March 11, 2026
GA-14 Special Election
The special election to replace resigned US Rep. Margorie Taylor Greene (R) ended as expected with the top two finishers advancing to an April 7 runoff election from the field of 17 candidates. All contenders were placed on the same ballot irrespective of political party affiliation. Since no one received majority support, advancing to a runoff election is required under Georgia election procedure.
Democratic retired Army General Shawn Harris, who spent over $4 million in his campaign on top of spending more than $3.5 million against Rep. Greene in the 2024 election cycle, finished first but with only 37.3% of the vote. Local district attorney Clay Fuller, who had President Donald Trump’s endorsement, finished a close second with 34.9%, or 2,853 votes behind Gen. Harris.
Though last night’s Democratic share is better than 14th District historical trends suggest (Dave’s Redistricting App partisan lean: 69.2R – 28.9D; Trump ’24: 68.1 – 31.3%; Greene ’24: 64.3 – 35.6%), the Shawn Harris first place finish should not be considered so unusual.
Of the 17 candidates on the ballot, only three were Democrats. Considering the Harris campaign’s huge spending figure and not splitting the Democratic vote base among a large field, it was clear that the leading Democrat would at least qualify for the runoff if not finish first. A dozen Republicans were competing for the largest share of the Republican base. Adding the aggregate Republican versus Democrat votes, the GOP combined candidates received 60% of the turnout.
Total voter participation exceeded 115,000, which is very strong for a special congressional primary election. In terms of county vote share, a Republican candidate won six of the district’s 10 counties while Gen. Harris claimed four. The latter man’s largest total (a 49% vote share) occurred in Cobb County, the district’s second largest population center. The strongest Republican vote share was in Murray County where Mr. Fuller recorded 48 percent.
Mississippi
No particular surprises from last night’s Mississippi primary results, as both the Republican and Democratic primaries finished as expected.
In the Senate race, incumbent Cindy Hyde-Smith (R), as predicted, easily captured renomination with 81% of the GOP vote. Also as forecast, she will now face Lowndes County District Attorney Scott Colom who was an easy winner on the Democratic side. Mr. Colom scored a 73-18-8% victory over two minor opponents to claim the party nomination.
Sen. Hyde-Smith will now be a heavy favorite in the general election. In terms of voter turnout, approximately 9,000 more Republicans than Democrats voted in the statewide intra-party elections.
Turning to the House, Reps. Trent Kelly (R-Saltillo/Tupelo) and Michael Guest (R-Brandon/ Jackson) were unopposed for renomination.
In the 1st District, Rep. Kelly will now face the new Democratic nominee, attorney Cliff Johnson who defeated state Rep. Kelvin Buck (D-Holly Springs) with 64% of the vote. In a district with a Dave’s Redistricting App partisan lean of 63.9R – 35.0D (Trump: ’24: 67.9 – 30.8%; Kelly ’24: 69.8 – 30.2%), the Congressman becomes a prohibitive favorite in his quest to secure a seventh term.
Agribusinessman and investor Michael Chiaradio was also unopposed in the Democratic primary. Like Rep. Kelly, Congressman Guest must be rated as the clear favorite to secure the general election. The DRA partisan lean for District 3 is 60.7R – 38.3D (Trump ’24: 64.1 – 34.9%; Guest ’24: 100%).
The 2nd District Democratic primary had drawn some national attention as former congressional staffer Evan Turnage returned to Mississippi and was challenging veteran Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Bolton). Also as predicted, Rep. Thompson was an easy winner, recording an 86-13% landslide victory.
The 2nd District is the state’s lone Democratic CD and has a strong partisan voter history. The DRA partisan lean here is 63.8D – 35.5R (Harris ’24: 59.7 – 39.3%; Thompson ’24: 62.0 – 38.0%). Like Mississippi’s three other congressional incumbents, Rep. Thompson is a lock to win again in November.
Fourth District incumbent Mike Ezell* (R-Pascagoula) was also a big winner in his Republican primary. The Congressman topped former congressional aide Sawyer Walters in a landslide 84-16% vote count. He will have little trouble overcoming the new Democratic nominee, state Rep. Jeffrey Hulum (D-Gulfport) who recorded a 57% win over two intra-party contenders.
The 4th District DRA partisan lean is 67.0R – 31.7D (Trump ’24: 70.7 – 28.2%; Ezell ’24: 74.0 – 26.0%). Obviously, this seat is the strongest Republican congressional district in one of the party’s most loyal states.
