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ATLANTA — Democrat Keisha Lance Bottoms made history on Tuesday night (Nov. 3), defeating Republican billionaire Rick Jackson to become the first Black female governor in the nation.
Bottoms’ victory also makes her Georgia’s first female governor and returns the state’s highest political office to Democratic control for the first time in more than two decades.
Bottoms had earned more than 54.32 percent of the vote when she was declared the winner on Tuesday. Jackson had 45.68 percent of the vote.
At Bottoms’ election watch party, which was held at the downtown Atlanta Marriott Marquis, the room erupted into thunderous chants of “Keisha! Keisha! Keisha!” as the 56-year-old former Atlanta mayor made her way to the stage.
Bottoms delivered an emotional victory speech, acknowledging those who stood beside her through her political journey. She thanked her husband, Derek, their four children: sons Lance and Lennox and twin sisters Lincoln and Langston. She also acknowledged her parents, siblings and extended family.
She reserved particularly heartfelt words for her mother.
“Mama, you are the real MVP (most valuable player) and you told me that God was going to show Himself at His finest today and our God has exceeded all of my expectation,” Bottoms said.
Address the crowd, the newly-elected governor said that her victory was about more than a political party or campaign spending.
“No matter who you voted for tonight, I will be a governor for all of Georgia,” Bottoms told the ecstatic crowd. “In big and small ways, you’ve shown that no amount of money will ever, never ever, ever overcome the power of the people.”
From Roots in Crawfordville to the Governor’s Mansion
A descendant of enslaved Georgians and a fifth-generation resident of the state, Bottoms traced her ancestry back to the Betsy and Shepherd Peak plantation in Crawfordville, Georgia.
During the campaign, she shared poignant memories of her family history. She often reflected on how her grandfather had to “walk through these back doors” of the very downtown Atlanta buildings that she later walked into through the front doors as the city’s mayor.
Growing up with a profound awareness of the civil rights struggles that shaped Atlanta, Bottoms went on to earn her undergraduate degree from Florida A&M University and a law degree from Georgia State University College of Law. Her rise through Georgia’s legal and political ranks included serving as a judge and an Atlanta City Council member before winning the Atlanta mayoralty in 2017.
Overcoming Rick Jackson’s multi-million dollar blitz
Bottoms’ historic win represents a significant political comeback. After serving a single term as mayor of Atlanta from 2018 to 2022—a tumultuous period marked by the COVID-19 pandemic and widespread social unrest—she chose not to run for mayoral reelection.
She later transitioned to national politics, serving as a senior adviser and director of the Office of Public Engagement in the Biden administration until 2023.
Entering the gubernatorial race as a heavy underdog, Bottoms had to overcome a staggering campaign spending deficit. Her opponent, healthcare tycoon Rick Jackson, reportedly poured more than $200 million of his own personal fortune into the race, flooding the airwaves with ads targeting her mayoral record on crime.
However, Bottoms successfully consolidated the Democratic base, winning the primary without a runoff, and heavily campaigned on expanding Medicaid, rolling back abortion restrictions, and protecting voting access.
A late-campaign boost from national heavyweights, including a joint rally with former President Barack Obama and newly re-elected U.S. Senator Jon Ossoff, helped push her over the finish line in what observers had labeled a dead-heat toss-up.
Jackson conceded the race late Tuesday, telling his supporters, “Tonight, the voters spoke … and I respect their decision.”
Bottoms will succeed term-limited Republican Governor Brian Kemp, breaking a 24-year Republican lock on the governor’s mansion.
Bottoms’ victory, however, carries significance beyond the political shift. Her election breaks a barrier that has stood throughout American history: No Black woman has previously been elected governor of a U.S. state.
Georgia’s mid-term election results can be found at: https://results.sos.ga.gov/results/public/Georgia/elections/11032026GeneralAndSpecialElection