Georgia's 7th Congressional District election, 2020

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Georgia's 7th Congressional District
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Democratic primary
Republican primary
General election
Election details
Filing deadline: March 6, 2020
Primary: June 9, 2020
Primary runoff: August 11, 2020
General: November 3, 2020
General runoff: January 5, 2021
Pre-election incumbent:
Rob Woodall (Republican)
How to vote
Poll times: 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Voting in Georgia
Race ratings
Cook Political Report: Lean Democratic
Inside Elections: Tilt Democratic
Sabato's Crystal Ball: Lean Democratic
Ballotpedia analysis
U.S. Senate battlegrounds
U.S. House battlegrounds
Federal and state primary competitiveness
Ballotpedia's Election Analysis Hub, 2020
See also
Georgia's 7th Congressional District
U.S. Senate • 1st • 2nd • 3rd • 4th • 5th • 6th • 7th • 8th • 9th • 10th • 11th • 12th • 13th • 14th
Georgia elections, 2020
U.S. Congress elections, 2020
U.S. Senate elections, 2020
U.S. House elections, 2020

Carolyn Bourdeaux (D) defeated Rich McCormick (R) in the general election for Georgia's 7th Congressional District on November 3, 2020. Incumbent Rob Woodall (R), first elected in 2010, did not run for re-election in 2020.[1]

Bordeaux was a professor at the Andrew Young School of Public Policy and a former Director of Georgia’s Senate Budget and Evaluation Office.[2] McCormick was a veteran of the Marine Corps, an emergency room doctor, and a first-time political candidate.[3]

Bourdeaux ran for the seat in 2018. She lost the election to Woodall by 433 votes—50.1% to 49.9%. In 2016 and 2014, Woodall had won re-election by 20.8 and 30.8 percentage points, respectively.

The outcome of this race affected partisan control of the U.S. House of Representatives in the 117th Congress. All 435 seats in the House were up for election. At the time of the election, Democrats had a 232 to 198 majority over Republicans. The Libertarian Party had one seat. Four seats were vacant. Democrats defended 30 districts Donald Trump (R) won in 2016. Republicans defended five districts Hillary Clinton (D) won in 2016.

Georgia's 7th Congressional District is located north of Atlanta. The district includes portions of Forsyth and Gwinnett counties.[4]

Bourdeaux participated in a Candidate Conversation with Ballotpedia and EnCiv. Click here to watch.

This race was one of 89 congressional races that were decided by 10 percent or less in 2020.


Democratic Party For more information about the Democratic primary, click here.
Republican Party For more information about the Republican primary, click here.

Post-election analysis

The table below compares the vote totals in the 2020 presidential election and 2020 U.S. House election for this district. The presidential election data was compiled by Daily Kos.

Presidential and congressional election results, Georgia's 7th Congressional District, 2020
Race Presidential U.S. House
Democratic candidate Democratic Party 52.4 51.4
Republican candidate Republican Party 46.1 48.6
Difference 6.3 2.8

Election procedure changes in 2020

See also: Changes to election dates, procedures, and administration in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, 2020

Ballotpedia provided comprehensive coverage of how election dates and procedures changed in 2020. While the majority of changes occurred as a result of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, some changes occurred for other reasons.

Georgia modified its absentee/mail-in voting and candidate filing procedures for the November 3, 2020, general election as follows:

  • Candidate filing procedures: The petitioning deadline for minor-party and unaffiliated candidates was extended to August 14, 2020. The petition signature requirement for independent and minor-party candidates was reduced to 70 percent of their original numbers.

For a full timeline about election modifications made in response to the COVID-19 outbreak, click here.

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Candidates and election results

General election

General election for U.S. House Georgia District 7

Carolyn Bourdeaux defeated Rich McCormick in the general election for U.S. House Georgia District 7 on November 3, 2020.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Carolyn Bourdeaux
Carolyn Bourdeaux (D)
 
51.4
 
190,900
Image of Rich McCormick
Rich McCormick (R)
 
48.6
 
180,564

There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 371,464
Candidate Connection = 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.

Watch the Candidate Conversation for this race!

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for U.S. House Georgia District 7

The following candidates ran in the Democratic primary for U.S. House Georgia District 7 on June 9, 2020.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Carolyn Bourdeaux
Carolyn Bourdeaux
 
52.8
 
44,710
Image of Brenda Lopez Romero
Brenda Lopez Romero
 
12.4
 
10,497
Image of Nabilah Islam Parkes
Nabilah Islam Parkes Candidate Connection
 
12.3
 
10,447
Image of Rashid Malik
Rashid Malik Candidate Connection
 
8.0
 
6,780
Image of John Eaves
John Eaves
 
7.7
 
6,548
Image of Zahra Karinshak
Zahra Karinshak
 
6.8
 
5,729

There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 84,711
Candidate Connection = 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.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Republican primary election

Republican primary for U.S. House Georgia District 7

The following candidates ran in the Republican primary for U.S. House Georgia District 7 on June 9, 2020.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Rich McCormick
Rich McCormick
 
55.1
 
35,280
Image of Renee Unterman
Renee Unterman
 
17.4
 
11,143
Image of Mark Gonsalves
Mark Gonsalves
 
7.2
 
4,640
Image of Lynne Homrich
Lynne Homrich
 
7.1
 
4,567
Image of Eugene Yu
Eugene Yu
 
6.0
 
3,856
Image of Lisa Babbage
Lisa Babbage Candidate Connection
 
5.2
 
3,336
Image of Zachary Kennemore
Zachary Kennemore
 
1.9
 
1,195

There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 64,017
Candidate Connection = 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.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Candidate profiles

This section includes candidate profiles created in one of two ways. Either the candidate completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey or Ballotpedia staff created a profile after identifying the candidate as noteworthy.[5] Ballotpedia staff compiled profiles based on campaign websites, advertisements, and public statements.

Carolyn Bourdeaux

Image of Carolyn Bourdeaux

WebsiteFacebookTwitter

Party: Democratic Party

Incumbent: No

Political Office: None

Biography:  Bourdeaux graduated from Yale University with a bachelor's degree in history and economics. She received a Master of Public Administration from the University of Southern California and a Ph.D. in public administration from Syracuse University. At the time of the election, Bourdeaux’s professional experience included teaching public policy at Georgia State University and directing the state’s Senate Budget and Evaluation Office.


Key Messages

The following key messages were curated by Ballotpedia staff. For more on how we identify key messages, click here.

Bourdeaux's website said "she has spent her career working on public policy solutions" and that this displayed her commitment to public service. 

Bourdeaux said her experience as a mother and working in public policy informed her commitment to expanding access to healthcare and investing in education.

Bourdeaux said she was in touch with her district and that she would reject the financial support and influence of corporate groups.

Show sources

Sources: Georgia Public Broadcasting, "In Their Own Words: Candidates For Georgia's 7th Congressional District," August 7, 2019; Facebook, "Carolyn Bourdeaux for Congress on January 21, 2020," accessed April 13, 2020; Carolyn Bourdeaux's 2020 campaign website, "Carolyn Bourdeaux for Congress," accessed September 3, 2020; LinkedIn, "Carolyn Bourdeaux," accessed April 13, 2020;Carolyn Bourdeaux 2020 campaign website, "Meet Carolyn Bourdeaux, accessed April 13, 2020

This information was current as of the candidate's run for U.S. House Georgia District 7 in 2020.

Rich McCormick

Image of Rich McCormick

WebsiteFacebookTwitterYouTube

Party: Republican Party

Incumbent: No

Political Office: None

Biography:  McCormick graduated from Morehouse School of Medicine and did an emergency medicine residency through Emory University. He received a master's in business administration at National University. McCormick served in the U.S. Marine Corps as a pilot and in the Navy as the department head for the emergency medicine department in Afghanistan. At the time of the election, McCormick was an emergency medicine physician.


Key Messages

The following key messages were curated by Ballotpedia staff. For more on how we identify key messages, click here.

McCormick said the values he learned as a Marine pilot, emergency room doctor, and first-time political candidate would allow him to rise to the challenge of serving in Congress and be in touch with his district.

McCormick said his experience with healthcare and government spending would help him reduce the cost of healthcare and improve patient care.

McCormick said he opposed the agenda of House Democrats, and supported President Donald Trump (R).

Show sources

Sources: Georgia Public Broadcasting, "In Their Own Words: Candidates For Georgia's 7th Congressional District," August 7, 2019; Rich McCormick 2020 campaign website, "Issues," accessed April 9, 2020; YouTube, "ALL IN," November 10, 2019; LinkedIn, "Richard McCormick, MD, MBA," accessed April 9, 2020; Rich McCormick 2020 campaign website, "About," accessed April 9, 2020

This information was current as of the candidate's run for U.S. House Georgia District 7 in 2020.

Candidate Conversations

Moderated by journalist and political commentator Greta Van Susteren, Candidate Conversations is a virtual debate format that allows voters to easily get to know their candidates through a short video Q&A. Click below to watch the conversation for this race.


Satellite group ads

Opposing McCormick

"American Candidates" - Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee ad, released October 1, 2020
"Doctor" - Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee ad, released September 21, 2020

Campaign themes

See also: Campaign themes

Democratic Party Carolyn Bourdeaux

Bourdeaux’s campaign website stated the following:

“

Healthcare
CAROLYN WILL FIGHT FOR:

  • Ensuring universal access to affordable, quality health care by strengthening the Affordable Care Act (ACA), protecting people with pre-existing conditions, and creating a robust affordable public option health insurance plan for individuals and small businesses.
  • Lower prescription drug costs by allowing the federal government to negotiate prices for prescription drugs.
  • Ending surprise billing.

Health care policy is personal to Carolyn. For ten years, Carolyn’s father suffered from a debilitating, prolonged illness and her mother cared for him. Her parents drained their bank accounts to pay for her father’s prescription medications. Now every day, she hears from Georgia families struggling with the rising costs of prescription drugs, insurance costs, and costs of medical care. Across our country, there are seniors who can't afford the care they need. Parents struggle to afford the insulin their children depend on to survive, and families and businesses are paying staggering sums for basic health insurance. This is a crisis.

Carolyn will fight for the millions of Georgians who are either uninsured, under insured, or struggle with the costs of insurance and prescription drugs. Due to both poor state government policy decisions (i.e. refusing to expand Medicaid) and the Trump Administration’s war on the Affordable Care Act, Georgia has the third highest rate (13.7% or 1.4 million Georgians) of those without health insurance, ranks 50th in childhood immunizations, 47th in low birthweight babies, 40th in diabetes, 43rd in infant mortality, and Georgia has the highest maternal mortality rate in the country. Health outcomes are much worse for low-income and minority communities, particularly with respect to maternal and infant mortality.

Carolyn believes strongly that affordable, quality health care is the right of all Georgians. The Affordable Care Act was a great step forward in guaranteeing that right, but the current pandemic has highlighted the fact that more needs to be done. We must begin to separate access to health insurance from our places of employment. Losing a job should not mean losing health insurance. Carolyn supports the creation of a robust public health insurance option to compete with private sector options already offered on the Affordable Care Act health insurance exchanges as well as lowering the Medicare eligibility age to 50. Carolyn will encourage the Governor and General Assembly to expand Medicaid and help over 500,000 currently uninsured Georgians obtain health insurance.

To decrease the cost of health insurance, Carolyn will work to increase subsidies and cap premiums for those health insurance policies offered on the exchanges, while ensuring that all insurance plans cover essential health services. Carolyn will also fight all efforts to eliminate the ACA’s protection for people with pre-existing conditions.

The high cost of prescription drugs is a significant barrier to keeping Georgians healthy. Carolyn supports efforts to allow the federal government to negotiate prices for prescription medications. Due to the size of the Medicare and the potential public option plan population, the government has significant leverage to negotiate lower prices. Carolyn supports allowing the importation of drugs deemed safe by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services from other countries and efforts to improve the supply and reduce the cost of generic drugs.

Carolyn will also work to end surprise billing. Surprise billing occurs when patients are treated at an in-network hospital but is treated by an out-of-network physician. About 20 percent of visits to the emergency room and 10 percent of elective in-patient care results in a surprise bill. A surprise bill can result in a significant out-of-pocket cost to patients. Carolyn supports the legislation that will protect patients and take them out of the middle of insurer-provider disputes.

Confronting Injustice
IN CONGRESS, CAROLYN WILL WORK TO:

  • Establish a system of data collection on cases of police violence and establish a National Registry of Police Misconduct
  • Pass legislation that ends the transfer of military weaponry to local offices, bans racial and religious profiling, and establishes federal use of force standards for police
  • Pass the Eric Garner Excessive Use of Force Prevention Act of 2019

There have been 5,000 fatal shootings by the police in America since 2015. Black Americans are killed by the police at a rate twice as high as white people. This is not acceptable.

The federal government does not track police violence with any kind of reliable data collection and local police offices only have to report cases of police brutality on a voluntary basis. Carolyn will work to implement an effective program of data collection on the federal level. This will allow the federal government to track statistics, identify patterns, and investigate police misconduct across the country.

Carolyn will also fight to establish a National Registry of Police Misconduct. This registry should house records of every example of police misconduct from across the country. By giving every local police office in the country access to this information, we can prevent officers who were fired for violence from relocating themselves and perpetuating their brutality.

Additionally, Carolyn will work to pass H.R. 4408, also known as the Eric Garner Excessive Use of Force Prevention Act. This bill amends existing law and bans the use of chokeholds by police officers.

Carolyn also supports passing legislation that ends the transfer of military weaponry to local police; formally bans racial and religious profiling; and establishes federal use of force standards for police, with provisions that define clear legal consequences for offenders and ensure third-party investigation into offences.

Education & Job Training
IN CONGRESS, CAROLYN WILL WORK TO:

  • Make investments in our public education system because every child, no matter where they live, deserves a world-class education.
  • Expand programs like Pell Grants to make it easier to afford higher education, while also working to fix the student loan debt crisis.
  • Invest in job training and apprenticeship programs, because career training is essential to upward mobility and a stronger economy.
  • Provide universal pre-k to give every child the head start they need to be successful.

Carolyn is proud to send her son to Gwinnett public schools because she knows the value of a public education and how critical our schools are to ensuring that all our children have a bright future. Carolyn supports increased federal funding for Title 1 schools (those with high number of students from low-income backgrounds), fully funding the Individuals with Disabilities Act to help schools hire and retain highly qualified special education teachers and increase resources available to prepare and retain teachers.

Higher education is a key to economic success but is out of reach for far too many. Carolyn was only able to afford to go to college through the help of her community and programs like Pell Grants. Now, as a professor at Georgia State University, Carolyn sees the struggle too many of her students go through to afford the rising costs of higher education. To help make college more affordable, Carolyn supports increased funding for programs such as Pell Grants and supplemental loan programs. She believes that anyone who wants to pursue a higher education should not be held back simply because they cannot afford it.

In addition to helping prospective students afford college, we also need to provide relief for those already struggling with student debt. The student loan debt crisis is growing and if we don’t act now, the consequences will be catastrophic. Carolyn supports programs that enable folks to pay back their student loans proportionally to their income so that no one is paying more than they can afford. For those students who go into careers in public service such as teachers, nurses, police, firefighters and the military, Carolyn supports strengthening the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program.

With the increased need for skilled labor, workforce training and apprenticeship programs need to be readily available and affordable for those coming out of high school and for those looking at a new career. Carolyn supports increased investments in technical education programs as well as apprenticeship programs. Workers in changing industries are being left behind, and it’s important that they have opportunities to retrain for good, quality jobs.

High quality early childhood education is an important factor in later success in school. Carolyn supports universal, affordable, and high-quality early learning opportunities for every child. This can be accomplished through a combination of tax credits, strengthening and expanding Head Start and Early Head Start, as well as partnering with states to offer universal pre-K for three and four year olds.

Social Justice And Economic Opportunity
IN CONGRESS, CAROLYN WILL WORK TO:

  • Create a savings bond program for children from low income families that will help address intergenerational poverty, and ensure all children graduate from high school with resources to invest in a college education, a home loan, or a small business.
  • Use congressional oversight to ensure strict enforcement of housing and employment anti-discrimination laws.
  • Invest in world class education for all of our children and address disparities in discipline, learning, and educational opportunity head on.
  • Address racial disparities in our health care system.
  • Achieve meaningful criminal justice reform.

Carolyn believes all families want the same opportunity for their children, they just face different barriers to achieving it. The average wealth of a white family is ten times that of a black family reflecting generations of discrimination and inequality. The wealth gap is the direct result of public policies like redlining that made it difficult for black Americans to purchase homes, and their modern day counterpart of discriminatory lending practices. Homes are the most common way for Americans to accumulate intergenerational wealth. Carolyn supports ending the practice of modern redlining by prohibiting banks from discrimination in housing loans.

She also will support investment in policies to create a savings bond program for children from low income families, with a goal of addressing structural, intergenerational poverty. The federal government will contribute to these funds each year, and at 18, these children will have resources to invest in higher education, buying a home, or building a small business.

Ensuring educational equality is also fundamental to opportunity for all of our children. Carolyn is proud to be a professor at the Andrew Young School of Policy Studies, at Georgia State University, a public university that focuses on first generation college students and graduates more African American students than any university in the country. She also knows first hand the struggles her students face in getting a college degree and is committed to making sure higher education is affordable for all families. Carolyn also supports moving towards universal pre-K and investing in quality child care so all of our children start school ready to learn.

In the 7th district, she also often hears from African American families who talk about discrimination in the K-12 school system, including significant disparities in disciplinary actions taken against black children. Discrimination in education cannot be tolerated and she will work with organizations such as Black Men United for Children and Humanity to make sure our community tracks and swiftly address disparities in education.

We must also take significant measures to address the racial disparities in our health care system laid bare by both the coronavirus and Georgia’s shocking black maternal mortality rate. Carolyn will fight to make sure that all Americans have affordable quality health care, and that health care policy is designed to be sensitive to racial disparity in health outcomes.

Last, there is no denying the devastation that our broken criminal justice system has inflicted on black and brown communities. Carolyn will advocate for policies that reverse the disturbing reality of this system including: ending mandatory minimums for non-violent drug offenses, restoring voting rights to formerly incarcerated individuals, closing sentencing disparities, and instituting systems that better reintegrate people back into society.

Restoring Our Democracy
IN CONGRESS, CAROLYN WILL WORK TO:

  • Ensure we have free and fair elections, where every voice is heard and every vote is counted.
  • Ensure our electronic elections systems are secure from hacking and foreign influence.
  • Fix our broken campaign finance system and curb the influence of special interests.
  • End partisan gerrymandering -- voters should be picking their elected leaders, not the other way around.

Hold regular town halls and meet and greets in both Gwinnett and Forsyth Counties to ensure everyone has a chance to be heard. The first piece of legislation Carolyn will co-sponsor when elected to Congress will be Congressman John Lewis’ Voting Rights Advancement Act, which restores portions of the Voting Rights Act scrapped by the Supreme Court. But we must go beyond this to ensure that everyone who is eligible and wants to vote, can vote. Carolyn supports same day voter registration as well as legislation to stop the disastrous voter purges conducted by Georgia’s Secretary of State. She will also support legislation to ensure that our election systems are secure from hacking as well as inappropriate foreign influence.

Given the public health emergency of the coronavirus, Carolyn has been a fierce advocate for a comprehensive “vote-by-mail” system in Georgia: a voter shouldn’t have to risk life and health to vote.

Meaningful solutions to pressing issues like health care, our environment, and gun violence are held back due to the influence of special interests that spend billions to push their own corporate interests. Carolyn is committed to campaign finance reform, rolling back the Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision, and getting special interest money out of politics. She has already taken steps to make a difference here as well. She has pledged to never accept contributions from corporate PACs and to instead hold at least 4 public town halls every year she’s in Congress. She believes that our leaders should be responsive to the people in their district -- not powerful special interests.

Districts are drawn to favor one side over the other, so much so that politicians do not believe they can be held accountable. Our current lawmakers are more afraid of losing reelection than the consequences of disenfranchising their constituents. This is why Carolyn supports non-partisan redistricting. By un-rigging the district maps that protect unresponsive politicians, we can start to break the gridlock and polarization in Washington.

For our democracy to work, voters need to have confidence that our election process is free and fair and that their representatives are listening to them, never to special interests.

Economic Recovery In The Aftermath Of The Pandemic
IN CONGRESS, CAROLYN WILL SUPPORT A FAIR AND BROAD BASED FAMILIES-FIRST ECONOMIC RECOVERY BY FIGHTING FOR EFFORTS THAT:

  • Support the recovery of Georgia’s small businesses from the economic fallout of the pandemic.
  • Ensure that the social safety net including the unemployment insurance system as well as food and housing assistance programs have the resources necessary to allow families in need to support themselves until we can get our economy back on its feet.
  • Fix our broken health care system to ensure all families have affordable, quality health care.
  • Raise the federal minimum wage and match it with the Earned Income Tax Credit to ensure every family can make a living wage.
  • Help spur economic recovery by creating good-paying jobs through key investments to repair our crumbling and insufficient infrastructure with a focus on tackling climate change.

Over one million Georgians have lost their jobs since the economy was shut down. Carolyn experienced the pain of economic hardship first hand, as her family went bankrupt before she went to college. She knows that federal and state governments have a responsibility to assure that struggling families have the resources to support themselves. She was also Senate budget director in Georgia and helped the state navigate the Great Recession and knows the even greater challenges our community will face during this crisis.

Carolyn will work to ensure that the unemployment insurance system, food nutrition programs, and housing assistance programs have the necessary funds to assure every worker has the resources they need to support their families until our economy recovers.

Small businesses are the backbone of our economy and have been decimated by the pandemic. As our economy begins to recover, our local factories, shops, restaurants and bars must have access to the capital they require to reopen and hire back their workers. Carolyn will support the funding of existing programs and, if necessary, the creation of new programs to ensure the availability of small business grants and loans to all that are in need.

In order to jump start our economy with good paying jobs as well as strengthen our economy for the future, Carolyn supports a major program that rebuilds our roads, bridges, transit, and broadband infrastructure. We must move from a crumbling and outdated 20th century infrastructure to modern and strong 21st century infrastructure.

Many of the heroes during this crisis have been the low-wage workers that stock our grocery shelves and staff the check-out counters, cook and serve at our take-out restaurants, and staff our nursing homes. But too many of the workers we now recognize as essential to all of us do not make a living wage. When a minimum wage job in Georgia does not pay enough to support a family, one of the first steps we need to take in recovering our economy must be to guarantee a living wage. The costs of rent, gas and food increase every year, and our wages have not kept up. Carolyn supports increasing the federal minimum wage and pairing it with increases in the Earned Income Tax Credit to ensure that everyone can make a living wage.

Expanding Transit & Mobility
IN CONGRESS, CAROLYN WILL WORK TO:

  • Fully support federal programs to expand funding for new methods of public transit in Georgia’s 7th district.
  • Support the development of an electric vehicle charging grid to facilitate the transition to zero emissions transportation.
  • Modernize our infrastructure with funding to address local transportation bottlenecks.

As a commuter to downtown Atlanta from Georgia’s 7th, Carolyn knows the misery of sitting in traffic as well as anyone. She knows that expanding transit and transportation options is a key to improving mobility and unlocking economic opportunity and is an essential investment as we fight climate change.

In Congress, Carolyn will support legislation to make significant investments in our infrastructure, including transit, commuter rail, and support for electric vehicles and other technologies that help us develop the green economy we need for the 21st century and unlock business opportunity for this district.

The gridlock in this area has begun to choke off jobs and economic opportunity. Most recently, WestRock and NCR relocated from the 7th district to Atlanta to be closer to transit options. As an aide to Senator Ron Wyden, Carolyn worked to successfully expand federal funding for light-rail systems that are now seen as a model for the entire nation. She additionally worked to support programs that better coordinate transportation with land use planning.

She will bring this knowledge and background to fight for our district in Congress. For years, residents of the 7th district and all Georgians have sent their taxpayer dollars to Washington to support transit initiatives and infrastructure in other states - now it is time for an investment in our community.

Expanding transportation options is not only the smart thing to do, it is the right thing to do. Exhausting commutes damage the environment and have a negative effect on the health of Georgians. Everyone in our district should be able to afford accessible, safe and reliable methods of transit -- creating a truly connected community.

Gun Safety & Reform
IN CONGRESS, CAROLYN WILL WORK TO:

  • Protect Americans’ right to safely own a gun; while passing common-sense, lifesaving gun safety measures.
  • Implement universal background checks on all gun sales, including at gun shows, a move that is supported by nearly all Americans, including a majority of gun owners.
  • Ban assault weapons, high capacity magazines, bump stocks, silencers, and armor piercing bullets.

For years, Congress has consistently failed to take meaningful action while innocent people, including children, fall victim to gun violence each day. Our children should not have to live in a country where active shooter drills are part of a normal routine in school. People should be able to enjoy the movie theater, mall, concert, or nightclub without fearing for their safety.

The majority of Americans, including gun owners, support gun safety measures that are meant to keep weapons out of the wrong hands. No one with a history of domestic violence should be able to purchase a weapon. Carolyn will fight to close the “boyfriend loophole” and protect the on average 52 women who are murdered monthly by their partners with firearms.

It's time to close the “Charleston loophole” and mandate universal background checks on all gun sales, including at all gun shows. This will ensure that weapons don’t fall into the wrong hands, including those on the FBI terrorist watch list.

We also need to keep our communities safe by banning items that present undue safety concerns. Assault weapons, silencers, high capacity magazines, bump stocks, and armor piercing bullets are not necessary for self-protection or hunting. These common-sense reforms will save lives and make our communities safer.

Gun manufacturers and dealers must be held accountable for their products. Carolyn will also work to repeal the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act which gives gun manufacturers and dealers broad immunity from legal liability. The firearms industry must also be better regulated. Carolyn supports increased funding for the ATF so they can more aggressively take enforcement action on those irresponsible gun dealers and manufacturers who are supplying the illegal market for gun crimes.

Carolyn grew up around guns in a family of gun owners and was taught from an early age that owning a gun is a serious responsibility. In Congress, she will stand up to the NRA’s divisive, false narrative that suggests that we cannot both implement common-sense gun safety laws while also respecting Second Amendment rights. We can do both.

Fixing Our Immigration System
For too long, we’ve had a broken immigration system. We need to reaffirm our commitment to building a country that is diverse, inclusive, and global while also addressing valid border security concerns and upgrades.

IN CONGRESS, CAROLYN WILL WORK TO:

  • Pass comprehensive immigration reform that deals with problems along our border while also recognizing legal status for those who have been contributing to our society.
  • Protect DREAMers and establish a clear path to citizenship for them.
  • Reject any policies that separate children from their parents at the border and reaffirm our country’s values of welcoming immigrants and celebrating our diversity.

Reform the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). We cannot be a country that closes our border and turns people away “because we are full,” nor can we continue to have leaders who use vile, xenephobic language that demeans entire groups of people. We need an immigration system that is humane and reflects our country’s history and values.

Meaningful immigration reform isn’t about separating children at the borders or building walls and fences -- it’s about establishing a system that’s fair and lays out a clear procedure for our immigrants. Carolyn is committed to fighting for comprehensive immigration reform that recognizes economic realities, deals with security along the border, and offers a pathway to citizenship for those who have lived here and contributed to our society, including our DREAMers.

We must recognize the plight of refugees who are fleeing for their own safety, and we should increase the number of immigration judges to swiftly hear their cases and reduce the amount of time refugee-seekers have to await trial.

Part of immigration reform must also address security concerns along our borders. This means a combination of deploying new technologies, giving border agents the tools they need to effectively patrol the border, and working with other countries and our allies to deal with those who seek to cause harm.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) must be reformed so that immigration enforcement represents our values. There must be increased oversight from Congress and independent inspectors, independent ombudsmen for detained immigrants, expanded safeguards for citizens erroneously targeted, improved agency standards through mandatory reviews and updates, increased professionalism through training, and reinstating enforcement priorities.

Addressing The Climate Crisis
IN CONGRESS, CAROLYN WILL WORK TO:

  • Address climate change with the seriousness it deserves.
  • Invest in clean energy jobs and technologies; helping to clean our environment and boost our economy.
  • Reduce the influence of special interests, whose corruption of our system has impeded progress to address climate change.

Climate change is an existential threat to our way of life and will significantly impact the well-being of our children and future generations. The science behind climate change is clear. It’s time that we pass serious measures to curb the troubling trends of warming temperatures, heightened levels of CO2, and rising sea levels while we still can.

First and foremost, Carolyn believes that the United States needs to rejoin the Paris Climate Agreement. We are now the only major country that is not part of the historic partnership. We must reverse the Trump administration’s decision to pull back from the world stage at a time when American leadership is paramount.

But solely rejoining the Paris Agreement is not enough. The existential threat of climate change calls for a Marshall Plan level of investments and regulatory efforts to ensure we move swiftly toward 100% clean, renewable, and zero-emission energy in electricity generation; 100% zero emissions for all new light-duty passenger vehicles, medium-duty trucks, and all buses; and 100% zero-carbon pollution for all new commercial and residential buildings.

By investing in clean-energy jobs, we can take important steps to curb pollution and grow our economy. We should not let China or Europe take the lead. Carolyn believes that we can use this crisis as an opportunity and invest in millions of high-quality jobs creating solar panels, building wind turbines, and revamping our infrastructure to support green transit. Carolyn additionally supports investing in critical research to invent new technologies. Tackling climate change will not just lead to a more sustainable environment; it allows for the creation of a vibrant, green-based manufacturing revival.

Unfortunately we’ve failed to take serious action to curb climate change because special interests like big oil and gas companies have spent millions to elect their allies and then tell them to vote in their interests -- and against their constituents. Carolyn supports eliminating the billions of dollars in tax subsidies and tax breaks enjoyed by the fossil fuel industry and refocusing those funds to the green economy. Carolyn has taken the bold step of refusing contributions from corporate PACs because she believes that it’s important that our leaders are fighting for the well being of people in their districts -- not powerful special interests.

Veterans And Military Families
CAROLYN WILL FIGHT FOR VETERANS AND MILITARY SERVICE MEMBER FAMILIES BY:

  • Assuring all veterans have access to affordable and comprehensive healthcare, including mental health care, that meets their specific needs.
  • Supporting services for military families.
  • Supporting transition from active duty to civilian life.

Carolyn will work to fully fund the Veterans Health Administration (VHA). Increased funding will help fill the thousands of currently vacant positions as well as allow for an increase in pay which will help lessen staff turnover. A fully funded and staffed VA will help cut the wait time for services. Carolyn also supports the expansion of community-based medical options and telehealth services. Such services would be of particular benefit to veterans in more rural areas.

The stress and trauma faced by many of our military service members can result in Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and other mental health issues. Veteran suicide is a severe and growing problem (60,000 veterans took their own lives between 2008 and 2017). Carolyn will work to guarantee veterans access to mental health care through expanding the number of mental health and addiction clinicians treating veterans and investing in training for mental health providers.

We must not only honor the sacrifices made by our service members, but we must honor the sacrifices made by their families by giving them the support they deserve. Due to the many relocations of our military service members, military parents face unique childcare issues. Carolyn will support increased funding for high-quality child-care in military communities. The safety and adequacy of military housing is a significant problem for our military families. Due to neglect much of military housing needs renovation, including lead abatement. A 2019 poll of military families found that 56 percent had negative or very negative experiences with their housing. Carolyn will fight for increased federal oversight of housing contractors to assure military housing is safe.

The transition from active service to civilian life is often difficult for our veterans. Carolyn will work to increase job training and apprenticeship opportunities for veterans, increase assistance in starting small businesses, and support programs that help connect veterans to jobs. Carolyn will work to expand and improve the GI Bill through expanding options for the utilization of the GI bill and expanding outreach efforts to increase awareness of the GI Bill. On any night approximately 35,000 veterans are homeless. Carolyn will fight for the investments needed for rapid re-housing through the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Supportive Services for Veterans Family program and permanent supportive housing through the Housing and Urban Development Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing program.

Jobs & The Economy
IN CONGRESS, CAROLYN WILL WORK TO:

  • Increase investments in job training and apprenticeship programs so that everyone has a path to a living wage.
  • Ensure that college is affordable by increasing Pell Grants, service loan forgiveness programs, and ensuring that student loan payments are pegged to income.
  • Increase funding to ensure Georgia has the infrastructure needed for a 21st century high tech economy.
  • Support legislation that helps us build a green jobs economy to address the climate crisis.

Our economy cannot continue moving forward until our workers earn a living wage. The cost of rent, gas, and food increases every year. Yet wages have not grown as they should. We need to increase the federal minimum wage to account for inflation and also pair this with the expansion of the Earned Income Tax Credit, to ensure that all hard-working individuals are able to achieve a living wage.

Small business is the backbone of our local economy. Carolyn will work to give targeted tax relief to our small community businesses. Carolyn will also work to ensure that the reasonable and necessary regulations faced by small businesses are implemented in an efficient and business friendly manner while also partnering with our local business community to identify and then work to eliminate those regulations that are overly burdensome and/or no longer serve the purpose they once did.

Many studies show that education is the key to the 21st economy, and college or career training and apprenticeships programs are essential to upward mobility. However, the costs of higher education have skyrocketed as states have disinvested in our public universities. No young person should be unable to go to college because he or she can’t afford it. Programs like federal Pell Grants used to cover 80 percent of the cost of higher education, today, they only cover around 30 percent. In order to make college more affordable, Carolyn supports legislation that would significantly increase the maximum Pell grant value for individuals already eligible and would also expand the benefits of Pell grants to more middle-class Americans.

Carolyn has visited some of the union run training centers in the metro area, and she is strongly supportive of their apprenticeship programs that give young people a path to a career and a good wage. She will work to increase investments in job training and apprenticeship programs so that everyone has a clear career pathway that leads to a living wage job.

Most of us living here in Gwinnett and Forsyth face a “soul-sucking commute.” The time we spend stuck in traffic could be spent on so many other things, including being with family. Infrastructure investments must be made in our district in order to attract businesses and preserve our quality of life. Carolyn supports a significant federal infrastructure bill that will help repair our crumbling roads and bridges, fund a variety of transit options, and employ Georgians at a time of record unemployment.

Over 330,000 Georgia households do not have access to broadband internet. In normal times this lack of a 21st century high-tech infrastructure would be a significant economic development disadvantage. In the age of pandemics where schools are forced to move to on-line learning and many businesses are requiring their employees to work from home, those households without internet access are facing an educational and economic crisis. Carolyn will work to ensure that any infrastructure legislation includes funding to guarantee every household has access to high speed broadband internet.

Last, Carolyn believes that we must invest in new technology and infrastructure to address the climate crisis. This is going to entail creating incentives for millions of high-quality jobs creating and installing solar panels, building wind turbines, building electric cars, and revamping our infrastructure to support transit and alternative fuel power generation. Carolyn additionally supports investing in critical research around clean energy innovation and new technologies. Tackling climate change will not just lead to a more sustainable environment; it also opens the door to a vibrant, green-based manufacturing revival.

Women's Issues
IN CONGRESS, CAROLYN WILL:

  • Fight for equal pay through support for the Paycheck Fairness Act
  • Work to ensure paid family medical leave
  • Stand up and fight for a woman’s right to make her own health care decisions, including the right to choose
  • Support efforts to lower the Georgia maternal mortality rate, including advocating for Medicaid expansion
  • Support finally ratifying the Equal Rights Amendment

Women who work full time, year-round are paid, on average, only 82 cents for every dollar paid to men, resulting in a gap of $10,194 each year. On average Latina women are paid 54 cents, black women 62 cents, white women 79 cents, and Asian women 90 cents for every dollar paid to white men. At the current rate, the wage gap will not close until 2059. Carolyn will work to pass the Paycheck Fairness Act which would help break the harmful patterns of pay discrimination and strengthen the workplace protections for women.

The Equal Rights Amendment has been ratified by the 38 states needed to add an amendment to the Constitution. However, the Mitch McConnell controlled Senate refuses to extend the deadline for ratification. Carolyn will use her power in Congress to continuously advocate for and protect this vital amendment as we work to finally ratify it.

Carolyn strongly supports a woman’s right to make her own health care decisions, including the right to choose. Although the Supreme Court has repeatedly recognized a woman’s right to privacy and control over her own body as a constitutional right, anti-choice advocates have worked for years in states like Georgia to pass laws to undermine women’s reproductive health. Most recently, the Republicans in Georgia passed legislation to criminalize abortion, with penalities of up to 10 years in prison for doctors and women. This legislation passed in a state where women are more likely to die in childbirth than any other state in the country. Carolyn has worked to expand women’s reproductive health care for years and will support legislation to codify Roe v. Wade and make sure that women have access to contraception.

Georgia today has the highest maternal mortality rate in the country - a rate equivalent to maternal mortality in Uzbekistan. The situation is even worse among minority and low-income communities. Carolyn will support efforts to increase the number of maternity care health professionals in underserved areas, support Medicaid expansion in Georgia, make pregnancy a qualifying life event allowing people to enroll in the Affordable Care Act marketplace insurance plans outside of open enrollment periods, support increased funding for implicit bias training among health professionals, and support nationwide efforts to examine maternal deaths.

Giving families time off to bond with their newborns, newly adopted children, or to care for a sick family member without facing financial stress is essential, and Carolyn supports the development of a national paid family medical leave policy. The United States is the only developed country in the world that does not provide even a modest form of paid family leave -- it’s time for this to change.

LGBTQIA+ Rights
IN CONGRESS, SHE WILL FIGHT TO:

  • Pass the Equality Act that would make explicit the inclusion of sexual orientation and gender identity as protected characteristics.
  • Pass the Do No Harm Act which would clarify that the Religious Freedom Restoration Act is intended to protect religious freedom without allowing the infliction of harm to other people.

Carolyn was proud to work for now-Senator Ron Wyden when he became the first U.S. Senate candidate, and then Senator, to publicly support marriage equality in 1995 -- a policy that Carolyn advocated for even then. In Congress, Carolyn will continue her fight for LGBTQ+ individuals.

Federal laws protect the civil rights of people on the basis of race, national origin, biological sex, disability, and religion. Unfortunately, our laws do not provide the same protections based on sexual orientation or gender identity. A recent survey found that 25 percent of LGBTQ+ respondents experienced discrimination because of their sexual orientation or gender identity in the previous year, with over half reporting that discrimination negatively affected their work and community environments.

To ensure that the LGBTQ+ community receives the anti-discrimination protections that they deserve, Carolyn supports passage of the Equality Act. The Equality Act builds on existing civil rights law to explicitly protect sexual orientation and gender identity from discrimination under federal law. The Equality Act would prohibit discrimination in public spaces and services, including retail stores, banks, legal services and transportation, as well as federally funded programs on the basis of identity.

Carolyn also supports the Do No Harm Act to clarify that the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) was intended to protect religious freedom while also protecting others from harm. RFRA was passed over 20 years ago with the purpose of protecting minority religious groups’ constitutional right to freely exercise their religious beliefs and was supported by a broad coalition including many in the civil rights community. Certain court rulings on RFRA allow businesses to discriminate based on the owner’s personal religious beliefs. The Do No Harm Act ensures that religious freedom is used as a shield to protect the Constitutional right to free exercise of religion and not as a sword to discriminate.

[21]

”
—Carolyn Bourdeaux’s campaign website (2020)[22]


Republican Party Rich McCormick

McCormick’s campaign website stated the following:

“

HEALTHCARE REFORMED
We have the best healthcare system in the world. The survival rate of heart attacks and strokes in the U.S. far outpaces any other system. The problem is that the price of healthcare has quickly become unaffordable. We spend about 1/5 of our taxes on Healthcare already, not counting your premiums which have likely increased by over double since the “Affordable Care Act” was passed. To add insult to injury, your deductibles may have increased and about half of all Americans have had to deal with surprise billing. If we go to a single-payer (government-run) system, we would ADD about $32 trillion to our tax burden in the next 10 years while eliminating choice and around 160 million private health insurance plans.

As an emergency physician who treats patients regardless of their insurance status, Dr. Rich McCormick is intimately familiar with the costs of healthcare and understands that a single-payer healthcare system would be the biggest step the nation could take toward socialism. In Canada, a single payer system, the average wait to see a specialist after being diagnosed is over 21 weeks and getting worse every year. Dr. McCormick understands the limitations to this system and will fight to keep the best practices while eliminating waist and administrative costs making our system unaffordable.

To fix healthcare and make it more affordable and accessible, it’s time to send a physician to DC. In congress, Rich will champion patient-centered healthcare solutions to:

  • Protect those with pre-existing conditions
  • End surprise medical billing
  • Slash federally-mandated paperwork that robs physicians of time with patients
  • Oppose Medicare for All that would eliminate 160 million private insurance plans

OPPORTUNITY RESTORED
Raised by a single mother, Dr. Rich McCormick got his first job in middle school as a paperboy and by the age of 15 became a bus boy and cook. Rich worked his way through college and was commissioned an officer in the Marine Corps. He then obtained an MBA while attending night school and through hard work, was able to continue his pursuit of the American Dream. Eventually he went to medical school and is now an Emergency Medicine Physician.

Rich wants to ensure that children from all backgrounds have that same opportunities. As a congressman, he will work to empower the private sector that powers upward mobility and income while fighting the slide towards socialism. He will champion job and income creating legislation to:

  • Provide real tax relief for middle class families
  • Remove unnecessary regulation that limit growth with no benefit
  • Promote entrepreneurship and innovation to grow the economy

AMERICA STRENGTHENED
Rich swore an oath to defend this nation against all enemies, foreign and domestic. He has served in multiple combat zones and understands the sacrifice that men and women make when they serve this great nation in the military.

As someone who sacrificed time with family to serve during times of war, Rich knows the critical importance of building a military that can defend our national security at a moment’s notice.

In Congress, Rich will continue upholding his oath. He will lean on his experience to guide foreign policy and military preparedness to keep America and our allies secure. Just as importantly, he will make certain that our nation keeps its promise to our veterans when they come home.

  • Restore America’s military might
  • Prepare our troops for the next battle
  • Deliver better healthcare to veterans

FAITH RENEWED
Rich is wholly invested in supporting his family, serving with faith, and building a community right here in Gwinnett and Forsyth. Rich believes that investing in the youth of America is an investment in the future.

He has been active in youth ministry for over 20 years. As a physician and student leader, he has seen how human trafficking and sexual abuse has devastated not just families, but entire communities. Domestic violence is a reality that Dr. McCormick treats all too often and he recognizes the need to support outreach and advocacy groups throughout the district.

As an ER doctor, Dr. McCormick has treated too many overdose victims and seen too many lives devastated by drug addiction. As the head of the Polypharmacy Multidisciplinary Committee at Camp Lejeune Naval Medical Center, he wrote and helped enforce policy that reduced the number of concerning polysubstance abusers by over 65% in one year. Dr. McCormick is prepared to tackle the tough challenges facing our community by:

  • Combating opioid abuse and help those struggling with addictions find treatment
  • End the scourge of human trafficking and punish traffickers
  • Protect life at every stage, from the unborn to the infirm

COMMUNITIES ENGAGED
Dr. McCormick didn’t serve our country in the military for over 20 years only to see to it become the next Venezuela or Cuba. That is why he is 100% ALL IN to stop Nancy Pelosi and her socialist Squad from bringing those same radical policies to America.

Rich knows that America is at it’s best when we get government out of the way of job creators and empower them to build their businesses with less regulatory burdens. He will do everything possible to defend the American Dream for all people by assuring upward mobility and better income that accompanies a strong economy.

He will continue to find innovative ways to:

  • Encourage business growth and job creation
  • Stop Socialized Healthcare
  • Limit Government and Protect Individual Liberty
  • Preserve the American Dream for Future Generations

[21]

”
—Rich McCormick’s campaign website (2020)[23]


Pivot Counties

See also: Pivot Counties by state

Five of 159 Georgia counties—3.14 percent—are pivot counties. These are counties that voted for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012 and for Donald Trump (R) in 2016. Altogether, the nation had 206 pivot counties, with most being concentrated in upper midwestern and northeastern states.

Counties won by Trump in 2016 and Obama in 2012 and 2008
County Trump margin of victory in 2016 Obama margin of victory in 2012 Obama margin of victory in 2008
Baker County, Georgia 8.68% 0.57% 1.07%
Dooly County, Georgia 2.05% 6.98% 3.53%
Peach County, Georgia 2.91% 7.48% 6.75%
Quitman County, Georgia 10.92% 9.04% 7.90%
Twiggs County, Georgia 1.58% 8.64% 6.97%

In the 2016 presidential election, Donald Trump (R) won Georgia with 50.8 percent of the vote. Hillary Clinton (D) received 45.6 percent. In presidential elections between 1900 and 2016, Georgia voted Democratic 63.33 percent of the time and Republican 36.67 percent of the time. Georgia voted Republican in every presidential election from 2000 to 2016.

Presidential results by legislative district

The following table details results of the 2012 and 2016 presidential elections by state House districts in Georgia. Click [show] to expand the table. The "Obama," "Romney," "Clinton," and "Trump" columns describe the percent of the vote each presidential candidate received in the district. The "2012 Margin" and "2016 Margin" columns describe the margin of victory between the two presidential candidates in those years. The "Party Control" column notes which party held that seat heading into the 2018 general election. Data on the results of the 2012 and 2016 presidential elections broken down by state legislative districts was compiled by Daily Kos.[24][25]

In 2012, Barack Obama (D) won 64 out of 180 state House districts in Georgia with an average margin of victory of 45.5 points. In 2016, Hillary Clinton (D) won 74 out of 180 state House districts in Georgia with an average margin of victory of 42.3 points. Clinton won 14 districts controlled by Republicans heading into the 2018 elections.
In 2012, Mitt Romney (R) won 116 out of 180 state House districts in Georgia with an average margin of victory of 36.6 points. In 2016, Donald Trump (R) won 106 out of 180 state House districts in Georgia with an average margin of victory of 36.8 points. Trump won four districts controlled by Democrats heading into the 2018 elections.


District election history

2018

See also: Georgia's 7th Congressional District election, 2018

General election

General election for U.S. House Georgia District 7

Incumbent Rob Woodall defeated Carolyn Bourdeaux in the general election for U.S. House Georgia District 7 on November 6, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Rob Woodall
Rob Woodall (R)
 
50.1
 
140,443
Image of Carolyn Bourdeaux
Carolyn Bourdeaux (D) Candidate Connection
 
49.9
 
140,010

Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 280,453
(100.00% precincts reporting)
Candidate Connection = 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 runoff election

Democratic primary runoff for U.S. House Georgia District 7

Carolyn Bourdeaux defeated David Kim in the Democratic primary runoff for U.S. House Georgia District 7 on July 24, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Carolyn Bourdeaux
Carolyn Bourdeaux Candidate Connection
 
52.0
 
7,948
Image of David Kim
David Kim
 
48.0
 
7,348

There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified.

Total votes: 15,296
Candidate Connection = 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 U.S. House Georgia District 7

The following candidates ran in the Democratic primary for U.S. House Georgia District 7 on May 22, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Carolyn Bourdeaux
Carolyn Bourdeaux Candidate Connection
 
27.3
 
8,662
✔
Image of David Kim
David Kim
 
26.0
 
8,249
Image of Ethan Pham
Ethan Pham Candidate Connection
 
17.8
 
5,666
Image of Melissa Davis
Melissa Davis
 
13.7
 
4,340
Image of Kathleen Allen
Kathleen Allen
 
11.0
 
3,500
Image of Steve Reilly
Steve Reilly
 
4.2
 
1,335

There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified.

Total votes: 31,752
Candidate Connection = 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 U.S. House Georgia District 7

Incumbent Rob Woodall defeated Shane Hazel in the Republican primary for U.S. House Georgia District 7 on May 22, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Rob Woodall
Rob Woodall
 
71.9
 
30,450
Image of Shane Hazel
Shane Hazel
 
28.1
 
11,883

Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified.

Total votes: 42,333
Candidate Connection = 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's 7th Congressional District election, 2016

Heading into the election, Ballotpedia rated this race as safely Republican. Incumbent Rob Woodall (R) defeated Rashid Malik (D) in the general election on November 8, 2016. Neither candidate faced a primary opponent on May 24, 2016.[26][27]

U.S. House, Georgia District 7 General Election, 2016
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngRob Woodall Incumbent 60.4% 174,081
     Democratic Rashid Malik 39.6% 114,220
Total Votes 288,301
Source: Georgia Secretary of State

2014

See also: Georgia's 7th Congressional District elections, 2014

The 7th Congressional District of Georgia held an election for the U.S. House of Representatives on November 4, 2014. Incumbent Rob Woodall (R) defeated challenger Thomas Wight (D) in the general election.

U.S. House, Georgia District 7 General Election, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngRob Woodall 65.39% 113,557
     Democratic Thomas Wight 34.61% 60,112
Total Votes 173,669
Source: Georgia Secretary of State

2012

On November 6, 2012, Rob Woodall (R) won re-election to the United States House. He defeated Steve Reilly (D) in the general election.

U.S. House, Georgia District 7 General Election, 2012
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngRob Woodall Incumbent 62.2% 156,689
     Democratic Steve Reilly 37.8% 95,377
Total Votes 252,066
Source: Georgia Secretary of State "Official Election Results, 2012 General Election"

2010

On November 2, 2010, Rob Woodall won election to the United States House. He defeated Doug Heckman (D) in the general election.[28]

U.S. House, Georgia District 7 General Election, 2010
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngRob Woodall 67.1% 160,898
     Democratic Doug Heckman 32.9% 78,996
Total Votes 239,894

Ballot access requirements

The table below details filing requirements for 7th Congressional District candidates in Georgia in the 2020 election cycle. For additional information on candidate ballot access requirements in Georgia, click here.

Filing requirements, 2020
State Office Party Signatures required Signature formula Filing fee Filing fee formula Filing deadline Source
Georgia 7th Congressional District Qualified party N/A N/A $5,220.00 3% of annual salary 3/6/2020 Source
Georgia 7th Congressional District Unaffiliated 16,448 5% of registered voters in the district in the last election (reduced to 70% of statutory requirement) $5,220.00 3% of annual salary 8/14/2020 Source


See also

External links

Footnotes

  1. ↑ Atlanta Journal-Constitution, "BREAKING: U.S. Rep. Rob Woodall will not seek re-election," February 7, 2019
  2. ↑ Carolyn Bourdeaux's 2020 campaign website, "Meet Carolyn," accessed August 31, 2020
  3. ↑ Rich McCormick's 2020 campaign website, "Why I'm Running," accessed August 31, 2020
  4. ↑ Georgia Redistricting Map "Map" accessed July 5, 2012
  5. ↑ Candidate Connection surveys completed before September 26, 2019, were not used to generate candidate profiles. In battleground primaries, Ballotpedia based its selection of noteworthy candidates on polling, fundraising, and noteworthy endorsements. In battleground general elections, all major party candidates and any other candidates with the potential to impact the outcome of the race were included.
  6. ↑ Fundraising by primary candidates can be found on the race's respective primary election page. Fundraising by general election candidates can be found on the race's general election page.
  7. ↑ Federal Election Commission, "2022 Quarterly Reports," accessed March 2, 2022
  8. ↑ Cook Political Report, "Introducing the 2017 Cook Political Report Partisan Voter Index," April 7, 2017
  9. ↑ FiveThirtyEight, "Election Update: The Most (And Least) Elastic States And Districts," September 6, 2018
  10. ↑ Inside Elections also uses Tilt ratings to indicate an even smaller advantage and greater competitiveness.
  11. ↑ Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Nathan Gonzalez," April 19, 2018
  12. ↑ Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Kyle Kondik," April 19, 2018
  13. ↑ Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Charlie Cook," April 22, 2018
  14. ↑ Twitter, "Rich McCormick on June 10, 2020," accessed August 27, 2020
  15. ↑ John McCormick 2020 campaign website, "Seventh District Incumbent Congressman Rob Woodall Endorses Dr. Rich McCormick for Congress," July 1, 2020
  16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 FOX 5 Atlanta, "Biden endorses Carolyn Bourdeaux in Georgia congressional race," September 23, 2020
  17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 Forsyth County News, "Obama endorses Bourdeaux for 7th District race," September 25, 2020
  18. ↑ Carolyn Bourdeaux's 2020 campaign website, "GA-07 RATINGS CHANGE: Carolyn Bourdeaux's Race Shifts To 'Lean D' By Cook Political Report," August 14, 2020
  19. ↑ John McCormick 2020 campaign website, "Seventh District Incumbent Congressman Rob Woodall Endorses Dr. Rich McCormick for Congress," July 1, 2020
  20. ↑ Federal Election Commission, "Georgia - House District 07," accessed August 27, 2020
  21. ↑ 21.0 21.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
  22. ↑ Carolyn Bourdeaux’s campaign website, “Issues,” accessed August 27, 2020
  23. ↑ Rich McCormick’s campaign website, “My commitment to you,” accessed August 28, 2020
  24. ↑ Daily Kos, "Daily Kos Elections' statewide election results by congressional and legislative districts," July 9, 2013
  25. ↑ Daily Kos, "Daily Kos Elections' 2016 presidential results for congressional and legislative districts," February 6, 2017
  26. ↑ Georgia Secretary of State, "Qualifying Candidate Information," accessed March 12, 2016
  27. ↑ The New York Times, "Georgia Primary Results," May 24, 2016
  28. ↑ U.S. Congress House Clerk, "Statistics of the Congressional Election of November 2, 2010," accessed March 28, 2013


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