Georgia House Dems Elect New Leader

Today, the House Democratic Caucus took a huge step toward becoming a functional organization that can be relied on to champion strong, progressive policies that make life better for Georgians.

The elections to replace the outgoing House leadership were held today, and first up was the most important: Minority Leader, abdicated by Stacey Abrams since she’s running for Governor. On the second ballot, a majority elected Bob Trammell of Luthersville to the position, and with that ushered in a new era.

His opponent, Carolyn Hughley, was widely seen as a proxy for the outgoing leader – Abrams – and Trammel’s election has been termed as a rejection of Abram’s leadership.

Caucuses are well-known but poorly understood – probably because they often operate well below their potential. But when leadership puts vanity and self-interest aside and works for the group, they can be change agents in a legislature that needs it. The House caucus in particular has such opportunities for growth. It’s well known that Georgia had the lowest percentage of contested House and Senate elections in the nation, and that many districts that Hillary won didn’t have a strong Democratic challenger. Georgians in many parts of the state felt unrepresented and unheard.

That may now change. The election of Trammell sends a message that the status quo is not good enough. And that’s a message many Georgians would agree with.