US Rep. McBath Wins Democratic Nomination in Redrawn Georgia District

Rep. Lucy McBath (D-Ga.) speaks during a House Judiciary Committee markup of H.R. 7120 the Justice in Policing Act, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., on June 17, 2020. Greg Nash/Pool via Reuters

Rep. Lucy McBath won the Democratic nomination in Georgia’s U.S. 7th Congressional District primary over fellow Rep. Carolyn Bourdeaux in the newly redrawn district near Atlanta.

McBath, who has campaigned on a platform of gun safety, describes herself on Twitter as the “mother of Jordan Davis,” who was fatally shot at a gas station during a 2012 argument about loud music.

She referenced her late son in a post on Twitter marking her victory.

“Today is why we act. This victory is why we act. This is why, after Jordan’s murder, I made a promise to my son, to my family, our entire community, that I would spend the rest of my life fighting to prevent more parents from the heartbreak of losing a loved one,” she wrote, accompanied by a photo of herself with her son when he was a baby.

McBath received 63 percent of the vote, while Bourdeaux received 31 percent.

McBath, who previously represented the state’s 6th District, faced Bourdeaux, the 7th District incumbent, after their congressional districts were redrawn by the GOP-led state legislature in a process that happens every 10 years. Parts of McBath’s district were moved into Bourdeaux’s, and McBath’s district went from leaning Democratic to safely Republican in redistricting.

Prior to the redistricting, McBath had flipped her seat in 2018 to Democratic from Republican, with an increase in black voters cited as a contributing factor.

McBath will face a Republican nominee in the general election on Nov. 8.

Reuters contributed to this report.