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Georgia state executive official elections, 2016
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None Down Ballot Public Service Commission |
One state executive office in Georgia
was
up for election in 2016:
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Context of the 2016 election
Going into the 2016 elections, Georgia was one of 23 Republican state government trifectas, meaning that both the governor's office and the state legislature is controlled by the Republican Party.
Throughout most of the 20th century, Georgia was a largely Democratic state. However, since the 1980s, the state has seen a more conservative shift. Georgia has not voted for a Democratic candidate for president since Bill Clinton's first election in 1992. Similarly, both United States senators from Georgia were Republicans during the 2016 election cycle. Finally, Republicans also have considerable control over state executive offices. Republicans have controlled the governor's office since 2003. All other partisan state executive offices, such as the Lieutenant Governor of Georgia, Attorney General of Georgia, and the Georgia Secretary of State are all held by Republicans.
Public Service Commission
The Georgia Public Service Commission has five elected members who elected from five districts across the state in partisan elections. The commissioners serve staggered, six-year terms. Republicans have had unanimous control of the commission for several years.[1]
District 2 was up for re-election in 2016. District 2 is largely comprised of counties in east and central Georgia and has been held by incumbent Tim Echols since 2011. He ran for a second term on the commission. No Democratic candidates filed to run in the district, making it likely that Republicans would continue to hold all five seats on the commission after the 2016 election.
2016 elections
Races we watched
Public Service Commission
Georgia held an election for Public Service Commission on November 8, 2016. Incumbent Tim Echols (R) won re-election.
Elections by office
Public Service Commission
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Voter registration
March 11, 2016 |
May 24, 2016 |
July 1, 2016 |
September 6, 2016 |
November 8, 2016 |
TBD |
TBD |
For full information about voting in Georgia, contact the state election agency.
Registration
Georgia uses an open primary system, meaning voters are not required to declare a party preference when registering to vote.
To vote in Georgia, you must meet the following requirements:[6]
| “ |
☐ Be a citizen of the United States |
” |
| —Georgia Secretary of State | ||
Online registration
- See also: Online voter registration
Georgia has implemented an online voter registration system. Residents can register to vote by visiting this website.
Past elections
2015
There were no state executive elections in Georgia in 2015.
2014
There were 10 state executive offices up for election including governor, lieutenant governor, secretary of state, attorney general and six down ballot offices.
- Georgia down ballot state executive elections, 2014
- Georgia state executive official elections, 2014
- Georgia Attorney General election, 2014
- Georgia Secretary of State election, 2014
- Georgia lieutenant gubernatorial election, 2014
- Georgia gubernatorial election, 2014
2013
There were no elections in Georgia in 2013.
2012
Two seats on the Georgia Public Service Commission were up for election.
State profile
| Demographic data for Georgia | ||
|---|---|---|
| Georgia | U.S. | |
| Total population: | 10,199,398 | 316,515,021 |
| Land area (sq mi): | 57,513 | 3,531,905 |
| Race and ethnicity** | ||
| White: | 60.2% | 73.6% |
| Black/African American: | 30.9% | 12.6% |
| Asian: | 3.6% | 5.1% |
| Native American: | 0.3% | 0.8% |
| Pacific Islander: | 0% | 0.2% |
| Two or more: | 2.1% | 3% |
| Hispanic/Latino: | 9.1% | 17.1% |
| Education | ||
| High school graduation rate: | 85.4% | 86.7% |
| College graduation rate: | 28.8% | 29.8% |
| Income | ||
| Median household income: | $49,620 | $53,889 |
| Persons below poverty level: | 21.1% | 11.3% |
| Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015) Click here for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in Georgia. **Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here. | ||
Presidential voting pattern
- See also: Presidential voting trends in Georgia
Georgia voted Republican in six out of the seven presidential elections between 2000 and 2024.
Pivot Counties (2016)
Ballotpedia identified 206 counties that voted for Donald Trump (R) in 2016 after voting for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012. Collectively, Trump won these Pivot Counties by more than 580,000 votes. Of these 206 counties, five are located in Georgia, accounting for 2.43 percent of the total pivot counties.[8]
Pivot Counties (2020)
In 2020, Ballotpedia re-examined the 206 Pivot Counties to view their voting patterns following that year's presidential election. Ballotpedia defined those won by Trump won as Retained Pivot Counties and those won by Joe Biden (D) as Boomerang Pivot Counties. Nationwide, there were 181 Retained Pivot Counties and 25 Boomerang Pivot Counties. Georgia had five Retained Pivot Counties, 2.76 percent of all Retained Pivot Counties.
More Georgia coverage on Ballotpedia
- Elections in Georgia
- United States congressional delegations from Georgia
- Public policy in Georgia
- Endorsers in Georgia
- Georgia fact checks
- More...
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms 'Georgia state executive elections' OR 'Georgia state elections' 2016. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
| Georgia | State Executive Elections | News and Analysis |
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External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Georgia Public Service Commission, "Home," accessed February 23, 2014
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Georgia Secretary of State, "Qualifying Candidate Information," accessed March 14, 2015
- ↑ Vote Kellie, "Issues," accessed May 7, 2016
- ↑ Vote Kellie, "Platform," accessed May 7, 2016
- ↑ Michelle Miller Public Service Commissioner, "Issues," accessed May 7, 2016
- ↑ Georgia Secretary of State, "Register to Vote," accessed January 22, 2015
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ The raw data for this study was provided by Dave Leip of Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections.
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