ATLANTA — Republican Gov. Brian Kemp announced Wednesday that he will not call a special legislative session to limit executive powers ahead of Democratic Governor-elect Keisha Lance Bottoms taking office.
The decision follows recent elections in which Democrats flipped the Georgia House of Representatives from Republican control for the first time in more than 20 years. Meanwhile, Republicans retained a slim majority in the Georgia State Senate.
Governor-elect Bottoms visited her Atlanta campaign field office on Wednesday following her election victory. Bottoms said she spoke with Kemp and thanked him for committing to a standard transfer of executive authority.
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“The voters of our state have spoken,” Kemp said. “As long as I’m governor, we will always respect the results of secure accessible and fair elections and abide by the laws and constitution of our state.”
Bottoms expressed appreciation for the current governor’s stance regarding executive powers.
“That this is really about what’s best for the people of Georgia,” Bottoms said. “And as Gov. Kemp shared with me, you know, it’s worked well for many years and he didn’t see a reason to do anything different and I appreciate that.”
House Democrats gathered at the Georgia State Capitol to mark taking control of the chamber. State Rep. Carolyn Hugley, a Democrat from Columbus and 34-year veteran of the legislature who serves as House minority leader, is in position to potentially become the next speaker.
“If my colleagues say so, I could become the next speaker of the House, the first woman elected speaker of the House, first person of color to be the speaker of the House,” Hugley said. “So it will be a historical moment. I only wish my parents were still alive.”
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If selected, Hugley would replace Republican House Speaker Jon Burns, who released a statement regarding the party’s ongoing role in the chamber.
“Our dedication to protecting Georgia’s conservative values has not and will not change,” Burns said. “We will continue showing up for the job we were elected to do every day.”
In the Georgia State Senate, Republicans maintained control of the chamber, though holding only a narrow margin.
Georgia’s Democratic lieutenant governor-elect stated that the slim Republican majority is expected to encourage closer bipartisan cooperation among senators.
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