Fayette Voters Propel Timoria McQueen Saba to House District 68 Victory

Fayette County Democrats propelled one of their own to victory Tuesday night as Timoria McQueen Saba won the Democratic nomination for Georgia House District 68.

McQueen Saba defeated Mark Baker 52.17% to 47.83% districtwide, overcoming a loss in the Fulton County portion of the district through a commanding performance in Fayette County. A maternal health advocate who has worked on successful legislation in other states, McQueen Saba moved to Fayetteville three years ago and built strong support among Democratic voters in the county.

According to Fayette County Board of Elections Chair Zachary Livsey, approximately 40% of House District 68 lies within Fayette County. Yet Fayette voters provided the decisive margin. McQueen Saba carried Fayette 63.43% to 36.57%, a margin of 446 votes. Baker won the Fulton County portion of the district by 261 votes, but it was not enough to offset McQueen Saba’s Fayette advantage.

Districtwide, McQueen Saba received 2,225 votes to Baker’s 2,040, winning the nomination by 185 votes.

The local runoff was one of several races decided Tuesday as Georgia voters selected nominees for November contests across the state.

Tuesday’s results also highlighted Fayette County’s Republican lean. Republicans cast 12,319 ballots in the Governor runoff, compared with 5,922 ballots cast in the Democratic Lieutenant Governor runoff. Republican turnout was more than double Democratic turnout, underscoring the GOP’s continued electoral advantage in the county even as Democrats played a decisive role in the House District 68 contest.

While Fayette voters often aligned with statewide results, several races revealed notable differences between county voters and the broader Georgia electorate.

In the Republican race for Governor, Fayette closely mirrored the statewide vote. Rick Jackson won 51.95% of the vote in Fayette compared with 52.63% statewide.

The county diverged more sharply in the race for Lieutenant Governor. Greg Dolezal won 61.27% of the vote in Fayette, significantly outperforming his statewide total of 54.20%.

The Republican contest for U.S. Senate followed a pattern also seen in neighboring Coweta County. Mike Collins carried Fayette with 52.18% of the vote, but Derek Dooley performed several points better locally than he did statewide. Collins won 55.65% of the vote across Georgia.

Fayette Republicans also gave Tim Fleming a stronger victory in the Secretary of State runoff than he received statewide. Fleming won 66.67% of the Fayette vote compared with 64.51% statewide.

One of the county’s biggest departures from statewide Republican voters came in the race for State School Superintendent. Fayette Republicans backed challenger Fred “Bubba” Longgrear 51.12% to 48.88%, while incumbent Richard Woods narrowly prevailed statewide with 51.50% of the vote.

Josh Tolbert won the Republican runoff for Public Service Commission District 5 with 63.44% of the vote in Fayette, outperforming his statewide total of 59.75%.

Among Democratic voters, Fayette diverged from statewide results in the race for Lieutenant Governor. While Josh McLaurin won the Democratic nomination statewide with 54.94% of the vote, Fayette Democrats narrowly favored Nabilah Parkes, who received 50.98% of the county vote.

Fayette Democrats also gave overwhelming support to Penny Brown Reynolds in the Secretary of State runoff. Reynolds won 71.59% of the vote in Fayette compared with 63.33% statewide.

Keisha Sean Waites won the Democratic runoff for Insurance Commissioner with 62.25% of the Fayette vote, while Nikki Porcher captured 64.50% of the county vote in the Democratic race for Labor Commissioner. Both candidates outperformed their statewide margins in Fayette County.

With Tuesday’s runoffs complete, attention now turns to November, when voters will choose among the nominees selected during the primary season and determine representation in local and statewide offices.

For Fayette Democrats, however, the night’s most significant result may have been House District 68. In a district where most voters live outside Fayette County, turnout from the county’s portion of the district ultimately proved decisive.