Voters across Northwest Georgia cast ballots Tuesday in the special election runoff for Georgia’s 14th Congressional District and the 53rd State Senate District, but another important election is already just ahead for Chattooga County voters.
Democratic candidate Jack Zibluk has congratulated Republican Lanny Thomas following Tuesday night’s runoff in Georgia’s 53rd State Senate District.
Update 8:13 PM:
Fuller Leads 14th District, Thomas Ahead In State Senate Race As Returns Continue
WZQZ News — Updated election returns from Tuesday night show Republican Clay Fuller now leading Democrat Shawn Harris in Georgia’s 14th Congressional District special runoff, while Republican Lanny Thomas continues to hold a strong lead over Democrat John Bentley “Jack” Zibluk in the State Senate District 53 race.
In the 14th Congressional District contest, the latest numbers show Fuller with 26,043 votes, or 52.02 percent, compared to Harris with 24,016 votes, or 47.98 percent.
In the State Senate District 53 runoff, Thomas is ahead with 6,555 votes, or 64.86 percent, while Zibluk has received 3,552 votes, or 35.14 percent.
While the state results page shows all localities listed in the summary, not all precincts are necessarily fully reported yet, meaning vote totals could still change as additional returns are processed.
Election officials will continue updating results throughout the evening.
Earlier this evening:
Election returns are coming in tonight across Georgia’s 14th Congressional District and State Senate District 53, and the early numbers are showing a split between Chattooga County and the district as a whole. In the 14th District congressional runoff, Republican Clay Fuller is leading in Chattooga County, while Democrat Shawn Harris is holding a narrow district-wide advantage in the latest unofficial results.
According to the numbers shown in the latest update, Harris has 51.48 percent of the vote district-wide with 16,806 votes, compared to Fuller’s 48.52 percent and 15,840 votes. In Chattooga County, however, local returns show Fuller with a substantial lead over Harris. The latest district-wide tally displayed 7 of 10 localities reporting in the congressional race.
In the State Senate District 53 runoff, Republican Lanny Thomas is leading Democrat John Bentley “Jack” Zibluk in the latest unofficial returns. The posted totals show Thomas with 61.09 percent, or 4,765 votes, compared to Zibluk’s 38.91 percent, or 3,035 votes. The latest update showed 4 of 5 localities reporting in that race.
Both contests are being closely watched in Northwest Georgia, with vote totals expected to continue shifting as additional precincts report.
These results remain unofficial until certified by election officials.
Tomorrow, voters will return to the polls to decide who will replace Marjorie Taylor Greene in the United States House of Representatives and Colton Moore in the Georgia State Senate.
Voters in the 14th Congressional District in Georgia, which includes Chattooga County, will be deciding between former Lookout Mountain District Attorney Clay Fuller, a Republican, and retired Brigadier General and cattle farmer Shawn Harris, a Democrat. Voters in the 53rd State Senate District, which also includes Chattooga County, will be deciding between Republican Lanny Thomas, the former Mayor of Trion, and Lookout Mountain educator Democrat Jack Zibluck.
Voting will take place in local precincts. There will be no voting at the Chattooga County Registrars Office. Voting will be from 7 AM until 7 PM.
Be sure to bring a picture ID when you come to vote.
Today is the last day to vote early in the runoff election to decide who will replace Colton Moore in the state senate for the 53rd District and Marjorie Taylor Greene in the United States House of Representatives for the 14th Georgia Congressional District.
Former Trion Mayor Lanny Thomas, a Republican, and John Bentley “Jack” Zibluk, a Democrat, are headed to an April 7 runoff election in the race for Georgia State Senate District 53 after no candidate won a majority in Tuesday’s special election.
Unofficial and incomplete results from Tuesday’s March 10, 2026 special election show 3,772 ballots cast in Chattooga County, representing 24.77% turnout among the county’s 15,226 registered voters.
The results released Tuesday night reflect Chattooga County votes only.
In the race for U.S. House of Representatives, District 14, Clay Fuller (Republican) received the most votes in Chattooga County with 1,705 votes (46.43%). Shawn Harris (Democrat) finished second locally with 912 votes (24.84%), followed by Colton Moore (Republican) with 727 votes (19.80%).
The 14th Congressional District covers multiple counties across Northwest Georgia, meaning the final outcome will be determined by votes from the entire district.
In the race for Georgia State Senate District 53, Lanny Thomas (Republican) led the vote in Chattooga County with 1,796 votes (48.27%), followed by Blake Elsberry (Republican) with 910 votes (24.46%), John Bentley “Jack” Zibluk (Democrat) with 696 votes (18.70%), and Denise Pierce Burns (Republican) with 319 votes (8.57%).
The 53rd State Senate District includes voters in Chattooga, Walker, Dade, Catoosa and Floyd counties, meaning the final election results will depend on totals from all counties in the district.
Election officials reported 1,869 votes cast on Election Day, 1,837 during advance voting, and 66 absentee ballots by mail.
Final certified results will be released after all counties complete their tabulations.
Blake Elsberry, a candidate for Georgia State Senate District 53 and former Chattooga County Sole Commissioner, has released a public response addressing questions surrounding his past involvement with Zentell Communications.
Northwest Georgia’s political landscape is shifting as Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene prepares to step down from her seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. Greene announced she will resign effective January 5, 2026, a move that will trigger a special election to fill the remainder of her term.
Trion Mayor Lanny Thomas used a Thanksgiving message to the community to announce that he will be running for the Georgia State Senate in District 53. In a video released Thursday, Thomas shared holiday greetings alongside family and friends before revealing that his time as mayor is nearing an end and that he is preparing for the next step in public service.