Morning Digest: Georgia Democrats can flip a powerful board this fall after shock landslides last year

One Democratic winner, though, must seek reelection after just a year in office

Democrat Peter Hubbard overwhelmingly flipped a seat on Georgia's Public Service Commission last year. He has to defend it this fall. (Credit: Peter Hubbard Facebook)

Leading Off

GA Public Service Commission

After flipping two seats on Georgia’s Public Service Commission in astonishing landslides last year, Democrats now have the chance to take full control of this powerful board, which regulates utilities. But first they’ll have to win a pair of elections this fall—including one for a seat they just picked up in November.

Peter Hubbard and Alicia Johnson turned in identical 63-37 victories in their respective races, which marked the first time that Peach State Democrats had won any non-federal statewide elections since 2006. The outcome gave Democrats a presence on the five-member commission for the first time in almost two decades and reduced the GOP’s edge to just 3-2.

Those elections took place in an odd-numbered year because of a lengthy court battle in which voting rights advocates unsuccessfully sought to institute district-based elections in place of the existing system. Because of the unusual timing, though, neither Democrat will serve a full six-year term: Hubbard will go before the voters again this year, while Johnson will be up in 2030.

Hubbard may face a familiar foe in his quest for reelection. Fitz Johnson, the Republican incumbent whom Hubbard decisively unseated, put out a statement on the night of his loss saying, “I intend to reclaim this seat in 2026.”

The other seat on this year’s ballot is held by Republican Tricia Pridemore, who has served since early 2018. (The final two commissioners, Republicans Jason Shaw and Lauren “Bubba” McDonald, will next be up in 2028.)

Pridemore picked up her first Democratic opponent Thursday when businesswoman Angelia Pressley, who unsuccessfully ran for local office in Cobb County in 2018 and 2020, announced her campaign.

Georgia’s candidate filing deadline is March 6, so other potential contenders have just over a month to make up their minds. However, not just any Georgian can run.

Even though they’re elected statewide, each commissioner officially represents one-fifth of the state, and they must reside in their district. Hubbard’s 3rd District includes the city of Atlanta and many neighboring suburbs. Pridemore’s 5th District also takes up part of the Atlanta area, including suburban Cobb County, but it extends west to include more rural communities.

Thanks to Georgia’s love of runoffs, whoever runs could appear on the ballot as many as four times this year. Party primaries will take place on May 19, but candidates need to win a majority of the vote to avert a runoff on June 16.

The general election is set for Nov. 3, which is the same day that Georgia holds elections for governor, U.S. Senate, and other federal and state posts. But while most states allow candidates to win the general election with just a plurality of the vote, Georgia again requires that contenders exceed 50% to avert a Dec. 1 runoff.

The Twin Cities' fierce response to ICE—at the ballot box

Election Recaps

TX-18

Former Harris County Attorney Christian Menefee easily won the special election runoff for Texas’ 18th Congressional District on Saturday, defeating former Houston City Council member Amanda Edward, a fellow Democrat, by a 68-32 margin.

Menefee’s victory will restore representation to the long-vacant 18th District, which, thanks to a drawn-out election schedule adopted by Republican Gov. Greg Abbott, has been without a member of Congress ever since Democrat Sylvester Turner died in early March of last year. It will also cut the GOP’s margin in the House to 218-214.

Menefee won’t be able to relax, though. Because of the state’s new gerrymandered map, veteran Rep. Al Green opted to seek reelection in the 18th after Republicans dismantled his 9th District. That will set up a generational clash between the 78-year-old Green and the 37-year-old Menefee in the March 3 primary.

Edwards, along with a little-known fourth candidate, will also be on the ballot, but it’s not clear whether she intends to campaign for a full term. (The filing deadline for the primary was in December, meaning both contenders in Saturday’s contest had to submit paperwork long before knowing the outcome of the special election.)

The presence of additional names, though, means Menefee and Green could find themselves in a May 26 runoff if no one wins a majority of the vote next month. Whoever wins the Democratic nomination will be assured of winning the general election as well, given the district’s blue lean.

TX State Senate

Texas Democrats scored a landslide upset when Air Force veteran and union leader Taylor Rehmet flipped a deep-red seat in the state Senate on Saturday night, winning a closely watched special election that Donald Trump himself had repeatedly highlighted on social media.

Rehmet defeated Republican Leigh Wambsganss by a resounding 57-43 margin despite the fact that Trump had carried the Fort Worth-based 9th District by a 58-41 spread in 2024.

Rehmet’s triumph immediately sent shockwaves throughout the political world in both Texas and nationally. The Downballot sent out a breaking news alert after midnight on Saturday recapping the stunning outcome. Click through for our complete breakdown.

Senate

IL-Sen

Rep. Robin Kelly has launched her first ad ahead of the March 17 Democratic primary for Illinois’ open Senate seat, part of a planned $2 million buy, according to Punchbowl.

In her opening message, Kelly tells viewers why she introduced articles of impeachment against Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem.

“I’m sick of Donald Trump’s masked thugs terrorizing people,” Kelly says. “ICE is not above the law.”

“[I]t’s time to dismantle ICE and get it the hell out of Illinois,” she adds.

Kelly called for Noem’s removal after an ICE agent fatally shot Renee Good in Minneapolis, and she soon found support within the Democratic caucus—including from one of her rivals.

Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, who is competing against Kelly in the race to succeed retiring Sen. Dick Durbin, was one of 70 House Democrats who cosponsored her resolution immediately after it was introduced. Dozens more joined after ICE agents in Minneapolis killed Alex Pretti. Kelly’s congressional office told The Downballot on Friday that 181 Democrats have now lent their names to her proposal.

Kelly, whom polls show taking third place in next month’s primary, is hoping to pull off an upset in what has become a very expensive race.

AdImpact reported Friday that Krishnamoorthi, who has led in every publicly available survey, has spent a gigantic $24 million on advertising since July.

A super PAC supporting Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton, who’s been in second, began airing ads in mid-January and has spent a total of $1.5 million so far, per AdImpact. The outfit, called Illinois Future PAC, has ties to Gov. JB Pritzker, who donated $5 million to the group in December, according to new campaign finance reports.

Governors

WY-Gov

Republican Gov. Mark Gordon tells Wyoming PBS he hasn’t yet ruled out a bid for a third term, though time is running out for him to challenge a state law limiting governors to just two terms that’s likely unconstitutional.

While Gordon has dithered, other Republicans have stepped up to run for his post, including Superintendent of Public Instruction Megan Degenfelder, who already has Donald Trump’s endorsement.

It’s possible, though, that Gordon may be trying to fend off perceptions that he’s a lame duck as he heads into what might be his last legislative session, which is set to start on Feb. 9—a tactic that other two-term governors have deployed for similar purposes.

House

CA-48

Navy veteran Marc Iannarino has dropped his bid to unseat Republican Rep. Darrell Issa and instead endorsed Ammar Campa-Najjar, a fellow Democrat and former Labor Department official who lost to Issa in a more conservative district in 2020.

Thanks to the new congressional map approved by voters last year, though, the San Diego-area 48th District would have backed Kamala Harris by a 50-47 margin in 2024.

NE-02

Former state Sen. Brett Lindstrom has quit the GOP primary for Nebraska’s open 2nd District, saying that the “political environment” was unfavorable to his chances.

“I think about the political environment into November,” Lindstrom told the Nebraska Examiner. “I don’t think it’s where I need to be.”

Lindstrom’s decision leaves Omaha City Councilman Brinker Harding as the only notable Republican seeking to hold the seat that retiring GOP Rep. Don Bacon has represented since 2017. Until the adoption of new maps in Utah and California last year, the 2nd District, which voted for Kamala Harris by a 52-47 margin, was the bluest seat Republicans were defending anywhere in the nation.