McBath defeats Bourdeaux in Georgia matchup of Democratic House members

Rep. Lucy McBath has defeated fellow Rep. Carolyn Bourdeaux in the member-versus-member Democratic primary for Georgia’s newly redrawn 7th District.

McBath came out on top in a primary that pitted Democratic stars of the past two elections against each other, after Georgia Republicans passed a new congressional map that packed together Democrats from both of their old swing districts. The map left one winnable district for the two Democratic incumbents.

Both Democrats were seen as having promising futures in the party, and now only McBath will return to the House of Representatives next year, after what should be an easy win in November. She was able to successfully build a national profile, fueled by outside groups pouring millions of dollars into the primary.

McBath is known in part for the personal story that led her to run for office. She survived breast cancer twice and was an active gun control reform advocate after her son was killed in 2012. She flipped Georgia’s 6th District blue in 2018, beating out then-Republican Rep. Karen Handel, before easily winning reelection in a 2020 rematch.

When Republicans redrew the maps in 2021, the 6th District became virtually impossible for McBath. Her current district turned deep red, shifting from supporting Biden by more than 11 points to supporting former President Donald Trump by 15.2 points, according to POLITICO's Redistricting Tracker. The 7th District, however, shifted further left, from 6.9 points for Biden to 26.1 with the new lines, becoming an easier win for Democrats.

The McBath-Bourdeaux showdown was just one of a few incumbent-versus-incumbent races forced by redistricting in 2022. GOP Rep. Alex Mooney, who had Trump’s endorsement, knocked out Rep. David McKinley earlier this month to represent the northern region of West Virginia, which lost one of its three congressional districts.

Illinois voters will also choose between Democratic Reps. Sean Casten and Marie Newman in June after lawmakers redrew districts around Chicago, while GOP Reps. Mary Miller and Rodney Davis are also competing for the same district downstate.