Fayette Goes Blue Leading Georgia in Voter Turnout as Coweta Republicans Celebrate Wins

Fayette County may have recorded the highest voter turnout in Georgia during Tuesday’s general election, even as neighboring Coweta County voted overwhelmingly Republican while Democrats swept the state’s constitutional offices.

Fayette County recorded 67.24% voter turnout on November 3, with 62,730 of its 93,294 registered voters casting ballots. Coweta County’s turnout was approximately 58%.

Based on a comparison of currently reported turnout figures across Georgia’s 159 counties, The Citizen believes Fayette County may have recorded the highest voter turnout in the state. The ranking remains preliminary and will require confirmation once all county results and voter participation figures are finalized.

Fayette had already distinguished itself during early voting, with 49.40% of its registered voters casting ballots before Election Day, as reported in The Citizen’s election-night coverage.

The contrast between Fayette and Coweta extended well beyond turnout. Fayette voters supported Democratic candidates in all 11 statewide races, while Coweta voters favored Republicans in every one of those same contests.

With all precincts reporting, Democrats captured the governor’s office and every other statewide constitutional office on the ballot, while Democratic incumbent U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff secured another six-year term.

But Republicans retained several important local seats, including Congressman Brian Jack’s 3rd Congressional District seat, State Sen. Matt Brass’s District 6 seat, and two Coweta County Commission seats.

The results are from the Georgia Secretary of State’s election reporting system. Although all precincts have reported, the results remain unofficial until certified.

Georgia elects its first woman governor

Former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, a Democrat, was elected Georgia’s next governor with 54.32% of the statewide vote, defeating Republican Rick Jackson.

Her election marks a historic first: Bottoms will become the first Black woman elected governor in the United States and the first woman elected governor of Georgia.

Coweta County voters favored Jackson by a substantial margin, giving him 42,106 votes, or 63%, compared with Bottoms’ 24,732 votes.

Fayette County voted differently, giving Bottoms 51.77% of its gubernatorial vote.

The same pattern played out in the U.S. Senate race. Ossoff won statewide with just over 59% of the vote, even as Republican Mike Collins carried Coweta County with 38,628 votes to Ossoff’s 28,085.

Ossoff carried Fayette County by approximately 9,000 votes, while Collins’ margin in Coweta was approximately 10,500. The counties’ results nearly offset each other.

Democrats also won the races for lieutenant governor, secretary of state, attorney general, agriculture commissioner, insurance commissioner, state school superintendent, and labor commissioner.

Josh McLaurin won the lieutenant governor’s race with 55.96% statewide, and Penny Brown Reynolds won secretary of state with 55.68%. Tanya Miller won the attorney general’s race with 55.54%.

Democratic challengers Katherine E. Juhan-Arnold, Keisha Sean Waites, Lydia Powell, and Nikki Porcher defeated Republican incumbents for agriculture commissioner, insurance commissioner, state school superintendent, and labor commissioner, respectively.

Democrats also won both statewide Public Service Commission races. Incumbent Peter Hubbard retained District 3, and Shelia Edwards won District 5.

All 11 statewide races followed the same geographic pattern: Republican majorities in Coweta and Democratic majorities in Fayette.

Brian Jack wins another term in Congress

Republican Congressman Brian Jack won reelection to Georgia’s 3rd Congressional District with 186,828 votes, or 58.5%, defeating Democrat Maura Keller, who received 132,554 votes, or 41.5%.

Jack won Coweta County with 40,738 votes to Keller’s 25,947.

In Fayette County, the congressional race was considerably closer. Jack received 26,557 votes, just 131 more than Keller’s 26,426.

As The Citizen reported in its Fayette County election coverage, Jack overcame an early-voting deficit in Fayette through stronger Election Day support.

Speaking with The Citizen on election night, Jack expressed appreciation for the voters who returned him to Washington.

“I’m incredibly grateful to the incredible people of Georgia’s third congressional district for believing in me and trusting in my mission to deliver a better life for all people across our district. And I’m honored to earn their support in re-election tonight. And I look forward to visiting with constituents over the next two years to learn how best to continue to make their life better,” Jack said.

Matt Brass calls for Republicans to reconsider their direction

Republican State Sen. Matt Brass also won reelection, receiving 54,204 votes, or 65.64%, districtwide. Democrat JerMarkus Jacobs received 28,376 votes, or 34.36%.

In Coweta County, Brass received 41,669 votes to Jacobs’ 24,932.

Despite his decisive victory, Brass told The Citizen that Republicans need to reconsider their approach following the election.

“It’s an honor to be elected again, and I think us Republicans have got to take a long, hard look inside and figure out who we are and how we’re going to help the citizens of Georgia, and you know I think we we’re sending a clear message that what we’ve been doing is not working, and it’s time to go back to the drawing board,” Brass said.

He also thanked the voters who returned him to office.

“I appreciate people of the sixth district trusting me with another two years when a lot of that trust has gone throughout our country,” he said.

Brass said on election night that Republicans appeared likely to retain control of the Georgia Senate by a narrow margin, even as Democrats were gaining seats. His assessment came before all the legislative races had been resolved.

The senator also discussed the challenges Republicans would face in working with Democratic leaders, particularly if the party retained only a narrow Senate majority.

Dakota Caldwell wins Coweta Commission District 3

Republican Dakota Hand Caldwell won the Coweta County Commission District 3 race with 7,070 votes, or 59.15%, defeating Democrat Render A. Godfrey, who received 4,883 votes.

Following her victory, Caldwell thanked voters and looked ahead to serving on the commission, where she will be the only woman serving. The last woman to serve was Kathryn Leigh Schlumper who served for about 8 years in the early 2000s.

“I’m thankful for all of the support and encouragement from the entire county. I look forward to taking the energy and momentum from my campaign into serving as the next District 3 Commissioner,” Caldwell said.

In Coweta Commission District 2, incumbent Republican Bill McKenzie won another term with 8,651 votes, or 67.15%, defeating Democrat Amiee Tybor, who received 4,233.

Coweta votes Republican, but South Fulton determines two House races

Two state legislative races illustrate how Coweta’s voting patterns differed from those of other counties within the same districts.

In State House District 65, Republican Gordon Rolle Jr. defeated Democratic incumbent Robert Dawson in the Coweta portion of the district, receiving 4,563 votes to Dawson’s 2,721.

But Dawson won reelection districtwide with 81.28% of the vote. He received nearly 94% of the vote in South Fulton, where most of his constituents live.

A similar result occurred in State House District 67.

Republican challenger Daniel Cook received 5,534 votes in Coweta, compared with 2,629 for Democratic incumbent Lydia Glaize. Cook carried approximately two-thirds of the Coweta vote.

But Glaize won districtwide with 74.32% to Cook’s 25.68%, receiving approximately 94% of the vote in South Fulton.

The two races demonstrate how a candidate can win convincingly in one county while losing the broader district.

Republicans won the other three contested State House races represented on Coweta ballots.

In District 70, Republican Melissa Stuckey defeated Democrat Pierre Whatley with 52.97% of the districtwide vote. Stuckey carried both Coweta and Carroll counties.

In District 73, incumbent Republican Josh Bonner won reelection with 59.68%, defeating Democrat Tim Wilkinson, who received 40.32%. Bonner carried both Fayette and Coweta.

Republican incumbent David Jenkins ran unopposed in House District 136, which includes portions of Coweta, Meriwether, and Troup counties. More than 20,000 voters cast ballots for Jenkins across the district.

Complete Coweta County election results

The following are the complete reported totals for the 27 contests and ballot questions included in Coweta County’s November 3 general election results. These are Coweta County votes only, not districtwide or statewide totals, unless otherwise indicated.

Statewide races

Office	Statewide winner	Winning % statewide	Coweta Republican votes	Coweta Democratic votes
U.S. Senate	Jon Ossoff (D)	Just over 59%	Mike Collins: 38,628	Jon Ossoff: 28,085
Governor	Keisha Lance Bottoms (D)	54.32%	Rick Jackson: 42,106	Bottoms: 24,732
Lieutenant governor	Josh McLaurin (D)	55.96%	Greg Dolezal: 40,947	McLaurin: 25,701
Secretary of state	Penny Brown Reynolds (D)	55.68%	Tim Fleming: 41,201	Reynolds: 25,539
Attorney general	Tanya Miller (D)	55.54%	Brian Strickland: 41,379	Miller: 25,412
Agriculture commissioner	Katherine E. Juhan-Arnold (D)	53.83%	Tyler Harper: 42,227	Juhan-Arnold: 24,395
Insurance commissioner	Keisha Sean Waites (D)	54.29%	John King: 41,902	Waites: 24,668
State school superintendent	Lydia Powell (D)	54.61%	Richard Woods: 41,727	Powell: 24,934
Labor commissioner	Nikki Porcher (D)	54.63%	Bárbara Rivera Holmes: 41,620	Porcher: 24,837
Public Service Commission District 3	Peter Hubbard (D)	56.39%	Fitz Johnson: 40,427	Hubbard: 25,822
Public Service Commission District 5	Shelia Edwards (D)	55.31%	Josh Tolbert: 41,248	Edwards: 25,203

All 11 races were decided by voters statewide, including both Public Service Commission contests.

Congressional and state legislative races

Office	Districtwide winner	Coweta Republican votes	Coweta Democratic votes
U.S. House District 3	Brian Jack (R), 58.5%	Jack: 40,738	Maura Keller: 25,947
State Senate District 6	Matt Brass (R), 65.64%	Brass: 41,669	JerMarkus Jacobs: 24,932
State House District 65	Robert Dawson (D), 81.28%	Gordon Rolle Jr.: 4,563	Dawson: 2,721
State House District 67	Lydia Glaize (D), 74.32%	Daniel Cook: 5,534	Glaize: 2,629
State House District 70	Melissa Stuckey (R), 52.97%	Stuckey: 10,604	Pierre Whatley: 10,081
State House District 73	Josh Bonner (R), 59.68%	Bonner: 9,664	Tim Wilkinson: 6,149
State House District 136	David Jenkins (R), unopposed	Jenkins: 12,360	No opponent

Coweta County Commission races

Office	Republican	Democrat	Winner
District 2	Bill McKenzie: 8,651	Amiee Tybor: 4,233	McKenzie (R), 67.15%
District 3	Dakota Hand Caldwell: 7,070	Render A. Godfrey: 4,883	Caldwell (R), 59.15%

Grantville municipal elections

Grantville voters returned incumbent Mayor Richard Proctor to office in a four-candidate race. Proctor received 413 votes, or 41.55%.

Office	Candidate	Votes
Mayor	Richard Proctor (winner)	413
Mayor	Mark Bynum	326
Mayor	Dee L. Berry	210
Mayor	Aidan Witek	45
City Council Post 1	Ashlie Little (winner)	636
City Council Post 1	Evita A-Esteves	291
City Council Post 2	David Keith Clark (winner)	569
City Council Post 2	Barham Lundy	374

Little won Post 1 with 68.61% of the vote. Incumbent Clark retained Post 2 with 60.34%.

Constitutional amendments

All three proposed Georgia constitutional amendments passed statewide. Coweta County voters also supported all three.

Amendment	Yes votes in Coweta	No votes in Coweta	Coweta approval
Amendment 1 — Agricultural and timber property tax classification	37,771	26,933	58.37%
Amendment 2 — Nonpartisan probate judge elections	45,610	19,270	70.30%
Amendment 3 — Next Generation 911 Fund	50,987	13,876	78.61%

Amendment 1 increases the maximum acreage of agricultural and timber land eligible for conservation-use property tax treatment from 2,000 to 4,000 acres. Amendment 2 requires Georgia probate judges to be elected in nonpartisan elections. Amendment 3 allows the legislature to establish a dedicated fund for Next Generation 911 emergency communications systems.

The Citizen columnist Kenneth Hamner examined the three proposals and their potential effects on local residents in his October 13 column, The Questions At The Bottom Of Your Ballot.

Sharpsburg ballot question

Sharpsburg voters also approved a local ballot question.

Choice	Votes
Yes	74
No	63

The measure passed with 54.01% of the votes cast.

Two neighboring counties, two different election outcomes

Tuesday’s results revealed a clear difference between how voters in Fayette and Coweta approached the statewide races.

Fayette gave Democratic candidates majorities in all 11 statewide contests, while Coweta gave Republican candidates majorities in all 11.

Yet Republican candidates Brian Jack, Matt Brass, Josh Bonner, Melissa Stuckey, Bill McKenzie, and Dakota Caldwell won their races, showing that Republican candidates retained substantial support in congressional, legislative, and local elections despite the statewide Democratic victories.

In Fayette County, Republican James W. Clifton won the County Commission District 3 seat, defeating Democrat Chandra C. Wright by 9,015 votes to 6,476.

Incumbent Republican State Sen. Marty Harbin also retained his District 16 seat, defeating Democrat Sonya Wimberly Hawkins. In Fayette County, Harbin received 25,131 votes to Hawkins’ 20,389.

Republican State Rep. Karen Mathiak won reelection in District 82, which includes portions of Fayette and Spalding counties. She defeated Democrat Anthony Dickson, carrying Fayette by 8,103 votes to 4,620 and winning the district overall.

These Republican victories, along with Jack’s and Bonner’s reelections, were covered in The Citizen’s November 4 report on Fayette County’s election results.

The results showed that Fayette voters did not uniformly support one party. While Democrats carried the statewide races, Republican candidates won several congressional, legislative, county commission, and school board contests.

The voter turnout figures also deserve attention. Fayette’s 67.24% turnout placed it well ahead of Coweta’s approximately 58%, and possibly at the top of Georgia’s 159 counties.

That potential statewide distinction remains subject to confirmation as election officials finalize participation totals.

For now, the results show that voters in neighboring Fayette and Coweta counties participated in the same election but delivered sharply different outcomes in Georgia’s statewide races.

Source: Georgia Secretary of State election results for November 3, 2026, with Coweta County results from the all-precincts-reporting election export and Fayette County results reported by the Fayette County Board of Elections. Districtwide and statewide percentages reflect the reported returns available November 4. Results remain unofficial pending certification.