On Tuesday, December 2nd, Georgia voters will be able to choose the short-term replacement for civil rights legend John Lewis. Kwanza Hall, Former Atlanta City Council member, and Robert Franklin, former Morehouse College President, will face off as candidates in the election.
What We Know:
- John Lewis, a civil rights legend, died from pancreatic cancer in July after serving 34 years in Congress. He was the youngest and last survivor of the speakers at the 1963 March on Washington, when Lewis led the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee. Neither candidate won a majority among seven candidates, forcing a runoff that leaves the winner with only about a month to serve in Congress. He also led protesters in the “Bloody Sunday” march in 1965 across the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama.
- The 5th Congressional District includes most of the city of Atlanta and some suburban areas of Fulton, DeKalb, and Clayton counties. About 22,000 people voted, less than 5% of the district’s registered voters.
- Both Hall and Franklin argue that they could get something accomplished during their short time in Congress. By voting on a temporary federal budget, this position could be the most significant act that the winner takes, even though there is still very little hope of additional COVID-19 relief. “Although not the outcome we had wanted, I am pleased that our district will have voice and vote in the critical days ahead,” Franklin said in a statement sent to The Associated Press.
- According to NBC News, the 49-year-old Hall touts his experience on the Atlanta City Council and the Atlanta school board, saying he will make the most of his limited time to try to focus on directing money to the district’s top concerns.
The winner will only fill the seat until Jan. 3, and another election will soon follow.
