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Ongoing story / Georgia

The 2026 Georgia governor race: Keisha Lance Bottoms vs. Rick Jackson

Overview · reviewed November 12, 2026

Democrat Keisha Lance Bottoms, the former mayor of Atlanta, defeated Republican Rick Jackson in Georgia's 2026 race for governor, becoming the state's first Democratic governor in more than two decades and the first Black woman elected governor in the United States.[1] Jackson, a billionaire healthcare executive who beat the Trump-backed Lt. Gov. Burt Jones in a June runoff, had been favored to win until Bottoms campaigned with former President Barack Obama and Sen. Jon Ossoff, The Guardian reported.[2][1]

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Jackson, a billionaire healthcare executive who beat the Trump-backed Lt. Gov. Burt Jones in a June runoff, had been favored to win until Bottoms campaigned with former President Barack Obama and Sen. Jon Ossoff, The Guardian reported.[2][1]

Coverage over time

Share of tracked outlets · weekly (UTC)

Week of 2025-03-03 (UTC): 2%, 5 of 202 tracked outlets (0 left, 2 center, 3 right)Week of 2025-03-10 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-03-17 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-03-24 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-03-31 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-04-07 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-04-14 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-04-21 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-04-28 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-05-05 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-05-12 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-05-19 (UTC): 4%, 8 of 197 tracked outlets (3 left, 2 center, 3 right)Week of 2025-05-26 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-06-02 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-06-09 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-06-16 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-06-23 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-06-30 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-07-07 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-07-14 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-07-21 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-07-28 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-08-04 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-08-11 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-08-18 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-08-25 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-09-01 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-09-08 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-09-15 (UTC): 7%, 14 of 191 tracked outlets (6 left, 3 center, 5 right)Week of 2025-09-22 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-09-29 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-10-06 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-10-13 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-10-20 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-10-27 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-11-03 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-11-10 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-11-17 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-11-24 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-12-01 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-12-08 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-12-15 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-12-22 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-12-29 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-01-05 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-01-12 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-01-19 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-01-26 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-02-02 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-02-09 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-02-16 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-02-23 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-03-02 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-03-09 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-03-16 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-03-23 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-03-30 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-04-06 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-04-13 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-04-20 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-04-27 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-05-04 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-05-11 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-05-18 (UTC): 8%, 15 of 197 tracked outlets (7 left, 5 center, 3 right)Week of 2026-05-25 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-06-01 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-06-08 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-06-15 (UTC): 3%, 8 of 234 tracked outlets (2 left, 1 center, 5 right)Week of 2026-06-22 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-06-29 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-07-06 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-07-13 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-07-20 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-07-27 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-08-03 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-08-10 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-08-17 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-08-24 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-08-31 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-09-07 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-09-14 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-09-21 (UTC): under 1%, 2 of 479 tracked outlets (0 left, 1 center, 1 right)Week of 2026-09-28 (UTC): 1%, 3 of 476 tracked outlets (3 left, 0 center, 0 right)Week of 2026-10-05 (UTC): 1%, 7 of 479 tracked outlets (2 left, 3 center, 2 right)Week of 2026-10-12 (UTC): under 1%, 1 of 476 tracked outlets (0 left, 1 center, 0 right)Week of 2026-10-19 (UTC): 2%, 8 of 479 tracked outlets (3 left, 4 center, 1 right)Week of 2026-10-26 (UTC): 1%, 5 of 473 tracked outlets (1 left, 3 center, 1 right)Week of 2026-11-02 (UTC): 12%, 55 of 471 tracked outlets (16 left, 24 center, 15 right)Week of 2026-11-09 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outlets, so far

LeftCenterRightLighter bar: this week so far

Each bar is the share of the outlets on our Left / Center / Right rating scale that we tracked publishing that week which carried reporting on this story, split by the outlets' ratings. We track more outlets now than in the archive, so a share keeps earlier and later weeks comparable. An outlet counts once a week however much it published, and outlets in one ownership or syndication group count as one on each side they appear on. A rating describes the outlet, not the report. A gap means no such reports were collected that week, not that nothing was reported anywhere. Weeks run Monday to Sunday in UTC, so a report published on a Sunday evening in US Eastern time counts in the next week. 4 more outlets off the scale (not rated, or outside the left-right graphs) also reported; they are not in this chart. See them.

Weekly counts, outlets and reports (12 weeks with coverage)
Outlets on the rating scale that carried this story each week, of the outlets tracked that week, newest first
Week of (UTC)LeftCenterRightOf trackedShareReceipts
Nov 2, 202616241555 of 47112%
Oct 26, 20261315 of 4731%
Oct 19, 20263418 of 4792%
Oct 12, 20260101 of 476under 1%
Oct 5, 20262327 of 4791%
Sep 28, 20263003 of 4761%
Sep 21, 20260112 of 479under 1%
Jun 15, 20262158 of 2343%
May 18, 202675315 of 1978%
Sep 15, 202563514 of 1917%
May 19, 20253238 of 1974%
Mar 3, 20250235 of 2022%

Latest coverage

The newest reporting in this story's record.

  1. Nov 6, 2026 · first reported · Headline from Valdosta Daily Times

    Bottoms to focus on healthcare and other affordability issues

Background

Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, the Republican who rejected Donald Trump's call to help overturn the state's 2020 election, announced in September 2025 that he would run for governor.[3] In the May 2026 primaries, former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms won the Democratic nomination without a runoff.[4] No Republican won a majority, which sent Lt. Gov. Burt Jones, backed by President Donald Trump, and Rick Jackson to a June 16 runoff. Raffensperger did not advance.[5] Jackson, who grew up in poverty and spent time in Atlanta's public housing projects, won the runoff, leading 53% to 47% when the race was called.[2]

Jackson, 72, was making his first campaign, and PBS described him as walking a tightrope with President Donald Trump.[6] Bottoms proposed a housing fund and free technical and community college,[7] and Obama joined her and Ossoff at an Atlanta rally on October 28.[8] After the election, Bottoms said she would focus on the cost of living and access to health care, and named the media mogul Tyler Perry to her transition team.[9][10]

Supporting stories (10)
  1. Tyler Perry Joins Keisha Lance Bottoms’ Georgia Transition Team Despite Director’s Sexual Assault Lawsuits
  2. Billionaire Rick Jackson defeats Trump-backed Burt Jones in Georgia GOP governor’s runoff
  3. Republican Brad Raffensperger to run for Georgia governor after defying Trump over 2020 election
  4. Keisha Lance Bottoms wins Georgia Democratic primary in governor race
  5. Republicans Burt Jones and Rick Jackson advance to a runoff in the Georgia governor primary, setting up a MAGA clash
  6. Republican billionaire Rick Jackson is walking a Trump tightrope in his quest to lead Georgia
  7. Bottoms proposes housing fund, free technical and community college
  8. Barack Obama To Join Keisha Lance Bottoms And Sen. Ossoff At Atlanta Rally
  9. Bottoms to focus on healthcare and other affordability issues
  10. Georgia Governor-Elect Keisha Lance Bottoms outlines priorities ahead of 2027 Legislative Session

The full record

Each date is when an update was first reported.

All 16 recorded updates

November 2026

  1. Bottoms to focus on healthcare and other affordability issuesHeadline from Valdosta Daily Times · 3 outlets
  2. Georgia Governor-Elect Keisha Lance Bottoms outlines priorities ahead of 2027 Legislative SessionHeadline from WJBF Augusta · 6 outlets
  3. Tyler Perry Joins Keisha Lance Bottoms’ Georgia Transition Team Despite Director’s Sexual Assault LawsuitsHeadline from Variety · 54 outlets

October 2026

  1. Georgia’s Keisha Lance Bottoms navigates the challenges of Black women battling political barriersHeadline from MyNorthwest · 5 outlets
  2. Republican billionaire Rick Jackson is walking a Trump tightrope in his quest to lead GeorgiaHeadline from MyNorthwest · 6 outlets
  3. Barack Obama To Join Keisha Lance Bottoms And Sen. Ossoff At Atlanta RallyHeadline from Black Enterprise · 4 outlets
  4. Obama endorses Keisha Lance Bottoms in Georgia governor raceHeadline from Fox5 Atlanta · 3 outlets
  5. Georgia governor candidates spar over the economy and Trump in lone debateHeadline from NBC News · 5 outlets

September 2026

  1. Bottoms proposes housing fund, free technical and community collegeHeadline from Tifton Gazette · 3 outlets
  2. New poll reveals sudden split between top two Georgia racesHeadline from Fox5 Atlanta · 2 outlets

June 2026

  1. Billionaire Rick Jackson defeats Trump-backed Burt Jones in Georgia GOP governor’s runoffHeadline from New York Post · 8 outlets

May 2026

  1. Keisha Lance Bottoms wins Georgia Democratic primary in governor raceHeadline from Fox5 Atlanta · 10 outlets
  2. Republicans Burt Jones and Rick Jackson advance to a runoff in the Georgia governor primary, setting up a MAGA clashHeadline from NBC News · 11 outlets

September 2025

  1. Republican Brad Raffensperger to run for Georgia governor after defying Trump over 2020 electionHeadline from CNN · 14 outlets

May 2025

  1. Former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms launches run for Georgia governorHeadline from NBC News · 8 outlets

March 2025

  1. Georgia Democrat Lucy McBath says she's exploring a 2026 run for governor - The Daily ReporterHeadline from Green Field Reporter · 5 outlets

Coverage & sources

Read the reports, see how much was collected over time, or compare outlets by political leaning.

Coverage & sources →