Georgia Superintendent of Schools election, 2026
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← 2022
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| Georgia Superintendent of Schools |
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| Election details |
| Filing deadline: March 6, 2026 |
| Primary: May 19, 2026 Primary runoff: June 16, 2026 General: November 3, 2026 General runoff: December 1, 2026 |
| How to vote |
| Poll times:
7 a.m. to 7 p.m. |
| Ballotpedia analysis |
| Federal and state primary competitiveness State executive elections in 2026 Impact of term limits in 2026 State government trifectas State government triplexes Ballotpedia's Election Analysis Hub, 2026 |
| Georgia executive elections |
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Georgia is holding an election for superintendent of schools on November 3, 2026. The primary is May 19, 2026, and a primary runoff is June 16, 2026. The general runoff is December 1, 2026. The filing deadline is March 6, 2026.
Candidates and election results
Note: The following list includes official candidates only. Ballotpedia defines official candidates as people who:
- Register with a federal or state campaign finance agency before the candidate filing deadline
- Appear on candidate lists released by government election agencies
General election
The primary will occur on May 19, 2026. The general election will occur on November 3, 2026. General election candidates will be added here following the primary.
Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Georgia State Superintendent of Schools
Otha Thornton is running in the Democratic primary for Georgia State Superintendent of Schools on May 19, 2026.
Candidate | ||
| Otha Thornton | ||
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Republican primary election
Republican primary for Georgia State Superintendent of Schools
Fred Longgrear, Mesha Mainor, and Randell Trammell are running in the Republican primary for Georgia State Superintendent of Schools on May 19, 2026.
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Candidate profiles
There are currently no candidate profiles created for this race. Candidate profiles will appear here as they are created. Encourage the candidates in this race to complete Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey so that their profile will appear here.
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Voting information
- See also: Voting in Georgia
Past elections
The section below details election results for this office in elections dating back to 2014.
2022
General election
General election for Georgia State Superintendent of Schools
Incumbent Richard Woods defeated Alisha Searcy in the general election for Georgia State Superintendent of Schools on November 8, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Richard Woods (R) | 54.2 | 2,115,728 | |
| Alisha Searcy (D) | 45.8 | 1,788,671 | ||
| Total votes: 3,904,399 | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Georgia State Superintendent of Schools
Alisha Searcy defeated Jaha Howard, James Morrow, and Currey Hitchens in the Democratic primary for Georgia State Superintendent of Schools on May 24, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Alisha Searcy | 57.0 | 382,792 | |
| Jaha Howard | 15.0 | 100,675 | ||
| James Morrow | 14.6 | 97,821 | ||
| Currey Hitchens | 13.5 | 90,514 | ||
| Total votes: 671,802 | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
Republican primary election
Republican primary for Georgia State Superintendent of Schools
Incumbent Richard Woods defeated John Barge in the Republican primary for Georgia State Superintendent of Schools on May 24, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Richard Woods | 72.6 | 802,260 | |
| John Barge | 27.4 | 302,681 | ||
| Total votes: 1,104,941 | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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2018
General election
General election for Georgia State Superintendent of Schools
Incumbent Richard Woods defeated Otha Thornton in the general election for Georgia State Superintendent of Schools on November 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Richard Woods (R) | 53.0 | 2,048,003 | |
| Otha Thornton (D) | 47.0 | 1,814,461 | ||
| Total votes: 3,862,464 | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Democratic primary runoff election
Democratic primary runoff for Georgia State Superintendent of Schools
Otha Thornton defeated Sid Chapman in the Democratic primary runoff for Georgia State Superintendent of Schools on July 24, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Otha Thornton | 59.1 | 86,704 | |
| Sid Chapman | 40.9 | 60,006 | ||
| Total votes: 146,710 | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Georgia State Superintendent of Schools
Otha Thornton and Sid Chapman advanced to a runoff. They defeated Sam Mosteller in the Democratic primary for Georgia State Superintendent of Schools on May 22, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Otha Thornton | 43.9 | 208,407 | |
| ✔ | Sid Chapman | 36.5 | 173,270 | |
| Sam Mosteller | 19.7 | 93,402 | ||
| Total votes: 475,079 | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Republican primary election
Republican primary for Georgia State Superintendent of Schools
Incumbent Richard Woods defeated John Barge in the Republican primary for Georgia State Superintendent of Schools on May 22, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Richard Woods | 60.1 | 324,848 | |
| John Barge | 39.9 | 215,431 | ||
| Total votes: 540,279 | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
2014
| Superintendent of Georgia, 2014 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican |  Richard Woods |
55.1% | 1,391,005 | |
| Democratic | Valarie Wilson | 44.9% | 1,132,886 | |
| Total Votes | 2,523,891 | |||
| Election results via Georgia Secretary of State | ||||
Election analysis
Click the tabs below to view information about demographics, past elections, and partisan control of the state.
- Presidential elections - Information about presidential elections in the state.
- Statewide elections - Information about recent U.S. Senate and gubernatorial elections in the state.
- State partisanship - The partisan makeup of the state's congressional delegation and state government.
- Demographics - Information about the state's demographics and how they compare to the country as a whole.
Cook PVI by congressional district
| District | Incumbent | PVI |
|---|---|---|
| Georgia's 1st | Buddy Carter | R+8 |
| Georgia's 2nd | Sanford Bishop | D+4 |
| Georgia's 3rd | Brian Jack | R+15 |
| Georgia's 4th | Hank Johnson | D+27 |
| Georgia's 5th | Nikema Williams | D+36 |
| Georgia's 6th | Lucy McBath | D+25 |
| Georgia's 7th | Rich McCormick | R+11 |
| Georgia's 8th | Austin Scott | R+15 |
| Georgia's 9th | Andrew Clyde | R+17 |
| Georgia's 10th | Mike Collins | R+11 |
| Georgia's 11th | Barry Loudermilk | R+12 |
| Georgia's 12th | Rick Allen | R+7 |
| Georgia's 13th | David Scott | D+21 |
| Georgia's 14th | Marjorie Taylor Greene | R+19 |
2024 presidential results by 2026 congressional district lines
| District | Kamala Harris | Donald Trump |
|---|---|---|
| Georgia's 1st | 42.0% | 58.0% |
| Georgia's 2nd | 54.0% | 46.0% |
| Georgia's 3rd | 35.0% | 65.0% |
| Georgia's 4th | 76.0% | 23.0% |
| Georgia's 5th | 85.0% | 14.0% |
| Georgia's 6th | 75.0% | 25.0% |
| Georgia's 7th | 38.0% | 60.0% |
| Georgia's 8th | 34.0% | 65.0% |
| Georgia's 9th | 33.0% | 67.0% |
| Georgia's 10th | 39.0% | 60.0% |
| Georgia's 11th | 38.0% | 61.0% |
| Georgia's 12th | 43.0% | 57.0% |
| Georgia's 13th | 71.0% | 28.0% |
| Georgia's 14th | 31.0% | 68.0% |
| Source: The Downballot | ||
2016-2024
How a state's counties vote in a presidential election and the size of those counties can provide additional insights into election outcomes at other levels of government including statewide and congressional races. Below, four categories are used to describe each county's voting pattern over the 2016, 2020, and 2024 presidential elections: Solid, Trending, Battleground, and New. Click [show] on the table below for examples:
| County-level voting pattern categories | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | |||||||
| Status | 2016 | 2020 | 2024 | ||||
| Solid Democratic | D | D | D | ||||
| Trending Democratic | R | D | D | ||||
| Battleground Democratic | D | R | D | ||||
| New Democratic | R | R | D | ||||
| Republican | |||||||
| Status | 2016 | 2020 | 2024 | ||||
| Solid Republican | R | R | R | ||||
| Trending Republican | D | R | R | ||||
| Battleground Republican | R | D | R | ||||
| New Republican | D | D | R | ||||
Following the 2024 presidential election, 52.2% of Georgians lived in one of the state's 27 Solid Democratic counties, which voted for the Democratic presidential candidate in every election from 2016 to 2024, and 46.8% lived in one of 128 Solid Republican counties. Overall, Georgia was Battleground Republican, having voted for Donald Trump (R) in 2016, Joe Biden (D) in 2020, and Donald Trump (R) in 2024. Use the table below to view the total number of each type of county in Georgia following the 2024 election as well as the overall percentage of the state population located in each county type.
| Georgia county-level statistics, 2024 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Solid Democratic | 27 | 52.2% | |||||
| Solid Republican | 128 | 46.8% | |||||
| New Republican | 3 | 0.7% | |||||
| Trending Republican | 1 | 0.2% | |||||
| Total voted Democratic | 27 | 52.2% | |||||
| Total voted Republican | 132 | 47.8% | |||||
Historical voting trends
Georgia presidential election results (1900-2024)
- 20 Democratic wins
- 11 Republican wins
- 1 other win
| Year | 1900 | 1904 | 1908 | 1912 | 1916 | 1920 | 1924 | 1928 | 1932 | 1936 | 1940 | 1944 | 1948 | 1952 | 1956 | 1960 | 1964 | 1968 | 1972 | 1976 | 1980 | 1984 | 1988 | 1992 | 1996 | 2000 | 2004 | 2008 | 2012 | 2016 | 2020 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winning Party | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | R | AI[1] | R | D | D | R | R | D | R | R | R | R | R | R | D | R |
This section details the results of the five most recent U.S. Senate and gubernatorial elections held in the state.
U.S. Senate elections
The table below details the vote in the five most recent U.S. Senate races in Georgia.
Gubernatorial elections
- See also: Governor of Georgia
The table below details the vote in the five most recent gubernatorial elections in Georgia.
Congressional delegation
The table below displays the partisan composition of Georgia's congressional delegation as of January 2026.
| Congressional Partisan Breakdown from Georgia | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | U.S. Senate | U.S. House | Total |
| Democratic | 2 | 5 | 7 |
| Republican | 0 | 8 | 8 |
| Independent | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Vacancies | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Total | 2 | 14 | 16 |
State executive
The table below displays the officeholders in Georgia's top four state executive offices as of October 2025.
| Office | Officeholder |
|---|---|
| Governor | |
| Lieutenant Governor | |
| Secretary of State | |
| Attorney General |
State legislature
Georgia State Senate
| Party | As of October 2025 | |
|---|---|---|
| Democratic Party | 22 | |
| Republican Party | 33 | |
| Other | 0 | |
| Vacancies | 1 | |
| Total | 56 | |
Georgia House of Representatives
| Party | As of October 2025 | |
|---|---|---|
| Democratic Party | 79 | |
| Republican Party | 99 | |
| Other | 0 | |
| Vacancies | 2 | |
| Total | 180 | |
Trifecta control
Georgia Party Control: 1992-2025
Eleven years of Democratic trifectas • Twenty-one years of Republican trifectas
Scroll left and right on the table below to view more years.
| Year | 92 | 93 | 94 | 95 | 96 | 97 | 98 | 99 | 00 | 01 | 02 | 03 | 04 | 05 | 06 | 07 | 08 | 09 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Governor | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R |
| Senate | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R |
| House | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R |
The table below details demographic data in Georgia and compares it to the broader United States as of 2023.
| Demographic Data for Georgia | ||
|---|---|---|
| Georgia | United States | |
| Population | 10,711,908 | 331,449,281 |
| Land area (sq mi) | 57,716 | 3,531,905 |
| Race and ethnicity** | ||
| White | 52.5% | 63.4% |
| Black/African American | 31.3% | 12.4% |
| Asian | 4.4% | 5.8% |
| Native American | 0.4% | 0.9% |
| Pacific Islander | 0.6% | 0.4% |
| Other (single race) | 4.1% | 6.6% |
| Multiple | 7.2% | 10.7% |
| Hispanic/Latino | 10.7% | 19% |
| Education | ||
| High school graduation rate | 89% | 89.4% |
| College graduation rate | 34.2% | 35% |
| Income | ||
| Median household income | $74,664 | $78,538 |
| Persons below poverty level | 13.5% | 12.4% |
| Source: population provided by U.S. Census Bureau, "Decennial Census" (2020). Other figures provided by U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2018-2023). | ||
| **Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here. | ||
See also
| Georgia | State Executive Elections | News and Analysis |
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External links
Footnotes
- ↑ American Independent Party
