ATLANTA — Democrat Carolyn Bourdeaux has flipped a suburban Atlanta congressional district, defeating Republican Rich McCormick.
Counting of absentee ballots and in-person votes cast early continued long past election night, forcing a tense wait before the race could be called Friday.
Bourdeaux had come close to winning in 2018, falling fewer than 500 votes short of defeating Republican incumbent Rep. Rob Woodall in that race. Woodall didn't seek another term in the district northeast of Atlanta.
Bourdeaux is a college professor who previously worked in government. She emphasized expanded health care in her campaign and used the momentum she built two years ago to push past McCormick, an emergency room physician and Marine Corps veteran making his first-ever bid for office.
It's the first time a Democrat has won the seat since Buddy Darden lost to Republican Bob Barr in the 1994 GOP takeover of the U.S. House, and reflects the rapidly diversifying population of the district.
"We didn't flip this seat alone," Bourdeaux tweeted Friday. "Thank you so much to every volunteer, activist, organizer, staffer, and voter who poured their time and energy into this campaign. It's because of you that we are turning Georgia blue."
McCormick had no immediate comment after the race was called Friday. Campaign spokesman John Simpson said McCormick planned to make a statement after the remaining ballots were counted in Gwinnett County, where most of the district's voters live.
Bourdeaux, befitting her background as a public policy professor and former budget director for the Georgia state Senate, took a plan-heavy approach to her race. She barely paused after her 2018 loss to Woodall, winning a majority against a crowded Democratic field that smelled opportunity in the northeastern suburbs.
