The Winner

If you live in Georgia’s 8th Congressional District, Rep. Austin Scott (R-GA) will keep representing you after winning a ninth term. The Associated Press called the race for Scott at 8:28 p.m. Eastern time on election night, Tuesday, Nov. 3. ​

Scott has 160,170 votes (60.4%) to 105,005 (39.6%) for Democrat Kelly Esti, a margin of about 21 points, with an estimated 99% of votes counted, according to Associated Press election results. He returns to a House where Republicans will be in the minority.

The Race

Esti, a Navy veteran who grew up in southern Mississippi, beat Worth County School Board member Justin Lucas in the May 19 Democratic primary, 53.5% to 46.5%, while Scott ran unopposed for the Republican nomination, according to Ballotpedia’s race page. Cook Political Report and Inside Elections rated the race Solid Republican, and Sabato’s Crystal Ball rated it Safe Republican.

Scott’s margin shrank from 2024, when he beat Democrat Darrius Butler 68.9% to 31.1% under the same district lines, according to Ballotpedia’s 2024 race results. That 38-point win was nearly double this year’s margin.

The largely rural district stretches from Macon through south-central Georgia to the Florida border, according to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, and includes Warner Robins and Valdosta. About 774,700 people live there, and residents are 58.8% white, 30.1% Black, 7.9% Hispanic and 1.5% Asian.

The median household income is $61,500, and the median age is 38. Of adults, 23.4% hold at least a bachelor’s degree, unemployment is 4.6% and 17.9% of residents live below the poverty line.

What’s Next

Scott’s new term begins Sunday, Jan. 3. He is vice chair of the House Agriculture Committee and also sits on the Armed Services, Rules and Intelligence committees, according to his AllCiv committee profile. He chairs an agriculture subcommittee on farm commodities and an intelligence subcommittee, posts that will go to Democrats when they take control of the House.

During the campaign, Scott told WALB in October that his first task would be passing a budget that lasts past December, and he called a new farm bill the top priority for agriculture. He also said the military must be able to stop Iran from getting a nuclear weapon.

---

AllCiv makes it easy to stay politically informed and involved.

---

Spot something wrong? Report an issue with this article