Quirk in Georgia law means some voters won't be able to pick their new state senator in special election

The state Senate’s 30th District, which includes all or parts of Carroll, Douglas, Haralson and Paulding Counties, was redrawn during last year’s redistricting session.

Redistricting was necessary after a federal court ruling said the lines drawn in 2021 violated the federal Voting Rights Act by diluting the power of Black voters.

Those lines take effect with the May primaries and November elections, but they also take effect for any special election this year, according to Gabe Sterling with the Georgia Secretary of State’s office.

“We consulted with our attorneys and the Attorney General’s office. And the way the new registry map was passed, there’s a specific section that says if there’s a subsequent race after this is adopted, the new lines will hold. So, this new election in State Senate 30 in the West Georgia area will be under the new map that as just passed and approved by Judge Jones.”

U.S. District Judge Steve Jones struck down Georgia’s 2021 congressional and state legislative lines and also approved the new ones drawn last year.

Old Map

New Map

It means some who voted in the 30th District in 2022 will not be able to vote in this special election, while others who will pick the replacement for a state senator could not have voted in 2022.

For example, there are voters in southwestern Douglas County represented by state Sen. Matt Brass, who will also select Mike Dugan’s replacement, while there are voters in southern Carroll County who were represented by Dugan, who will not get to select his replacement.

So does that mean there will be some voters with two senators and some with none for the rest of the year?

“Depends on how you view that. Actually, I think they will still be represented and I think that anybody hoping to run for election, they will go to them and say, can you help me with this? And they will probably be represented pretty well. But yes, it is, it is this weird period of time,” commented Sterling.

According to the Georgia General Assembly State Legislative and Congressional Reapportionment Office, the total number of affected people in the state’s 30th District would be 33,482 as of 2022, and 26,337 would have been of voting age.

Four candidates will appear on the special election ballot. They are Republicans Tim Bearden, Renae Bell, Robert “Bob” Smith and Democrat Ashley Kecskes Godwin.

If no one gets more than 50% of the vote, then a runoff will be held on March 12th. There is also a special election in the Augusta area to replace former Republican state Rep. Barry Fleming, who was recently appointed by Gov. Brian Kemp to be a Superior Court judge in Columbia County.