Former Donald Trump aide Brian Jack wins Georgia congressional seat, defeating Democrat Maura Keller

ATLANTA (AP) — Former Donald Trump aide Brian Jack won election to Congress from Georgia on Tuesday, leaving no distance between himself and Trump in winning his first term.

Jack’s victory came as longtime incumbent Democrat Sanford Bishop sought a 17th term in Congress in southwest Georgia’s 2nd Congressional District.

Those were the two highest-profile congressional races in the state in an election where no statewide candidates were on the ballot. Voters across Georgia were deciding on three referendums, including a measure limiting increases in a home’s value for property tax purposes. But the most competitive elections were in a handful of state House races, where Democrats are trying to reduce the Republican majority.

Both major parties contested all 14 of Georgia’s congressional districts, where Republicans held a 9-5 majority before Tuesday.

Jack won Georgia’s 3rd Congressional district south and west of Atlanta. He defeated Democrat Maura Keller in a GOP-tilting seat that was open because U.S. Rep. Drew Ferguson is retiring.

A 36-year-old Peachtree City native, Jack was the political director in Trump’s White House and later worked for U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy. Trump’s repeated endorsement and access to McCarthy’s fundraising network carried Jack to victory in a crowded Republican primary. Keller is a retired Army lieutenant colonel and Fayetteville resident.

She ran on a platform of abortion rights, better veterans services and higher wages, while Jack emphasized he would be a partner to Trump on economic and immigration issues.

Bishop has long focused on his legislative achievements and what his seniority helps him accomplish, calling himself a moderate. He has courted largely white farmers who drive the rural economy and supported military bases. His opponent, Republican Wayne Johnson, worked in the U.S. Department of Education under Donald Trump. Johnson had pledged to focus on the economic well-being of constituents in one of Georgia’s poorest regions. The 2nd runs across 30 counties, stretching into Columbus and Macon.

Before all Georgia voters was an effort to curb rising property tax bills by limiting how much of a home’s increasing value can be taxed. The state constitutional amendment would limit increases in a home’s value for tax purposes to the broader rate of inflation each year.

Supporters say it will protect current homeowners from ever-higher property tax bills, but opponents warn that the caps will unfairly shift the burden onto new homeowners, renters and other property holders.

Georgia is one of eight states where voters will decide property tax measures, showing how rising tax bills are influencing politics nationwide.

From 2018 to 2022, the total assessed value of property across Georgia rose by nearly 39%, according to the Georgia Department of Revenue. Most governments pocketed increased revenues without raising tax rates, boosting employee pay and other spending.

Lawmakers proposed the amendment after hearing from constituents angry about rising tax bills. The protection would last as long as someone owns their home. The assessed value would reset to the market value when a home is sold, with new homeowners then getting the benefit of the cap on the higher price.

Dozens of Georgia counties, cities and school systems already operate under local assessment caps. But school systems have been wary, warning the cap could starve them of needed funds. Most school districts can’t raise property tax rates above a certain level.

To ease schools’ concerns, the measure gives local governments and school districts until March 1 to opt out. Any that do not would be permanently governed by the cap.

Republicans maintained control Tuesday of the Georgia state Senate. The victory was not a surprise, with a majority of the 56 Senate districts drawn to favor the GOP. Democrats had been focusing on reducing the Republican majority in the state House, which stood at 102-78 before voting concluded Tuesday. Democrats have been favored to pick up at least a few seats.

The hardest fought House districts included six stretching across northern Atlanta suburbs in Fulton and Gwinnett counties. Each party was trying to wrest away three districts held by the other.

Democrats campaigned on overturning Georgia’s current abortion restrictions, doing more to limit guns, and expanding the Medicaid program to more low-income adults. Republicans touted their support for low taxes, police and school vouchers.

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