Jason Esteves resigns from Georgia Senate to focus on campaign for governor

ATLANTA (AP) — Democratic gubernatorial candidate Jason Esteves of Atlanta resigned from his Georgia state Senate seat Wednesday, the first of many candidates who will face that choice as they pursue statewide office in 2026.

“One thing has become clear from my time in the Senate: the challenges Georgia is facing require bold solutions and new leadership in the governor’s office,” Esteves said in a statement. “That’s why I’m resigning from the state Senate — because the best way I can serve the people of Georgia is by putting my whole heart into this campaign.”

Gov. Brian Kemp will call a special election to fill the seat in Senate District 35, which includes parts of Fulton and Cobb counties.

In addition to the time demands of serving in one office while running for another, current elected officials are generally barred from raising campaign money while Georgia’s legislature is in session from January into April.

For Esteves and others who are mounting statewide campaigns, that can be a tough obstacle, cutting off the flow of funds in the crucial months before the May party primaries. Esteves faces Democratic opponents including former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, former DeKalb County CEO Michael Thurmond and state Rep. Derrick Jackson of Tyrone.

Fundraising restrictions don’t apply in the same way to Republican Lt. Gov. Burt Jones, who is also running for governor, because he controls a special kind of fundraising vehicle called a leadership committee, which allows the governor, lieutenant governor and legislative caucuses to raise unlimited amounts of money, even when lawmakers are in session.

The leadership committee law has faced repeated legal challenges, including from Republican Chris Carr, who’s seeking the GOP nomination for governor against Jones.

The ability to raise money during the 2026 legislative session could induce Carr and others to step down in coming months. Although Esteves is resigning, many lawmakers have stayed in their seats while they ran. In 2022, the dozen lawmakers who ran for statewide office generally didn’t resign.

At least 10 other Georgia lawmakers besides Esteves are making bids for statewide office in 2026. The decisions have already transformed Republican leadership ranks in the state Senate, with party rules requiring John Kennedy of Macon to step down as Senate president pro tem and Steve Gooch of Dahlonega to step down as majority leader. They’ve both running for lieutenant governor, along with Republican Sen. Blake Tillery of Vidalia, Democratic Sen. Josh McLaurin of Sandy Springs and Republican state Rep. David Clark of Buford. Republican Sen. Greg Dolezal of Cumming is also considering a bid for that office.

Republican state Sens. Bill Cowsert of Athens and Brian Strickland of McDonough are running for attorney general, as is Democratic state Rep. Tanya Miller of Atlanta. Republican state Rep. Tim Fleming of Covington is running for secretary of state. Three other state legislators are running for Congress, but state rules don’t force them stop fundraising for federal office.