DPG Announces Five Candidates for Rep. John Lewis’ Seat

The Democratic Party of Georgia (DPG) received 131 applicants for people seeking to be the Democratic nominee in GA-5 after the passing of Rep. John Lewis. Rahul Bali has announced via twitter that the list has been narrowed down to five:

State Representative Park Cannon
Atlanta City Councilman Andre Dickens
Robert Franklin
State Senator and DPG Chair Nikema Williams
Georgia NAACP President Rev. James Woodall

According to a press release by the Secretary of State’s office, the Executive Committee of the DPG has until 4:30 p.m. this afternoon to submit their nominee. The full press release:

“As our state mourns the loss of a great Georgian, the law demands that we move quickly to elect the next representative from the 5th Congressional District,” said Raffensperger. “Congressman Lewis played a pivotal role in our nation’s history to ensure access to the ballot box, and voters can honor his legacy by participating in our democracy as they decide who should represent them in Congress. No one can replace John Lewis, but someone must represent the interests of the 5th Congressional District.”

Because Congressman Lewis had already won his party’s nomination for the general election, state law calls for the state executive committe of the Democratic Party of Georgia to appoint a replacement nominee. The party has until 4:30 today to inform the Secretary of State’s Office on whether it intends to do so.

Gov. Brian Kemp will call a special election to fill the remainder of Lewis’s current term, which ends in early January. The writ calling for the special election shall be issued within 10 days from the vacancy and the election must be at least 30 days after that. In federal elections, federal law requires military and overseas ballots to be sent 45 days before the special election.

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