Days after the August 11 primary runoff, voters in Northeast Georgia are still waiting for a definitive answer in the District 50 State Senate race. As of late Friday, election returns show Bo Hatchett still leading Stacy Hall by 40 votes in the Republican primary. Hatchett picked up eight votes from provisional ballots to widen his narrow 32-vote election night lead. Hall, too, picked up some additional votes in provisional balloting but not enough to overtake Hatchett.
Hall won seven of the eight counties in District 50, but Hatchett’s vote haul in Habersham appears to have been his undoing. Hatchett won Habersham by 1,875 votes. It was enough to cover his losses in Banks (-244), Franklin (-842), Hall (-104), Jackson (-34), Rabun (-123), Stephens (-294), and Towns (-194).
Hatchett, an attorney and businessman making his first bid for public office, succeeded in defeating Hall on their home turf. Hall currently serves as the county commission chair. He banked much of his campaign on his political experience and came under fire for a slew of attack ads aimed at Hatchett and the legal community. Hall has since hinged his hopes on provisional, absentee, and overseas ballots, but those hopes now appear to be fading as election boards certify their results.
As of 5:30 p.m. on August 14, the Georgia Secretary of State’s Office showed Hatchett ahead 12,488 votes (50.08%) to Hall’s 12,448 votes (49.92%). The results remain unofficial until certified by the Secretary of State’s Office.
This year’s campaign stretched over five months due to the pandemic delay and runoff. Hall heavily outspent Hatchett in the race. His most recent campaign financial disclosure statement shows his campaign took in $152,050 in donations and spent $150,106 on his election bid. Hatchett’s campaign took in $144,746 in donations and spent $95,306.
Hall has not conceded, nor has Hatchett declared victory. Since there’s less than a percentage point difference between the candidates, it’s likely the Secretary of State will call for a recount, perhaps sometime next week.
The winner of the race will face Democrat Dee Daley of Rabun County in the November General Election.
