Democrats flip deep-red Georgia House seat for District 121

Democrats managed to flip a seat in the state House of Representatives Tuesday.

Eric Gisler won the election for House District 121 by just under 200 votes. President Donald Trump won the same district in 2024 by 12 points.

Gisler faced off against Republican Mack “Dutch” Guest for the seat that covers parts of Oconee and Clarke Counties in the Athens area.

“We had an excellent team. We had a great ground game. We had a better message that appealed to more voters, and it shows up in the results,” Gisler told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Georgia Democrats announced the victory as a “blue wave” and called for the momentum to continue.

“This particular district was plus 12 for Trump just in 2024, so this is a big deal. Congrats to Eric and his team. The blue wave is continuing here in Georgia,” Debra Shigley, who previously ran for State Senate District 21, said in an Instagram video.

Democrats will now hold 81 seats in the House, and they need 91 seats to hold the majority of the 180-member body.

State House District 23

The crowded race for state House District 23 will head to a runoff election on Jan. 6. Republican Bill Fincher and Democrat Scott Sanders both won around 27% of the vote but failed to garner enough votes to avoid a runoff.

The Cherokee County seat was previously occupied by former state Rep. Mandi Ballinger, who passed away in October. 

The county went to Trump in 2024, when he won 69% of the vote.

 

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