Democrat Keisha Lance Bottoms has won Georgia’s gubernatorial election, becoming the first Black woman elected governor of a US state and the first woman to lead Georgia as governor.
Bottoms, 56, defeated Republican businessman Rick Jackson in the November 3, 2026, election, according to media projections. Her victory ends more than two decades of Republican control of Georgia’s governor’s office.
The former Atlanta mayor is expected to succeed outgoing Republican Governor Brian Kemp, who is completing his second consecutive term. The win returns Georgia’s governorship to Democratic control for the first time since 2002, when former Governor Roy Barnes left office after losing his re-election bid.
Bottoms served as Atlanta’s mayor from 2018 to 2022, focusing on issues including public safety, housing, economic development and social equity.
After leaving City Hall, she joined former US President Joe Biden’s administration as director of the White House Office of Public Engagement, serving from 2022 to 2023. She later became a senior adviser to Biden’s 2024 re-election campaign.
Her election marks a significant milestone for Black women in American politics. In Georgia, her victory follows the high-profile gubernatorial campaigns of Democrat Stacey Abrams, who ran unsuccessfully in 2018 and 2022.
Bottoms is expected to take office in January 2027 as Georgia’s 84th governor. Her administration will face major policy debates involving healthcare access, affordability, education and economic development.
