Georgia voters had their final say for primary season on Tuesday, picking their party nominees in numerous runoffs and solidifying general election matchups as the state turns toward a highly consequential November.
Most voters likely had their eyes on the top of the ticket, where Republicans were choosing their nominees to take on Jon Ossoff for U.S. Senate and Keisha Lance Bottoms for governor.
But numerous downballot primary races were also decided, including statewide positions that have a major impact on the state’s jobs, schools, utility bills and elections.
We break down what happened in Georgia’s primary runoff elections below, including maps that show county-by-county results.
See WABE’s 2026 Georgia Primary Runoff Results page for any races not listed below.
U.S. Senate
Republican U.S. Rep. Mike Collins rode a last-minute endorsement from President Donald Trump to an 11-percentage-point win over political newcomer Derek Dooley.
Collins will face incumbent Democrat Jon Ossoff and Libertarian Allen Buckley in the November election.
The November race will be crucial for control of the Senate. Republicans have a narrow majority in the chamber and have considered Georgia a possible seat to gain because President Donald Trump won the state in 2024.
Collins is painting Ossoff’s campaign as fueled by out-of-state donors and supported by “global elites.”
Ossoff is hammering Collins’ ties to Trump and votes for the president’s “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” tariffs and the Iran war. Ossoff called Collins “a notorious bigot, antisemite and extremist.”
Trump celebrated Collins’ win on Truth Social, writing, “I’ll be doing Big TRUMP Rallies for Mike in Georgia!”
Governor
Billionaire healthcare executive Rick Jackson outlasted Lt. Gov. Burt Jones in the Republican primary runoff and will face Democratic former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms in the race to see who becomes Georgia’s next governor.
Jackson beat Jones by about five percentage points.
Jones had the endorsement of President Donald Trump and — in the final days of the campaign — Gov. Brian Kemp. He also poured tens of millions of dollars into his campaign, but Jackson spent more than $100 million.
Notably, that made Kemp 0-for-2 on his endorsements after Dooley and now Jones’ losses.
Jackson is criticizing how Bottoms handled racial justice protests in Atlanta in 2020 and how she quit after one term as mayor.
“We cannot let Keisha Lance Bottoms run Georgia like she did Atlanta,” Jackson posted on Tuesday.
Bottoms, like Ossoff, is highlighting her opponent’s ties to Trump and how Jackson said he’d be “Trump’s favorite governor.”
Trump quickly moved on from Jones to Jackson early Wednesday, writing on Truth Social, “Congratulations to Rick Jackson, who very successfully campaigned on being ‘TRUMP,’ and won. He will be your next Governor of Georgia. Can’t wait!”
The winner of the Bottoms-Jackson matchup will succeed Kemp, who is term-limited.
Lieutenant Governor
Democratic Georgia state Sen. Josh McLaurin will face Republican state Sen. Greg Dolezal in the race for Georgia’s next lieutenant governor.
The race is to replace Lt. Gov. Burt Jones, who ran for governor.
McLaurin beat former state Sen. Nabilah Parkes by 10 percentage points in the Democratic primary, and Dolezal beat state Sen. John F. Kennedy by eight percentage points in the Republican primary on Tuesday.
The winner of the McLaurin-Dolezal matchup will become the second-highest elected official in the state and president of the state Senate. They will succeed Jones, who ran for governor.
Secretary of State
Republican Tim Fleming will face Democrat Penny Brown Reynolds in the race to replace Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger.
The pair won their respective parties’ primary runoff elections on Tuesday by wide margins.
The secretary of state’s office handles multiple issues in Georgia, including financial regulatory filings, business licenses and regulations, but since 2020, the public and political focus has largely been on the running of Georgia’s elections and unfounded claims of widespread voter fraud.
The winner of the Fleming-Brown Reynolds race will succeed Brad Raffensperger, who is term-limited.
School Superintendent
Incumbent Richard Woods won the Republican nomination for Georgia state school superintendent despite recent criticisms of his record on literacy, his waning relationships with lawmakers and his opponent’s well-funded campaign.
Woods captured 51.5% of the votes, compared to Longgrear’s 48.5% as of 10:19 p.m.
Woods will face the Democratic nominee, Hampton High School Assistant Principal Lydia Powell, in the November general election.
Georgia Public Service Commission
Josh Tolbert defeated Bobby Mehan in the runoff for the Republican nomination for the District 5 seat on the Georgia Public Service Commission.
Tolbert will face Democrat Shelia Edwards and Libertarian Thomas Blooming in November.
The commission regulates utilities, including final say over how Georgia Power makes electricity and how much it charges. Rising power bills have been a central focus of the campaign, after frustration over six bill increases in a three-year period helped two Democrats upset the Republican incumbents in last year’s commission election.
A win by Edwards in November would flip the balance of power on the commission to Democrats 3-2, but Democrat Peter Hubbard is defending his District 3 seat this year in a rematch against Republican Fitz Johnson, this time for a full six-year term.
A county-by-county vote map was not available from the Associated Press for this race.
U.S House District 11
Neurosurgeon John Cowan won the runoff for the Republican nomination in the race for Georgia’s 11th Congressional District.
The district includes parts of Cobb, Cherokee, Bartow and Pickens counties.
Cowan beat Rob Adkerson by 30 percentage points on Tuesday. The winner will go on to the election in November to replace retiring Republican U.S. Rep. Barry Loudermilk.
It’s the end of a primary that heavily centered on President Donald Trump’s policies and his favor, despite the president never endorsing anyone in the race.
Loudermilk has held the Republican stronghold district for over a decade. He won the seat by 33 percentage points in 2024.
So Cowan will be heavily favored to become one of Georgia’s newest members of Congress, but Democrats have overperformed across the country this year. He’ll face Democratic candidate and defense attorney Chris Harden in November.
Fulton County Commission Chair
The contentious race to lead the primary legislative and policy-making body in Georgia’s most populous county wasn’t even close.
Former Fulton County Commissioner Mo Ivory got nearly two-thirds of the votes in Tuesday’s primary runoff and ousted longtime incumbent Chair Robb Pitts. Ivory garnered 66% of the vote to Pitts’ 34%.
Debates between the two were fiery and full of personal attacks, including with WABE and with the Atlanta Press Club. Some of the topics discussed included the Fulton County Jail, Fulton County property taxes, reparations and arts funding.
Fulton Commissioner Marvin Arrington Jr. came in third place in the primary last month, then surprised many by endorsing Pitts in the runoff despite his many criticisms of the incumbent. Ivory had the support of Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens.
This might have been the final race of the 84-year-old Pitts’ political career, which goes back to the late 1970s. He served two decades on the Atlanta City Council, served a term as Atlanta City Council president, ran unsuccessfully for Atlanta mayor in 2001, was a member of the Fulton County Commission for 11 years, and has been Fulton County Commission Chair for eight years.
