Gaines, other incumbent Republicans win 2022 Georgia House races for Athens area

Nikolai Mather, Athens Banner-Herald
·2 min read
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Republican House candidates saw major victories this year in the Athens area.

Georgia Rep. Houston Gaines won another term in the Georgia General Assembly, defeating Democrat candidate Mokah Jasmine Johnson in Tuesday's election with 61.2% of the vote.

This is Gaines' third consecutive victory after initially winning against Democrat Deborah Gonzalez in 2018. This is also his second consecutive victory against Johnson, who he defeated in 2020 with 56.6% of the vote. Gaines will represent the 120th district, which covers portions of Jackson, Barrow, Clarke and Oconee counties.

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FILE - State Rep. Houston Gaines speaks to North Oconee High Schoolers during the school's annual 9/11 memorial on Monday, Sept. 13 in Bogart.
FILE - State Rep. Houston Gaines speaks to North Oconee High Schoolers during the school's annual 9/11 memorial on Monday, Sept. 13 in Bogart.

Other Republican incumbents swept the board once again in the Athens area this year, with Trey Rhodes and Marcus Wiedower winning against Democrat opponents. Rhodes, who ran against Kat Howkins, won 65.8% of the vote for District 124. Wiedower, who ran against Jeff Auerbach, won 60.4% of the vote for District 121. Democrat Spencer Frye ran unopposed in District 122.

This year, Athens-Clarke County saw a rate of 59.1% turnout for this election, with 40,435 of 68,411 registered voters participating in the election. More than 22,000 Athenians cast their ballots during the early voting period. As of Nov. 7, 2022, Athenians had cast 3,566 absentee ballots.

FILE - Mokah Jasmine Johnson, who is running for state House seat in District 120, speaks to the crowd during an abortions rights rally in response to the U.S. Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade on Saturday, June 25, 2022 in downtown Athens.
FILE - Mokah Jasmine Johnson, who is running for state House seat in District 120, speaks to the crowd during an abortions rights rally in response to the U.S. Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade on Saturday, June 25, 2022 in downtown Athens.

Johnson campaigned heavily on rising housing costs for Athens residents, including evicted residents of Lexington Heights who saw a sudden rent spike over the summer. Johnson co-founded the Athens Anti-Discrimination Movement and served on the Athens-Clarke County Board of Elections.

Gaines got his start in politics at the University of Georgia, where he served as student body president for the 2016-2017 school year. He then went on to run for local office in 2018. This year, he campaigned on a platform of lowering state income tax rates and strengthening law enforcement.

This article originally appeared on Athens Banner-Herald: Georgia Election Results: Athens Republicans sweep state House races