Chuck Payne

Chuck Payne

Republican Party

Georgia State Senate District 54

Tenure

2017 - Present

Term ends

2027

Years in position

8

Compensation

Base salary

$24,341.64/year

Per diem

$247/day

Elections and appointments

Last elected

November 5, 2024

Contact

Official website

Campaign website

Campaign Facebook

Campaign Twitter

Campaign Instagram

Personal Facebook

Personal LinkedIn

Chuck Payne (Republican Party) is a member of the Georgia State Senate, representing District 54. He assumed office on January 18, 2017. His current term ends on January 11, 2027.

Payne (Republican Party) ran for re-election to the Georgia State Senate to represent District 54. He won in the general election on November 5, 2024.

Biography

Chuck Payne was born in Riverdale, GA. He graduated from Riverdale High School in 1982 and then served in the U.S. Army from 1984 to 1988, reaching the rank of Specialist. Payne's career experience includes working as a juvenile probation and parole officer at the Georgia Department of Juvenile Justice. He co-founded and co-directed the Crusaders of Faith and Freedom, served as Chair of the Whitfield County Republican Party, and a state committee member of the Georgia Republican Party. Payne was elected to the state senate in 2017.

Committee assignments

Note: This membership information was last updated in September 2023. Ballotpedia completes biannual updates of committee membership. If you would like to send us an update, email us at:editor@ballotpedia.org.

2023-2024

Payne was assigned to the following committees:

• Senate Appropriations Committee
• Education and Youth Committee, Vice Chair
• Senate Higher Education Committee, Secretary
• Public Safety Committee, Ex-Officio
• Senate Science and Technology Committee, Chair
• Veterans, Military and Homeland Security Committee, Secretary

2021-2022

Payne was assigned to the following committees:

• Education and Youth Committee, Chair
• Finance Committee, Secretary
• Senate Higher Education Committee, Secretary
• State and Local Governmental Operations Committee, Vice chair

2019-2020

Payne was assigned to the following committees:

• Finance Committee, Secretary
• State and Local Governmental Operations Committee, Vice Chairman
• Senate Higher Education Committee, Secretary
• Public Safety Committee, Ex-Officio
• State Institutions and Property Committee, Secretary

2017 legislative session

At the beginning of the 2017 legislative session, this legislator served on the following committees:

Georgia committee assignments, 2017
• Finance
• Public Safety
• State and Local Governmental Operations
• State Institutions and Property

Sponsored legislation

The following table lists bills this person sponsored as a legislator, according to BillTrack50 and sorted by action history. Bills are sorted by the date of their last action. The following list may not be comprehensive. To see all bills this legislator sponsored, click on the legislator's name in the title of the table.

Elections

2024

See also: Georgia State Senate elections, 2024

General election

General election for Georgia State Senate District 54

Incumbent Chuck Payne won election in the general election for Georgia State Senate District 54 on November 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Chuck Payne (R)	100.0	69,447

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 69,447
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Republican primary election

Republican primary for Georgia State Senate District 54

Incumbent Chuck Payne advanced from the Republican primary for Georgia State Senate District 54 on May 21, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Chuck Payne	100.0	16,046

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 16,046
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
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Endorsements

Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Payne in this election.

2022

See also: Georgia State Senate elections, 2022

General election

General election for Georgia State Senate District 54

Incumbent Chuck Payne won election in the general election for Georgia State Senate District 54 on November 8, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Chuck Payne (R)	100.0	48,051

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 48,051
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Republican primary election

Republican primary for Georgia State Senate District 54

Incumbent Chuck Payne defeated Doug Keener in the Republican primary for Georgia State Senate District 54 on May 24, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Chuck Payne	67.5	16,401
	Submit photo	Doug Keener	32.5	7,894

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 24,295
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
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2020

See also: Georgia State Senate elections, 2020

General election

General election for Georgia State Senate District 54

Incumbent Chuck Payne won election in the general election for Georgia State Senate District 54 on November 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Chuck Payne (R)	100.0	57,768

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 57,768
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Republican primary election

Republican primary for Georgia State Senate District 54

Incumbent Chuck Payne defeated Dan McEntire in the Republican primary for Georgia State Senate District 54 on June 9, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Chuck Payne	62.3	15,843
		Dan McEntire	37.7	9,597

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 25,440
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

2018

See also: Georgia State Senate elections, 2018

General election

General election for Georgia State Senate District 54

Incumbent Chuck Payne defeated Michael Morgan in the general election for Georgia State Senate District 54 on November 6, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Chuck Payne (R)	79.7	39,578
		Michael Morgan (D)	20.3	10,110

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 49,688
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Georgia State Senate District 54

Michael Morgan advanced from the Democratic primary for Georgia State Senate District 54 on May 22, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Michael Morgan	100.0	1,568

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified.	Total votes: 1,568
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Republican primary election

Republican primary for Georgia State Senate District 54

Incumbent Chuck Payne defeated J. Scott Tidwell in the Republican primary for Georgia State Senate District 54 on May 22, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Chuck Payne	52.9	5,014
	Submit photo	J. Scott Tidwell	47.1	4,471

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified.	Total votes: 9,485
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

2016

See also: Georgia state legislative special elections, 2016

A special election for the position of Georgia State Senate District 54 was called for December 13. A special runoff election was held on January 10, 2017. The filing deadline to run in this election was November 17.

The seat was vacant following Charlie Bethel's (R) resignation in November 2016. He resigned after he was appointed to the Georgia Court of Appeals.

Conda Lowery-Goodson (R), Chuck Payne (R), Michelle Underwood (R), William Vinyard (R), and Debby Peppers (ind.) faced off in the special election. Since no candidate received more than 50 percent of the vote, the top two vote-getters, Payne and Peppers, met in a runoff election. Payne defeated Peppers.

Campaign themes

2024

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Chuck Payne did not complete Ballotpedia's 2024 Candidate Connection survey.

2022

Chuck Payne did not complete Ballotpedia's 2022 Candidate Connection survey.

2020

Chuck Payne did not complete Ballotpedia's 2020 Candidate Connection survey.

Campaign finance summary

---

Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.

---

Chuck Payne campaign contribution history

Year	Office	Status	Contributions	Expenditures
2024*	Georgia State Senate District 54	Won general	$20,850	$40,272
2022	Georgia State Senate District 54	Won general	$58,200	$0
2020	Georgia State Senate District 54	Won general	$44,619	N/A**
2018	Georgia State Senate District 54	Won general	$108,227	N/A**
Grand total			$231,896	$40,272
Sources: OpenSecrets,  Federal Elections Commission ***This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).
* Data from this year may not be complete
** Data on expenditures is not available for this election cycle
Note: Totals above reflect only available data.

Scorecards

See also: State legislative scorecards and State legislative scorecards in Georgia

A scorecard evaluates a legislator’s voting record. Its purpose is to inform voters about the legislator’s political positions. Because scorecards have varying purposes and methodologies, each report should be considered on its own merits. For example, an advocacy group’s scorecard may assess a legislator’s voting record on one issue while a state newspaper’s scorecard may evaluate the voting record in its entirety.

Ballotpedia is in the process of developing an encyclopedic list of published scorecards. Some states have a limited number of available scorecards or scorecards produced only by select groups. It is Ballotpedia’s goal to incorporate all available scorecards regardless of ideology or number.

Click here for an overview of legislative scorecards in all 50 states.  To contribute to the list of Georgia scorecards, email suggestions to editor@ballotpedia.org.

2024

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2024, click [show].

In 2024, the Georgia State Legislature was in session from January 8 to March 28. ACLU Georgia Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to civil rights issues. Georgia Chamber of Commerce Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues. Georgia Conservation Voters Legislators are scored on their votes on environmental issues. National Federation of Independent Business Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues.

2023

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2023, click [show].
In 2023, the Georgia State Legislature was in session from January 9 to March 29. Georgia Chamber of Commerce Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues.

2022

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2022, click [show].
In 2022, the Georgia State Legislature was in session from January 10 to April 4. Georgia Chamber of Commerce Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues. National Federation of Independent Business Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues.

2021

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2021, click [show].

In 2021, the Georgia State Legislature was in session from January 11 to March 31. ACLU Georgia Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to civil rights issues. Club for Growth Foundation Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to economic issues. Georgia Chamber of Commerce Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues. The American Conservative Union Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.

2020

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2020, click [show].

In 2020, the Georgia State Legislature was in session from January 13 to June 26. The session was suspended from March 13 through June 11. Club for Growth Foundation Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to economic issues. Georgia Chamber of Commerce Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues. Georgia Environment Legislators are scored on their votes on environmental issues. National Federation of Independent Business Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues. The American Conservative Union Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.

2019

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2019, click [show].

In 2019, the Georgia General Assembly was in session from January 14 through April 2. Club for Growth Foundation Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to economic issues. Faith and Freedom Coalition of Georgia: House and Senate Legislators are scored on their votes on social issues. Georgia Chamber of Commerce Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues. The American Conservative Union Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.

2018

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2018, click [show].

In 2018, the Georgia General Assembly was in session from January 8 through March 29. Faith and Freedom Coalition of Georgia: House and Senate Legislators are scored on their votes on social issues. Georgia Center for Opportunity Legislators are scored on their votes on children's education. Georgia Chamber of Commerce Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues. The American Conservative Union Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.

2017

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2017, click [show].

In 2017, the Georgia General Assembly was in session from January 9 through March 31. Americans for Prosperity Georgia Legislators are scored on their stances on economic issues. Faith and Freedom Coalition of Georgia: House and Senate Legislators are scored on their votes on social issues. Georgia Center for Opportunity Legislators are scored on their votes on children's education. Georgia Chamber of Commerce Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues. Georgia Environment Legislators are scored on their votes on environmental issues. The American Conservative Union Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.

2016

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2016, click [show].

In 2016, the Georgia General Assembly was in session from January 11 through March 24. Americans for Prosperity Georgia Legislators are scored on their stances on economic issues. Georgia Chamber of Commerce Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues. National Federation of Independent Business Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues. The American Conservative Union Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.

Noteworthy events

Decision to self-quarantine for coronavirus on March 19, 2020

See also: Political incumbents, candidates, and government officials diagnosed with COVID-19 or quarantined due to the coronavirus pandemic, 2020

Payne, along with his Georgia State Senate colleagues, entered self-quarantine after State Sen. Brandon Beach tested positive for coronavirus.

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Footnotes

Political offices
Preceded by -	Georgia State Senate District 54 2017-Present	Succeeded by -

[show]

Current members of the Georgia State Senate

Leadership

Minority Leader:Harold Jones

Senators

District 1

Ben Watson (R)

District 2

Derek Mallow (D)

District 3

Mike Hodges (R)

District 4

Billy Hickman (R)

District 5

Sheikh Rahman (D)

District 6

Matt Brass (R)

District 7

Nabilah Islam Parkes (D)

District 8

Russ Goodman (R)

District 9

Nikki Merritt (D)

District 10

Emanuel Jones (D)

District 11

Sam Watson (R)

District 12

Freddie Sims (D)

District 13

Carden Summers (R)

District 14

Josh McLaurin (D)

District 15

Ed Harbison (D)

District 16

Marty Harbin (R)

District 17

Gail Davenport (D)

District 18

John Kennedy (R)

District 19

Blake Tillery (R)

District 20

Larry Walker (R)

District 21

Brandon Beach (R)

District 22

Harold Jones (D)

District 23

Max Burns (R)

District 24

Lee Anderson (R)

District 25

Ricky Williams (R)

District 26

David Lucas (D)

District 27

Greg Dolezal (R)

District 28

Donzella James (D)

District 29

Randy Robertson (R)

District 30

Tim Bearden (R)

District 31

Jason Anavitarte (R)

District 32

Kay Kirkpatrick (R)

District 33

Michael Rhett (D)

District 34

Kenya Wicks (D)

District 35

Jason Esteves (D)

District 36

Nan Orrock (D)

District 37

Ed Setzler (R)

District 38

Rashaun Kemp (D)

District 39

Sonya Halpern (D)

District 40

Sally Harrell (D)

District 41

Kim Jackson (D)

District 42

Brian Strickland (R)

District 43

Tonya Anderson (D)

District 44

Elena Parent (D)

District 45

Clint Dixon (R)

District 46

Bill Cowsert (R)

District 47

Frank Ginn (R)

District 48

Shawn Still (R)

District 49

Drew Echols (R)

District 50

Bo Hatchett (R)

District 51

Steve Gooch (R)

District 52

Chuck Hufstetler (R)

District 53

Colton Moore (R)

District 54

Chuck Payne (R)

District 55

Randal Mangham (D)

District 56

John Albers (R)

Republican Party (33)

Democratic Party (23)