people (best choice in this race) DemocratBrian Strickland
Compromised RepublicanCarried bills on senior care homes, foster care and mental health insurance parity, and promises to keep the office out of partisan fights. Backed by Gov. Kemp and more than 100 sheriffs and DAs, and supported the state's voting restrictions and abortion limits.
Sources: AJC, WABE, American Bridge
Commissioner of Agriculture
Vote for oneKatherine Juhan-Arnold
Seems like good people (best choice in this race) DemocratWants drought and water plans, more farm-to-school food, and farmland impact reviews before data centers and big developments go in. Endorsed by the Sierra Club and Georgia Equality.
Sources: The Atlanta Objective, Georgia Equality PAC
Tyler Harper
Not good people RepublicanStarted the Georgia Farmland Conservation Fund. Endorsed Trump for president in January 2024, praising his "proven track record fighting for our farmers."
Sources: Dept. of Agriculture, AJC
Commissioner of Insurance
Vote for oneKeisha Sean Waites
Compromised (best choice in this race) DemocratWants to stop insurers from setting premiums by ZIP code and credit score. The state ethics commission fined her $5,000 in 2022 for filing three campaign finance reports late.
Sources: Insurance Journal, AJC
John King
Not good people RepublicanWas a Georgia co-chair of Trump's 2020 campaign. At a September rally he told voters to "get used to burning patrol cars" if Democrats win.
Sources: Campaign site, WABE
Commissioner of Labor
Vote for oneTwo decent people. Holmes has run the department since 2025; Porcher would bring a teacher's and small-business advocate's view.
Nikki Porcher
Seems like good people (best choice in this race) DemocratSays "people cannot afford to live" and is running on child care, fair pay and fixing the unemployment system. Endorsed by the Working Families Party.
Sources: The Story Exchange, Campaign site
Barbara Rivera Holmes
Seems like good people RepublicanWorking to speed up unemployment claims by replacing old systems. Asked in 2025 whether she wanted Trump's endorsement, she said she wanted only "that of the people of Georgia."
Sources: Dept. of Labor, Campaign site, AJC
State School Superintendent
Vote for oneTwo career educators.
Lydia Powell
Seems like good people (best choice in this race) DemocratWants universal preschool and less reliance on high-stakes testing, and says she wants to restore trust in teachers.
Sources: WABE, iVoterGuide
Public Service Commission, District 3
Vote for oneThe commission sets Georgia Power's rates. Commissioners live in their district but every Georgia voter picks them. A rematch of the 2025 special election.
Peter Hubbard
Seems like good people (best choice in this race) DemocratHas called for an independent audit of Georgia Power's profits, and his analysis found data center power discounts push more than a billion dollars in costs onto households.
Sources: Wikipedia, Campaign site
Public Service Commission, District 5
Vote for oneOpen seat. Both candidates say homeowners shouldn't pay for data centers' power.
Shelia Edwards
Seems like good people (best choice in this race) DemocratRunning on "People Before Profits" and against rate increases, saying the state keeps giving corporations welfare. Endorsed by the Sierra Club and Georgia Conservation Voters.
Sources: Campaign site, WABE, Endorsements
Josh Tolbert
Seems like good people RepublicanSays energy decisions need "real technical understanding and independent judgment," and that costs should fall on "those who cause them," not ratepayers.
Constitutional amendments
Yes or noWe describe what each amendment does and don't make recommendations.
- Amendment 1: Doubles the most farm and timber land one owner can enroll in the conservation use program, from 2,000 acres to 4,000. Land in the program is taxed at 40% of its value and must stay in farming, forestry or wildlife use under a 10-year agreement with the county.
- Amendment 2: Requires all probate judges to be elected in nonpartisan races, with no party label on the ballot.
- Amendment 3: Lets the Legislature create a Georgia Next Generation 9-1-1 Fund and set aside money for it.
U.S. Representative, District 1
Vote for oneAmanda Hollowell
Seems like good people (best choice in this race) DemocratWon the June Democratic runoff over Joyce Griggs on a 10-point "Affordability Agenda" about lowering costs and creating jobs. Leads campaigns for the racial justice group Color of Change.
Sources: WTOC, The Current
Jim Kingston
Not good people RepublicanAccepted Donald Trump's endorsement, which called him a "MAGA warrior," and won the GOP primary outright. The Current reports his campaign used the endorsement to avoid unscripted moments and joint appearances with rivals, and that it claimed he attended the University of Georgia, which says he did not graduate.
Sources: The Current, The Current
State Senator, District 1
Vote for oneCorey Foreman
Seems like good people (best choice in this race) DemocratBen Watson
Not good people RepublicanWrote bills to ban puberty blockers for transgender youth, and voted for SB 1 in 2025, the law barring transgender girls from girls' school sports. He is Jack Kingston's brother-in-law.
Sources: Rough Draft Atlanta, FastDemocracy (SB 1 roll call), Wikipedia
State Representative, District 161
Vote for oneHitchens voted for both 2025 anti-trans sports bills. Dillie is under a state investigation over records showing a Nevada ballot in his name after he voted in Georgia's May primary; he denies voting there. We pick Dillie because the case against him is unproven, but check the news before you vote.
David Dillie
Not enough info (best choice in this race) DemocratHas criticized the secret OpenAI data center deal in the district. The Secretary of State is investigating Nevada records showing he voted absentee in Nevada's June 9 Republican primary; he denies it, and the Georgia Democratic Party called the reports "troubling."
Sources: AJC, News From The States
Bill Hitchens
Not good people RepublicanVoted in 2025 for HB 267 (the "Riley Gaines Act") and SB 1, which bar transgender students from girls' sports and, in HB 267, school bathrooms and locker rooms.
Sources: FastDemocracy (HB 267 roll call), FastDemocracy (SB 1 roll call), Wikipedia
State Representative, District 164
Vote for oneStephanie Burgess
Not enough info (best choice in this race) DemocratHer campaign had posted no positions on the economy, health care, schools or voting as of July; we found no news coverage of her.
Sources: Branch
Ron Stephens
Not good people RepublicanVoted in 2025 for HB 267 (the "Riley Gaines Act") and SB 1, the anti-trans school sports bills. Lead sponsor of this year's school homestead bill on the ballot as a referendum.
Sources: FastDemocracy (HB 267 roll call), FastDemocracy (SB 1 roll call), HB 1200
State Representative, District 166
Vote for onePat Daley
Not enough info (best choice in this race) DemocratHad no website or public positions as of the summer; we found nothing else about him.
Sources: Branch
Jesse Petrea
Not good people RepublicanSponsored HB 1105, the 2024 immigration enforcement bill pushed after Laken Riley's killing, which set rules for jails to check with ICE and threatened state funding for sheriffs who don't cooperate; he said of the suspect, "He said he was here for asylum. He was here for assault." Voted for both 2025 anti-trans sports bills.
Sources: WABE, AP via News4Jax, FastDemocracy (HB 267 roll call)
Unopposed seats
No contestState Senate District 2 (Derek Mallow, D) and District 4 (Billy Hickman, R); State House District 162 (Orlando Scott, D, open seat), 163 (Anne Allen Westbrook, D) and 165 (MiQuan A. Green, D, open seat).
Referendums
We describe what each measure does and don't make recommendations. The statewide constitutional amendments are in the Georgia statewide section.
School District Homestead Exemption (Stephens-Day freeze)
Yes or no- Chatham County and City of Savannah School District voters. Changes the 1999 school-tax homestead exemption so a home's taxable value for school taxes can no longer rise with inflation after 2025: it stays capped at the tax year 2025 level.
- Put on the ballot by HB 1200, sponsored by Chatham's House delegation. Text: election notice (PDF), HB 1200 (PDF).
More Georgia guides
Governor, statewide offices and ballot measures: Georgia statewide races.
- Cobb County: Marietta, Smyrna, Kennesaw, Acworth, Mableton, Austell, Powder Springs
- Gwinnett County: Lawrenceville, Duluth, Snellville, Peachtree Corners, Suwanee, Buford, Lilburn, Norcross
- Fulton County: Atlanta, Sandy Springs, Roswell, Johns Creek, Alpharetta, South Fulton, Milton, East Point
- DeKalb County: Decatur, Dunwoody, Brookhaven, Stonecrest, Tucker, Chamblee, Doraville, Lithonia, Stone Mountain, Clarkston