Shelia Edwards

This page was current at the end of the individual's last campaign covered by Ballotpedia. Please contact us with any updates.

Shelia Edwards

Democratic Party

Candidate, Georgia Public Service Commission District 5

Elections and appointments

Last election

May 24, 2022

Next election

May 19, 2026

Education

Bachelor's

Benedict College

Other

Emory University Goizueta Business School

Personal

Profession

Business owner

Contact

Campaign website

Personal LinkedIn

Shelia Edwards (Democratic Party) is running for election to the Georgia Public Service Commission to represent District 5. She declared candidacy for the Democratic primary scheduled on May 19, 2026.^[source]

Edwards completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2026. Click here to read the survey answers.

Biography

Email editor@ballotpedia.org to notify us of updates to this biography.

Edwards earned her undergraduate degree in journalism from Benedict College in 1984 and received an executive education in managerial leadership from Emory University in 2002. As of the 2026 election, Edwards was a graduate student at The Andy Young School of Policy Studies at Georgia State University. 

Her career experience includes being a business owner and publicist. She served as the interim executive director of the Georgia House Democratic caucus in 2024. She has also served as district director for Rep. David Scott, a vice president of corporate affairs, a chief communications officer for county government, an assistant executive director for the City of Atlanta Bond Referendum, and director of public affairs for a county district attorney's office.

Organizations and affiliations

• Founder, Legacy Cares
• Mableton Improvement Coalition (former Board Member), member
• Austell Community Taskforce, member
• Democratic Party of Cobb, member
• Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc, member

Elections

2026

See also: Georgia Public Service Commission election, 2026

General election

The primary will occur on May 19, 2026. The general election will occur on November 3, 2026. General election candidates will be added here following the primary.

Democratic primary

Democratic primary for Georgia Public Service Commission District 5

Craig Cupid (D), Shelia Edwards (D), and Angelia Pressley (D) are running in the Democratic primary for Georgia Public Service Commission District 5 on May 19, 2026.

		Candidate
	Submit photo	Craig Cupid
		Shelia Edwards
		Angelia Pressley

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	There are no incumbents in this race.
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Republican primary

Republican primary for Georgia Public Service Commission District 5

Bobby Mehan (R), Carolyn Roddy (R), and Josh Tolbert (R) are running in the Republican primary for Georgia Public Service Commission District 5 on May 19, 2026.

		Candidate
	Submit photo	Bobby Mehan
	Submit photo	Carolyn Roddy
		Josh Tolbert

---

	There are no incumbents in this race.
= 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

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2024

The following election was part of Ballotpedia's expanded local coverage project and is included here at the candidate's request.

Edwards ran for Cobb County Commissioner Board Chairman. Click here to learn more.

2022

See also: Georgia Public Service Commission election, 2022

Georgia was scheduled to hold an election for two of five seats on the Georgia Public Service Commission on November 8, 2022. The general election was canceled after United States District Court judge Steven Grimberg ruled on August 5, 2022, that the Georgia Public Service Commission's at-large elections violate the Voting Rights Act and that the scheduled 2022 general election should not be held using that system. The state submitted an appeal to stay the decision until after the general election but withdrew the appeal on August 19, 2022, meaning the two races did not appear on the 2022 ballot.

A primary was held on May 24, 2022, before the general election was canceled.

See also: Georgia Public Service Commission election, 2022

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Georgia Public Service Commission District 3

Shelia Edwards defeated Chandra Farley and Missy Moore in the Democratic primary for Georgia Public Service Commission District 3 on May 24, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Shelia Edwards	54.7	358,738
		Chandra Farley	30.6	200,780
		Missy Moore	14.7	96,588

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 656,106
= 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 Public Service Commission District 3

Incumbent Fitz Johnson advanced from the Republican primary for Georgia Public Service Commission District 3 on May 24, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Fitz Johnson	100.0	1,007,354

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 1,007,354
= 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 House of Representatives elections, 2018

General election

General election for Georgia House of Representatives District 39

Incumbent Erica Thomas defeated James Morrow in the general election for Georgia House of Representatives District 39 on November 6, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Erica Thomas (D)	83.2	16,607
		James Morrow (R)	16.8	3,345

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 19,952
= 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 House of Representatives District 39

Incumbent Erica Thomas defeated Shelia Edwards, Victoria Randle, and Tray Deadwyler in the Democratic primary for Georgia House of Representatives District 39 on May 22, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Erica Thomas	53.4	2,420
		Shelia Edwards	32.0	1,451
	Submit photo	Victoria Randle	9.1	414
		Tray Deadwyler	5.5	248

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified.	Total votes: 4,533
= 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 House of Representatives District 39

James Morrow advanced from the Republican primary for Georgia House of Representatives District 39 on May 22, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		James Morrow	100.0	667

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified.	Total votes: 667
= 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 House of Representatives elections, 2016

Elections for the Georgia House of Representatives took place in 2016. The primary election took place on May 24, 2016, and the general election was held on November 8, 2016. The candidate filing deadline was March 11, 2016.

Incumbent Erica Thomas ran unopposed in the Georgia House of Representatives District 39 general election.

Georgia House of Representatives, District 39 General Election, 2016
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Erica Thomas Incumbent (unopposed)	100.00%	18,097
Total Votes				18,097
Source: Georgia Secretary of State

Incumbent Erica Thomas defeated Shelia Edwards and Wayne Hobdy in the Georgia House of Representatives District 39 Democratic primary.

Georgia House of Representatives, District 39 Democratic Primary, 2016
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Erica Thomas Incumbent	58.39%	1,256
	Democratic	Shelia Edwards	39.70%	854
	Democratic	Wayne Hobdy	1.91%	41
Total Votes				2,151

Campaign themes

2026

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Shelia Edwards completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2026. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Edwards' responses.

Expand all | Collapse all

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

Shelia Edwards is a community advocate and business owner running for the Georgia Public Service Commission to put people before profits and bring accountability back to utility regulation in Georgia.

Shelia is the only candidate in this race with experience running, and winning, a competitive Democratic Public Service Commission primary. In 2022, she won a three-way primary outright with no runoff, proving her ability to build broad coalitions and win tough races statewide.

Beyond the ballot, Shelia has served in senior leadership roles within Georgia’s Democratic infrastructure, helping elect and re-elect leaders across the state. Her work has centered on utility affordability, consumer protection, housing affordability, and environmental justice, always with a focus on how policy impacts everyday families.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

• The Public Service Commission makes decisions that affect every household in Georgia, from monthly utility bills to the future of clean energy. Georgia families and seniors are struggling with rising utility bills. The Commission must protect consumers from unnecessary rate increases. I am running to stop endless rate hikes and make sure families are not forced to pay more and more every year for electricity.
• The Public Service Commission should regulate utility companies in the public interest, not simply approve whatever they request. The PSC must stop rubber-stamping rate increases and start holding powerful corporations accountable to the people of Georgia. As a consumer watchdog, I will protect the pocketbooks of every ratepayer in Georgia.
• I will put Georgia families and ratepayers first because the PSC exists to serve the people, not corporate interests. I will fight to make sure the Public Service Commission works for Georgia families, seniors, veterans, and small businesses — not just for big utility companies.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

I am passionate about public policies that protect everyday people and ensure government works in the public interest. The decisions made by the GA PSC directly affect what families, seniors, veterans, and small businesses pay for electricity each month. The Commission must put consumers first by preventing unfair rate increases and holding powerful utilities like GA Power accountable. I also care deeply about keeping energy affordable for working families and seniors on fixed incomes while planning responsibly for Georgia’s energy future. My goal as PSC commissioner will be to ensure that energy policy protects consumers, supports economic growth, and works for the people of Georgia.

Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.

2022

Shelia Edwards did not complete Ballotpedia's 2022 Candidate Connection survey.

Who fills out Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey?

Any candidate running for elected office, at any level, can complete Ballotpedia's Candidate Survey. Completing the survey will update the candidate's Ballotpedia profile, letting voters know who they are and what they stand for.  More than 25,000 candidates have taken Ballotpedia's candidate survey since we launched it in 2015. Learn more about the survey here.

You can ask Shelia Edwards to fill out this survey by using the button below or emailing shelia@electshelia.com.

2016

Edwards issued the following statement regarding her bid for office:

“	I bring a wealth of political experience to the job, having worked on successful campaigns and referendums in Metropolitan Atlanta as well as capabilities and knowledge gained from working in political offices on the local, state and national levels. I want to utilize my political experiences, knowledge and capabilities to benefit our community by working with others in the Cobb Delegation, in the State of Georgia, and in Washington to bring attention and awareness to the issues that impact our District. I am motivated by the needs in my community. I have been an active voice advocating on issues that impact the Mableton community and our quality of life, including my advocacy to defeat the Bankhead “TRASH” Transfer Station. When I became aware that a company was attempting to get a zoning application to accept tons of waste near our home and the Chattahoochee River, I went into action to inform the community about what was occurring. One of my first acts was creating Legacy Cares, a grass roots community organization, in opposition of this waste transfer station. I organized community resistance, including an on-line petition which garnered over 2000 signatures, and worked closely with the Mableton Improvement Coalition (MIC) to shed light on the over saturation of transfer stations in our portion of the county. We successful convinced officials to vote down the proposal. I later was elected to MIC's Board of Directors. My community benefited from my experience then and if elected, i will use these same skill-sets at the capital to be the advocate our community needs and deserves.	”
—Shelia Edwards,

Campaign finance summary

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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.

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Shelia Edwards campaign contribution history

Year	Office	Status	Contributions	Expenditures
2022	Georgia Public Service Commission District 3	Won primary	$41,377	$0
2018	Georgia House of Representatives District 39	Lost primary	$15,366	N/A**
Grand total			$56,742	N/A**
Sources: OpenSecrets,  Federal Election Commission ***This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).
** Data on expenditures is not available for this election cycle
Note: Totals above reflect only available data.

See also

2026 Elections

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External links

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Candidate

Georgia Public Service Commission District 5

Website

Personal

LinkedIn

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