Runoff decides Columbus area’s new Georgia legislator. See special election results here

Mark Rice
·4 min read

Carmen Rice appears to have defeated Sean Knox in the runoff for the special election to replace Richard Smith in the Georgia House and represent the Columbus area’s District 139.

With all 10 of the district’s precincts reporting their results Tuesday night, Rice received 1,095 votes (55.61%), and Knox received 874 votes (43.39 %), according to the Georgia Secretary of State’s website.

Smith was a Republican and a key leader for the Columbus area in the state legislature, serving in the Georgia House since 2005 and as chairman of the House Rules Committee since 2020. So when he died from the flu Jan. 30 at age 78, a big void was left in the local delegation.

Knox, a Republican, is president of Knox Pest Control in Columbus. Rice (unrelated to this reporter), a Republican, is a human resources professional in Columbus and the first female Muscogee County GOP chair.

Sean Knox
Sean Knox
Carmen Rice
Carmen Rice

“I am honored and humbled tonight with this decisive victory and thank each of you for your support and vote of confidence,” Rice told the Ledger-Enquirer in an email. “Following the lead and example of Rep. Richard Smith is a tremendous honor, and completing his term representing the every day people of District 139 with integrity, transparency, and accountability is my goal. THANK YOU!”

Knox told the L-E, “We’re disappointed we weren’t victorious tonight, especially after having more votes in the first round. We were hopeful we that we’d be able to continue that. But I congratulate Carmen. She obviously worked real hard as well.”

District 139 covers parts of Muscogee and Harris counties, comprising these voting precincts: Britt David, Chattahoochee, Epworth, Moon, St. Andrew, St. Paul and St. Peter in Muscogee County; and Cataula, Ellerslie and Waverly Hall in Harris County.

The runoff was necessary because none of the four candidates in the April 9 special election received a majority of the votes. The other two candidates were Robert Mallard, an independent, who is co-founder and beekeeper with the Foundation Honey Company in Columbus, and Donald Moeller, a Republican, who is a oral and maxillofacial surgeon in Columbus.

The final results of the April 9 election were:

  • Knox 42.55% (1,045)

  • Rice 42.10% (1,034)

  • Mallard 9.65% (237)

  • Moeller 5.70% (140).

The county-by-county results of the April 9 election also were close. Knox edged Rice in Muscogee County 734-714, while Rice edged Knox in Harris Couty 320-311.

This time, Rice flipped the Muscogee County results to 841-644 in her favor and increased her margin in Harris County to 316-274. Carmen explained what she thinks was the winning difference in the campaign:

“My heart to represent the voters of district 139 lead me to prioritize meeting them and listening to their concerns while also sharing specifically with them my platform,” she said. “It was a lengthy process with this special election, and I made personal communication a priority to share the process on how important District 139 representation truly is.”

There were 381 fewer votes cast in the runoff compared to the April 9 election. Muscogee County’s voter turnout decreased by 235, and Harris County’s turnout decreased by 146.

Because this is a special election to fill a vacated seat, no primary election preceded it. So any district resident could have qualified for the ballot, regardless of party affiliation, but no Democrat qualified to run in the special election for this seat, which is in a predominantly Republican area.

The winner of Tuesday’s runoff immediately becomes the Georgia House District 139 representative and fills the remaining portion of Smith’s two-year term, which expires at the end of this year.

Knox, Moeller and Rice also qualified as Republicans for the May 21 primary for the District 139 seat. The winner of that race will compete in the Nov. 5 general election for the full two-year term against Mallard, who is an independent and doesn’t need to run in the primary, and Carl Sprayberry, a Columbus chef, who is the only Democrat to qualify to campaign for this seat in the regular election.