Democrat Carolyn Bourdeaux claimed victory Wednesday in a suburban Atlanta U.S. House district she’s aiming to take from Republicans, but the race is too early to call.
The Associated Press has not named a winner, with many votes still uncounted.
Republican Rich McCormick’s spokesman said early Wednesday that the candidate is still weighing his options.
A Bourdeaux victory in the 7th Congressional District would give Democrats six of Georgia’s 14 U.S. House seats, and a second foothold in the northern Atlanta suburbs Republicans once ruled. The district covers parts of Gwinnett and Forsyth counties.
Bourdeaux lost by fewer than 500 votes to Republican incumbent Rob Woodall in 2018, with Bourdeaux winning a contested Democratic primary in June to get another chance at the seat.
“We circled back in 2019 and 2020 to finish the job. And we have done so,” Bourdeaux said in remarks Thursday morning that were broadcast by video. “Georgia’s 7th Congressional District is ready for change. I am here to be an advocate on behalf of the people of this district.”
Woodall did not seek reelection this year and Republicans nominated McCormick, an emergency room physician making his first bid for office.
“We understand Gwinnett County is still counting ballots,” McCormick spokesman John Simpson said in a text message to The AP before dawn Wednesday. “We have not received an unofficial total, let alone a certified vote total. We will continue to weigh our options until all ballots are counted.”
Bourdeaux emphasized expanded health care access in her campaign while McCormick ran on a platform of low taxes and fewer regulations.
Republicans won every election in the district between 1994 and 2018.
Democrat Lucy McBath was reelected Tuesday in the neighboring 6th District, defeating Karen Handel in a rematch of the 2018 election. Handel, a former Georgia secretary of state, was the incumbent in district, which covers parts of Cobb, Fulton and DeKalb counties when she lost to McBath.
