Michael Thurmond

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Michael Thurmond

Democratic Party

Candidate, Governor of Georgia

Prior offices:

DeKalb County Executive

Years in office: 2016 - 2025

Successor: Lorraine Cochran-Johnson (D)

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Elections and appointments

Last election

November 3, 2020

Next election

May 19, 2026

Contact

Campaign website

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Michael Thurmond (Democratic Party) is running for election for Governor of Georgia. He declared candidacy for the Democratic primary scheduled on May 19, 2026.^[source]

Thurmond (Democratic Party) (also known as Mike) was the DeKalb County Executive in Georgia. He assumed office in 2016. He left office on January 1, 2025.

Elections

2026

See also: Georgia gubernatorial 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 election

Democratic primary for Governor of Georgia

The following candidates are running in the Democratic primary for Governor of Georgia on May 19, 2026.

		Candidate
		Keisha Bottoms
		Olu Brown
		Geoff Duncan
		Jason Esteves
		Derrick Jackson
		Ruwa Romman
		Michael Thurmond

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	There are no incumbents in this race.
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Republican primary election

Republican primary for Governor of Georgia

The following candidates are running in the Republican primary for Governor of Georgia on May 19, 2026.

		Candidate
		Chris Carr
		Clark Dean
		Rick Jackson
		Burt Jones
		Gregg Kirkpatrick
	Submit photo	Leland Olinger II
		Brad Raffensperger
	Submit photo	Kenneth Yasger

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

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2020

See also: Municipal elections in DeKalb County, Georgia (2020)

General election

General election for DeKalb County Executive

Incumbent Michael Thurmond won election in the general election for DeKalb County Executive on November 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Michael Thurmond (D)	100.0	324,819

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 324,819
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for DeKalb County Executive

Incumbent Michael Thurmond advanced from the Democratic primary for DeKalb County Executive on June 9, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Michael Thurmond	100.0	146,189

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 146,189
= 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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Campaign themes

2026

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Michael Thurmond has not yet completed Ballotpedia's 2026 Candidate Connection survey. Send a message to Michael Thurmond asking him to fill out the survey. If you are Michael Thurmond, click here to fill out Ballotpedia's 2026 Candidate Connection survey.

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You can ask Michael Thurmond to fill out this survey by using the buttons below or emailing info@mikethurmond.com.

Campaign website

Thurmond's campaign website stated the following:

The experience we need

Mike Thurmond

is a turn-around expert ready to add a new chapter to Georgia’s story as our next governor.

At a time of rising costs and declining trust Mike is exactly what our state needs to grow faster, stronger, safer and more equitable.

CEO of one of Georgia's Largest Counties

School Superintendent

Statewide Office-Holder

State Legislator

Small-Business Owner

— Michael Thurmond's campaign website (February 11, 2026)

Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.

2020

Michael Thurmond did not complete Ballotpedia's 2020 Candidate Connection survey.

Campaign finance summary

Campaign finance information for this candidate is not yet available from OpenSecrets. That information will be published here once it is available.

See also

2026 Elections

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Candidate

Governor of Georgia

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Footnotes

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