Kingston advances; Collins and Dooley best Carter

Wednesday, May 20, 2026

Good morning! We’re taking a pause from our regularly scheduled environmental news to bring you results from Tuesday’s primary election. Check below to see how your candidates fared, and to learn if and when you need to vote in a runoff.

Questions, tips or concerns? Send me a note at mary.landers@thecurrentga.org

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NEWS: ELECTIONS

State and federal results

Longtime Coastal Georgia Congressman Buddy Carter lost his bid to become the Republican nominee for the U.S. Senate as the top two vote getters in that primary — Mike Collins and Derek Dooley — advanced to the runoff. The winner of that race faces U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff in November.

Republicans Rick Jackson and Burt Jones will face each other in a runoff for governor, while Keisha Lance Bottoms won the Democratic nomination outright.

In his first run for public office, Jim Kingston, 35-year-old son of former Congressman Jack Kingston, won the Republican nomination for the Congressional seat that represents Coastal Georgia. On the Democratic side, veteran candidate Joyce Marie Griggs and newcomer Amanda Hollowell will square off in the Democratic runoff.

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NEWS: ELECTIONS

County-by-County unofficial results:

Chatham

Roger Moss, the incumbent school board president beat challenger Dionne Hoskins-Brown, on a platform of improving literacy in Savannah-Chatham County schools, unofficial results show.

Also in Chatham unofficial results, Brian M. Hussey defeated Joseph Thomas Welch in a nonpartisan special election for Chatham County Commission District 4. That’s the seat Commissioner Patrick Farrell left to make an ultimately unsuccessful bid for the Republican nomination for U.S. Congress representing Coastal Georgia.

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McIntosh

After years of wrangling over a controversial zoning on Sapelo Island, incumbent County Commissioner Roger Lotson appears to have defeated Ire “J.R.” Grovner, Jr., to retain the seat that represents the island-based Gullah Geechee community that is the focus of the rezoning effort.

But current County Commission Chair Kate Karwacki lost her bid for the at-large seat on that board, in unofficial results. Tim Gardner and Kyle Turner will compete in the runoff for that position.

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Bryan

Voters passed a 1% sales tax for education that will provide funding for a new high school in the growing northern part of the county, according to preliminary election results.

Bryan’s school board elections are partisan, unlike most others in the area. In District 5, unofficial results show Republican David Schwartz will face Democrat Bonnie Bhonsle in the general election. For the school board chair, unofficial results have Republican Amy Murphy winning the primary. She will face Democrat Tiffany M. Gregg, who ran unchallenged.

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Camden

Incumbent Martin Turner has successfully defended his Camden County District 2 commission seat against challenger Ben Goff, preliminary results show. The contentious battle for the seat culminated in a 245-vote margin, with Turner ultimately capturing 59.81% of the vote. 

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Glynn

In unofficial results, incumbent District 4 Glynn County Commissioner David Sweat has won the primary election against Jonathan Thornton, setting Sweat up for a matchup against Cornell Harvey.

Dane Hutcheson won the District 3 Commission race against Miranda Music Smith, preliminary results show. He captured 71.92% of the vote. He will succeed the current chair of the commission, Wayne Neal, in January, who announced his intent to retire.

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Liberty

Liberty County featured two contentious Democratic primary races. For the Georgia House District 168 seat, longtime State Rep. Al Williams handily defeated challenger Sabrina Newby. The County Commission District 1 seat is headed to a runoff between former Walthourville Mayor Larry Baker and incumbent Marion Stevens, who is facing charges of felony child abuse. Both results are preliminary.

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Get ready for runoffs

Multiple races in Coastal Georgia will require a runoff, including the Republican primary for U.S. Senate and the Democratic contest for the District 1 U.S. House seat.

Georgia requires a runoff in state and federal races when no candidate receives more than 50% of the vote. Municipal ordinances vary about the runoff requirement. When a runoff is required, the top two vote getters square off. With crowded fields in many races up and down the coast, runoffs were inevitable.

The primary runoff is scheduled for June 16, with early voting from Monday, June 8 to Friday, June 12. The voter registration deadline for the runoff has already passed.

Those who vote in either party’s primary are restricted to that party’s runoff. You may not switch parties for the runoff. But if you are registered and did not vote in the primary election, you can still vote in the runoff. Similarly, if you pulled a nonpartisan ballot in the primary, you are eligible to participate in either party’s primary runoff.

Only 10 states conduct runoff elections as part of their party nomination process, though not all set 50% as their threshold. In North Carolina, it’s 30%; in South Dakota, it’s 35%. 

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NEWS: ELECTIONS

Voter turnout

Georgia voters broke a turnout record for early voting in a primary election on the final day of early voting. Statewide turnout was about 1 million voters, 13.9% of those eligible.

Total turnout was not available from the Secretary of State’s office Tuesday night. But a quick calculation based on votes cast in the governor’s race indicated an approximately 27% turnout.

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