Georgia State Senator Nikema Williams is the winner of a U.S. Congressional seat, per CNN.
The seat represents Georgia's Fifth District in Atlanta and was held by the late Congressman John Lewis for 33 years.
Congressman Lewis passed away earlier this year on July 17. His years of service in congress and continuous making of “good trouble” are remembered and used to further his agenda for equity for all. For the Fifth District of Georgia his passing introduced an additional election during an already unprecedented presidential election.
In the hours immediately following the passing of Representative Lewis, Democratic leaders pushed for Georgia state senator Nikema Williams to take his place on the general election ballot.
The decision was rushed because of a rule in Georgia that could have forfeited the seat altogether, as the state rule imposes a strict deadline for when each party must submit names for the ballot.
Republican Governor Brian Kemp called for a special election to fill the seat for Lewis’ remaining term, which ends January 3 of next year, setting the campaigns of seven candidates in motion. Williams declined to participate in this special election.
The special election did not result in a clear cut winner out of the seven candidates that ran for the seat’s month-long availability, creating the need for a runoff election in December 2020.
In Georgia, to win an election, a candidate must gain at least 50% of votes. Two candidates of the special election, Kwanza Hall, a former Atlanta City Councilman and Robert M. Franklin, Jr., former president of Morehouse College, will enter the runoff for this special election.
To recap, Hall and Franklin are not running to be sworn in for a full two-year term, only to fill the remaining days of Congressman Lewis’ term he was not able to serve.
With this victory, Senator Nikema Williams will take over the seat in January and continue on to serve the full term.
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