In order to help fund extended tax cuts and new defense and immigration enforcement initiatives, Thurmond has promised to use state resources to offset the federal cuts in the Trump-backed tax and spending law, which could remove hundreds of thousands of Georgians from Medicaid rolls and reduce food stamp benefits.
He joins a crowded field of Democrats that includes state senator Jason Esteves, state representative Derrick Jackson, and former Atlanta mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms. Geoff Duncan, a former lieutenant governor who switched from Republican to Democrat, is also considering a run.
The 72-year-old contends that there is a place for an old-school Democrat who combines a bipartisan approach to governance with traditional party ideals like Medicaid expansion and rural health care preservation.
Thurmond remarked, “It’s not so much fighting against Trump.” It is defending Georgia’s working families from Trump and anyone who would prevent them from receiving the assistance they require.
Photos from the AJC file are credited.
Photos from the AJC file are credited.
It’s uncertain if that approach will appeal to Democrats who want a more combative stance during Trump’s second term. Particularly, Bottoms and Esteves have amassed seven-figure war chests and made adamant promises to fight against the instability caused by Trump. Additionally, both have pledged to bring about generational change in a state Capitol that has historically been controlled by conservatives.
In DeKalb County, the state’s most significant Democratic stronghold, Thurmond was the top elected figure for the majority of the previous ten years and had a track record of garnering votes well outside of metro Atlanta.
Whoever wins will probably have to compete with a Republican candidate who supports Trump and his Republican platform. Lt. Gov. Burt Jones and Attorney General Chris Carr are competing for the GOP nomination.
Honest conversations
Growing up in a home without indoor plumbing, Thurmond, the son of Athens sharecroppers, failed two runs for a state legislative district before winning on his third attempt in 1986. He claimed that a hard-won lesson to expand beyond the Black base of voters was the secret to his win. At the time of his election, he was the only Black representative in Georgia to be elected from a predominantly white district.
Since then, his political career has taken many different turns. Thurmond was appointed by then-Governor Zell Miller to lead the Department of Family and Child Services in the 1990s following a lost congressional bid in 1992.
Source: AJC/Seeger Gray
Source: AJC/Seeger Gray
In 1998, he became the first Black official in Georgia to win a statewide election without being appointed when he was elected state labor commissioner. During his three tenure, he established a program that is said to have assisted tens of thousands of welfare beneficiaries in finding employment.
In order to stabilize the school system while its accreditation was in jeopardy, Thurmond was hired as DeKalb’s superintendent in February 2013. He was chosen to the first of two terms as DeKalb’s CEO in 2016.
Thurmond, a seasoned historian, has devoted a significant portion of the past year to addressing civic associations over his book on James Oglethorpe, the founder of Georgia who changed his ways from being a slave dealer to an abolitionist.
Even in places that are deeply red, he has attracted sizable audiences and cheers. His appeal to provide more high-quality jobs to underserved places won over hundreds of people at a recent rally in Cartersville. In an interview, he claimed that stops like that one strengthened his choice.
Base-plus strategy
Thurmond is not running for a prestigious Georgia seat for the first time. Over the past 20 years, he has considered running for governor or the Senate on occasion after losing a 2010 campaign to Republican U.S. Sen. Johnny Isakson.
For the first time in almost thirty years, Democrats are attempting to retake the governor’s mansion. They are looking for a candidate who can win where Stacey Abrams failed in consecutive losses to Governor Brian Kemp.
Source: AJC/KENT D. JOHNSON
Source: AJC/KENT D. JOHNSON
Although Democrats helped Joe Biden win Georgia and flipped both U.S. Senate seats in 2020, the party has not been able to win the state’s top position since then-Governor Roy Barnes lost reelection in 2002.
In stark contrast to candidates promoting a more unabashedly liberal platform, Thurmond has long maintained that Democrats need to garner statewide support from a broader coalition of progressives, moderates, and disgruntled Republicans.
It goes without saying that you need to invest in and invigorate the base, he continued. However, the base is insufficient. The strategy is base-plus. Independents, moderate Democrats, conservative Democrats, and, to be honest, Republicans who are upset and ashamed of what’s happening in Washington must be contacted.
In addition to forming that alliance, he needs to demonstrate that he can raise the massive sums of money required to compete in Georgia. This race may easily reach $100 million if past results are any indication.
Thurmond now has to try to keep up with that speed and turn his lengthy speech into a compelling argument.
I bring to this campaign a history and record of taking on challenging tasks, filling the void, and coming up with creative solutions to issues that some might view as unsolvable,” he stated.
Editor’s Note: This article has been updated to reflect that, for the first time in almost thirty years, Democrats are attempting to retake the governor’s mansion.
