In a stunning upset, Democrat Keisha Lance Bottoms defeated Republican billionaire Rick Jackson Tuesday to become the first black female governor in American history and Georgia’s first Democrat governor since 1998.
Bottoms led Jackson 54.2% to 45.8% with about 85% of the expected vote counted, according to NBC News. Though Jackson ran toward the middle, his moderate disposition did nothing to stem the tide against Bottoms.
‘I’m not running to be his favorite governor.’
The last Democrat to win was Roy Barnes, who secured the seat in 1998. Barnes lost his 2002 re-election bid to Sonny Perdue, Georgia’s first Republican governor since Reconstruction ended. Republicans have held the office ever since — until now.
Jackson spent more than $200 million of his own fortune, according to AP.
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