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- Democratic Georgia state Reps. Doug Stoner and Gregg Kennard are foregoing reelection this 12 months after their districts have been redrawn.
- Both Stoner, of Smyrna, and Kennard, of Lawrenceville, symbolize the higher Atlanta space.
- Georgia’s congressional and legislative maps have been redrawn late final 12 months after a choose ordered extra majority-Black districts be added to them.
Two Georgia House Democrats say they will not search reelection in 2024 after they have been drawn into districts with fellow Democratic incumbents.
State Reps. Doug Stoner of Smyrna and Gregg Kennard of Lawrenceville made their bulletins Tuesday.
Stoner was been positioned right into a district with Rep. Teri Anulewicz of Smyrna, whereas Kennard was put into the identical district as House Democratic Whip Sam Park of Lawrenceville.
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Their choices got here after a federal choose accepted new congressional and legislative maps. The choose had ordered lawmakers to attract extra districts with Black majorities. Republicans, in search of to restrict losses to their get together, paired three units of Democratic House incumbents whereas creating the brand new districts.
The third Democratic pairing is of Reps. Saira Draper and Becky Evans of Atlanta. Both have mentioned they’ll nonetheless search reelection, that means main voters will resolve.
Aerial drone view of Atlanta Skyline, displaying the Georgia state Capitol. (Joe Sohm/Visions of America/Universal Images Group through Getty Images)
There’s additionally one set of House Republicans drawn into the identical district — state Reps. Beth Camp of Concord and David Knight of Griffin. That may create one other main battle.
Democrats are more likely to acquire two seats within the state House total because of the court-ordered redistricting, as a result of lawmakers have been ordered to create two Black-majority districts round Macon the place Republican incumbents are more likely to lose out. The three Democratic pairings in metro Atlanta would stop Republican losses from three different doubtless Democratic districts that have been created. Republicans at the moment have a 102-78 majority within the House.
Stoner, who served within the state Senate from 2005 to 2013, misplaced a reelection bid in 2012 after Republicans redrew that district to favor their get together. He initially served within the House from 2003 to 2005, and rejoined the chamber in 2023. He mentioned Anulewicz was a buddy since they’d served collectively on the Smyrna City Council and that he did not wish to run towards her.
“She will serve my former constituents in the new House District 42 well,” Stoner mentioned in an announcement. “I look forward to finding other opportunities to serve my community.”
Kennard, who’s in his third time period within the House, equally mentioned he did not wish to run towards Park, who he mentioned had mentored him when he ran for workplace and joined the General Assembly.
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“He’s a really important voice down at the Capitol, so my heart would not be in a race opposing him,” Kennard instructed The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
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