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Republican Gov. Brian Kemp announced Wednesday (November 4) that he will not call a special legislative session to redraw Georgia’s political maps or limit the powers of Gov.-elect Keisha Lance Bottoms before leaving office.
“The voters of our state have spoken,” Kemp said in a statement The Atlanta Journal-Constitution shared to social media. “As long as I’m governor, we will always respect the results of secure, accessible, and fair elections, and also abide by the laws and constitution of our state. I will not be calling a special session of the Georgia General Assembly to curtail executive branch powers or debate redistricting changes.”
The announcement came one day after Bottoms defeated Republican Rick Jackson, ending 24 years of GOP control of the Governor’s Mansion and raising questions about whether Republican lawmakers would attempt to limit her authority before she takes office in January.
According to POLITICO, Georgia Republicans began considering another round of redistricting after an April U.S. Supreme Court ruling weakened key protections under the Voting Rights Act. Kemp initially rejected calls to redraw the state's congressional and legislative districts in May, arguing that Georgia's primary elections were already underway.
Kemp renewed the redistricting effort in June, seeking new maps for the 2028 elections. However, Republican lawmakers rejected the proposal. POLITICO reported that House Speaker Jon Burns told reporters Republicans were not focused on “partisan gain.”
Democratic Sen. Raphael Warnock welcomed Kemp's latest announcement, calling it “a wise choice” in an interview with POLITICO.
“The four most powerful words in a democracy are ‘The people have spoken,’” Warnock said. “The people spoke last night, and if you get rebuked by the people, the honorable thing to do is to course correct, not play with the maps.”
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