Democratic candidate Keisha Lance Bottoms won the election for Governor of Georgia, according to NBC projections, becoming the first woman of color in United States history to lead a state executive. Her victory also marks the first time a Democrat has won this office in Georgia, with Republicans holding the position for more than two decades. [1]

Bottoms, the former mayor of Atlanta, defeated Republican magnate Rick Jackson, obtaining 56% of the vote compared to his opponent's 43.9%, at a point when 72% of votes had been counted, according to preliminary results from the Associated Press (AP). [1]

Although she won the race, Bottoms' victory is considered surprising due to the financial imbalance in the campaign. Jackson, founder of Jackson Healthcare, spent more than $200 million of his personal wealth on his candidacy, heavily dominating the budget of the Democrat's campaign. [1]

Bottoms will replace Republican Brian Kemp, the current governor, who was barred by law from running for a third consecutive term. Bottoms' campaign policy focused predominantly on economic issues and concrete policies, rather than on the symbolism of her historic victory. [1]

Among the measures promised by the new governor are expanding the Medicaid program for hundreds of thousands of additional people, raising Georgia's minimum wage to $15 per hour, as well as increasing salaries for teachers, firefighters, and police officers. She also promised to stop the development of new data centers and the installation of automated police surveillance cameras, as well as repealing the ban on abortion after six weeks of pregnancy. [1]

Her victory comes in a political context where Georgia has become an increasingly swing state between the two major parties, with Democrats winning three Senate mandates in the state since Trump was elected president. She will serve alongside Senator Jon Ossoff, who was re-elected, and Raphael Warnock, the first two Black Senators from Georgia. [1]

As the story develops

Update

Georgian Keisha Lance Bottoms becomes the first woman of color governor of the USA, defeating Jackson

Democrat Keisha Lance Bottoms won the election for Governor of Georgia, becoming the first woman of color in US history to hold this office. She defeated Republican businessman Rick Jackson in one of the most contested American states. Bottoms is the first Democrat to win the office of Governor of Georgia since 1998. [2]

New political priorities focus on expanding the Medicaid program and raising the minimum wage in Georgia to $15 per hour. Abortion tops the list of public debates, which Bottoms describes as a 'life and death matter', citing medical and legal risks for women. She calls for the repeal of the current ban on abortion after six weeks of pregnancy. [2]

Keisha Lance Bottoms served as an Atlanta city councilor from 2010, then won the runoff for mayor in 2017. She led the city from 2018 to 2022, a period during which opponents criticized her management of crime during the Pandemic. After 2022, she served as a senior counselor to President Joe Biden for public relations (2022–2023) and was mentioned as a potential Vice Presidential candidate in 2020. Her previous campaign paid a fine of $37,000 in 2021 for financing irregularities. [2]

During the campaign, Bottoms harshly attacked her Republican opponent Rick Jackson, accusing him of political alignment with Donald Trump. 'I am not running to be his preferred governor. I am running to work on behalf of people like you,' Bottoms told Jackson in the only televised debate. [2]

Rick Jackson's defeat marks a difficult moment for Republicans in Georgia. They had been losing control over the state's executive and legislative branches for more than two decades. [2]

Update

Keisha Lance Bottoms becomes the first African American female governor of Georgia

Democrat Keisha Lance Bottoms was elected Tuesday as Governor of the state of Georgia, according to projections by American media outlets, becoming the first woman of color to hold this office in the United States. [3]

Her victory illustrates the political power of the Democratic Party in Georgia and nationwide, a state that had not elected a Democrat to the governorship since the last century. [3]

Keisha Lance Bottoms, former mayor of Atlanta during the pandemic, prevailed against Republican Rick Jackson, a billionaire who made his fortune in the healthcare sector. [3]

Rick Jackson's defeat also marks a major setback for Donald Trump, who actively supported and campaigned for the Republican candidate in recent weeks. [3]

After her term at the Atlanta city hall, between 2018 and 2022, Keisha Lance Bottoms worked at the White House under President Joe Biden and received support from former Democratic President Barack Obama during the campaign. [3]

On her campaign website, Keisha Lance Bottoms presents herself as a descendant of a family of slaves from a plantation in Georgia, a state situated in the heart of the Deep South, marked by slavery, segregation, and the struggle for civil rights. [3]

Update

Keisha Lance Bottoms becomes the first woman of color governor of the USA

Democrat Keisha Lance Bottoms won the election for Governor of Georgia, according to NBC News and CNN, becoming the first person of color and the first woman to hold this post in US history [s:E921200|Mediafax]. In recent weeks, Bottoms benefited from the support of former Democratic President Barack Obama, who endorsed her via a video message, as well as visits to the state by important Democratic leaders, including Maryland Governor Wes Moore, Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear, and Senator Raphael Warnock [s:E921200|Mediafax]. Bottoms successfully navigated Republican criticism regarding her tenure as Mayor of Atlanta (2018-2022), a period marked by the management of the COVID-19 pandemic and social tensions, after deciding not to run for a second term in 2022 [s:E921200|Mediafax]. [4]

Update

Stacey Abrams lost in Georgia four years ago to Kemp

Keisha Lance Bottoms' victory comes four years after Stacey Abrams' historic campaign for the same office in Georgia, where she was defeated by current governor Brian Kemp. [5]

Alongside Bottoms' victory, other historic campaigns on Tuesday included Chris Pappas from New Hampshire, who became the first openly gay senator in US history, and Annie Andrews, who won in South Carolina, becoming the first Democrat elected to the State Senate there in the last 20 years. [5]

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Sources

  1. The Times of India US elections: K Bottoms makes history as first Black woman governor, flips Georgia seat
  2. Gândul Democrata Keisha Lance Bottoms scrie istorie în Georgia și devine prima femeie de culoare aleasă guvernator în Statele Unite
  3. Libertatea Moment istoric în SUA după ce Keisha Lance Bottoms a devenit prima femeie de culoare aleasă vreodată guvernator
  4. MediaFax Keisha Lance Bottoms, prima femeie și prima persoană de culoare care câștigă alegerile pentru funcția de guvernator al Georgiei
  5. thecut.com Georgia Elected the First Black Female Governor