Blair wins race to finish late Georgia congressman’s term and makes history in the process

Everton Blair, a former Gwinnett County Board of Education chair, is headed to Washington to finish out the late Congressman David Scott term representing Georgia’s 13th Congressional District after defeating Marcye Scott, the daughter of the late congressman, in a special election.

As of late Tuesday night, Blair led with about 53% of the vote, according to unofficial results from the Georgia Secretary of State’s Office, while Scott had about 47% of the vote. The Associated Press called the race for Blair at around 8:38 p.m. Tuesday.

Blair, a 34-year-old with a doctorate degree in education from Harvard University, is the second Black openly gay man to be elected to Congress and the first representing a Southern state. He ran a progressive campaign by advocating for Medicare for all, speaking out against Israel’s reliance on U.S. tax dollars and its influence in U.S. politics, and pledging to voters that he would be a voice in Washington against President Donald Trump’s policies.

“People are craving for change. We want better in our communities, and it is time for us to shift from a status quo that, frankly, has not been working for hardworking Americans,” Blair said in a phone interview Tuesday night. “And this election is one of many that is a testament to what can change if you pick visionaries who are ready to enact an agenda that actually works and actually makes government work for hardworking Americans.”GET THE MORNING HEADLINES.SUBSCRIBE

Blair received some heavyweight endorsements, with Congresswoman Lucy McBath throwing her support behind his campaign. Georgia House Minority Whip Sam Park joined McBath, as did some of his former opponents in the general primary election: state Sen. Emanuel Jones, reality TV star Dr. Heavenly Kimes and Dr. Joe Lester.

But Blair will not be on the November ballot. State Rep. Jasmine Clark, who did not run in the special election, won the May primary and is expected to easily beat her Republican opponent in the safe Democratic seat and represent the district for a full-term starting next year.

Scott did not immediately return a request for comment Tuesday night. She hinted she would run for her father’s seat shortly after the late Congressman died in April after serving in Congress for more than two decades, leaving the seat unexpectedly vacant after he had qualified in early March to serve another term.

Both the state and national Democratic parties praised Blair’s win, with both Democratic Party of Georgia chair Charlie Bailey and Democratic National Committee chair Ken Martin saying that Blair will work to make the cost of living more affordable.

“I know that Everton will be a congressman who always fights to put Georgia families first,” Martin said in a statement.

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