ATLANTA (AP) - The Latest on elections in Georgia (all times local):
1:25 a.m.
Two metro Atlanta Democrats will face off in a runoff Dec. 5 to decide who fills the state Senate seat of Democrat Vincent Fort, who stepped down to run for Atlanta mayor.
Nikema Williams and Linda Pritchett were the top finishers Tuesday in a four-way face for the 39th Senate District in Fulton County. No one garnered more than 50 percent of the vote, the threshold required to win outright and avoid a runoff.
A total of four Democrats and one Republican were on the ballot.
The Democrats were Elijah Tutt, Pritchett, Marckeith DeJesus, and Williams.
The lone Republican in the contest was Nick Carlson.
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1:20 a.m.
Keisha Lance Bottoms and Mary Norwood are the top two vote-getters in Tuesday’s Atlanta mayoral race and are now headed to a runoff.
Unofficial election returns early Wednesday morning showed that Bottoms had about 27 percent of the vote to Norwood’s 21 percent.
The two candidates now face off in a Dec. 5 runoff since no candidate won a majority of votes.
The winner of the runoff will replace Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed, who is leaving due to term limits.
Bottoms and Norwood emerged first and second from a field of nearly a dozen candidates vying for the high-profile position.
Atlanta’s next mayor faces a bevy of challenges including transportation, affordable housing, jobs, public safety and education.
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1:10 a.m.
Two candidates are heading to a Dec. 5 runoff in in metro Atlanta for a state Senate seat left open when Republican Hunter Hill left the chamber to run for governor.
Democrats Jen Jordan and Jaha Howard were the top vote-getters in a seven-way race Tuesday, but neither won more than 50 percent of the vote as required to avoid a runoff.
Five Republicans and three Democrats ran for the seat: Republicans Charlie Fiveash, Kathy Eichenblatt, Leah Aldridge, Leo Smith and Matt Bentley; and Democrats Howard, Jordan and Taos Wynn.
District 6 includes parts of Cobb and Fulton counties. It covers a large part of north Atlanta as well as some suburban areas in both counties.
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12:15 a.m.
Two metro Atlanta Democrats will meet in a runoff election Dec. 5 to fill a vacant seat in the state House.
Democrats Kim Schofield and De’Andre Pickett were the top two finishers Tuesday in a race to fill the vacant 60th District seat in Fulton and Clayton counties. Neither candidate got more than 50 percent of the vote as needed to win outright, sending the race to a runoff.
Democratic Rep. Keisha Waites of Atlanta resigned from the district in September to run in Tuesday’s election for chairman of the Fulton County Commission.
Three Democrats - Schofield, Pickett and Sparkle Adams - had signed up to compete for Waites’ House seat. No Republicans joined the race.
The winner of the runoff will serve the remaining year of Waites’ unfinished term.
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11:45 p.m.
Two Democrats will face off in a Dec. 5 runoff election for a state House seat left vacant by a Democratic lawmaker running for governor.
Bee Nguyen and Sachin Varghese were the top two finishers Tuesday in a special election for the 89th District seat in DeKalb County. Neither candidate got more than 50 percent of the vote needed to win outright and avoid a runoff.
The winner will replace Democratic Rep. Stacey Abrams of Atlanta. Abrams resigned from office in August to concentrate on her 2018 campaign for governor.
The winner will serve the final year of Abram’s unfinished term, but must run again next year to remain in office. All state House and Senate members are up for re-election in 2018.
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10 p.m.
Democrat Deborah Gonzalez has won a special election to a vacant state House seat in northeast Georgia.
Gonzalez defeated Republican Houston Gaines on Tuesday in the 117th District, which includes portions of Clarke, Oconee, Barrow and Jackson counties.
The election was called to fill the remaining year in the unfinished term of GOP Rep. Regina Quick of Athens. Quick had to step down in Augusta after Gov. Nathan Deal appointed her to become a Superior Court judge.
Gonzalez will report to the state Capitol for the 2018 legislative session in January - and then hit the campaign trail again. All state House and Senate members must seek re-election next year in order to remain in office.
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9:30 p.m.
Democrat Jonathan Wallace has won election in northeast Georgia to an open seat in the state House.
Voters in Clarke and Oconee counties elected Wallace on Tuesday to the 119th District.
The seat was vacated by Republican Rep. Chuck Williams of Watkinsville in August after Gov. Nathen Deal appointed him to head the Georgia Forestry Commission.
Three Republicans - Lawton Lord, Marcus Wiedower and Steven Strickland - also ran for the seat.
The winner will serve the remaining year in Williams’ unfinished term, but will have to run again in 2018 to hold onto the seat. All state House and Senate members must seek re-election next year to stay in office.
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9 p.m.
Republican Marc Morris has won a special election for a Georgia House seat north of Atlanta.
Forsyth County voters elected Morris on Tuesday to take the place of Republican Rep. Geoff Duncan of Cumming. Duncan stepped down from his 26th District seat in August to focus on his 2018 campaign for lieutenant governor.
Two Republicans - Morris and Tina Trent - had entered the race along with Democrat Steve Smith.
The winner will serve the remaining year of Duncan’s term. But the seat will be back on the ballot next year, when all state House and Senate members must seek re-election in order to serve another two-year term.
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8:45 p.m.
Republican Kasey Carpenter has won a four-way special election for a vacant state House seat in northwest Georgia.
Whitfield County voters elected Carpenter on Tuesday to replace Republican Rep. Bruce Broadrick of Dalton. Broadrick stepped down from his 4th District seat in September, citing failing health.
Carpenter and fellow GOP candidates Beau Patton and Eddie Caldwell ran for the seat. So did one Democrat, Peter Pociask.
Carpenter will serve the remaining year of Broadrick’s unfinished term, but will need to run again next year when all state lawmakers’ seats are on the ballot.
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8:20 p.m.
Democrats will retain control of a metro Atlanta seat in the state House that was vacated by a lawmaker who’s running for governor.
Smyrna consultant Teri Anulewicz was the only candidate on the ballot Tuesday in the special election in Cobb County. She will succeed former Democratic Rep. Stacey Evans of Smyrna, who gave up her seat in September to devote more time to her 2018 campaign for governor.
Anulewicz will fill the final year of Evans’ unfinished House term. But the newcomer will have to run again next year if she wants a full two-year term. All state House and Senate incumbents seeking re-election will be on the 2018 ballot.
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8 p.m.
Polls have closed across Georgia after voters in Atlanta cast ballots for a new mayor and others decided on state leaders to fill some vacancies in the Georgia Legislature.
Many polls closed at 7 p.m. Tuesday, and polls in the city of Atlanta stayed open an extra hour until 8 p.m.
Nearly a dozen candidates were on Tuesday’s ballot in Atlanta, competing to succeed term-limited Mayor Kasim Reed.
Elsewhere in Georgia, several contenders did battle in special elections for state House and Senate seats that became open after incumbent lawmakers decided not to finish their terms.
The crowded ballots mean it’s likely that some races Tuesday won’t have an outright winner who gets more than 50 percent of the vote. Those races will go to a runoff election Dec. 5.
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10 a.m.
Voting is underway with the mayor’s office and city council seats in play in Atlanta and a handful of vacancies around the state in the Georgia Legislature.
Nearly a dozen candidates are on the ballot Tuesday, competing to succeed term-limited Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed.
There’s also no shortage of contenders in nine special elections for state House and Senate seats around Georgia that became open after incumbent lawmakers decided not to finish their terms. A total of 34 candidates signed up for those races.
The Atlanta mayoral election is non-partisan, and special elections to fill legislative vacancies skip the party primaries that would otherwise narrow the fields. The crowded ballots mean it’s likely some races Tuesday won’t have an outright winner who gets more than 50 percent of the vote. Those races would require runoff elections Dec. 5.
Secretary of state’s office spokeswoman Candice Broce said no major problems had been reported Tuesday morning.
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5 a.m.
Voters are electing a new Atlanta mayor and filling a handful of vacancies in the Georgia Legislature.
Nearly a dozen candidates are on the ballot Tuesday, competing to succeed term-limited Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed.
There’s also no shortage of contenders in nine special elections for state House and Senate seats around Georgia that became open after incumbent lawmakers decided not to finish their terms. A total of 34 candidates signed up for those races.
The Atlanta mayoral election is non-partisan, and special elections to fill legislative vacancies skip the party primaries that would otherwise narrow the fields. The crowded ballots mean it’s likely some races Tuesday won’t have an outright winner who gets more than 50 percent of the vote. Those races would require runoff elections Dec. 5.
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