Rep. Lucy McBath switches district after new GOP map

After Georgia Republicans passed a new congressional map today that flips her Democratic suburban district into a Republican one, Rep. Lucy McBath announced she’ll switch to campaign in a neighboring district represented by fellow Georgia Democrat Rep. Carolyn Bourdeuax.

• The new district will reach up into deeply conservative North Georgia and lean Republican by 24 percentage points, according to FiveThirtyEight.

Why it matters: McBath flipped Georgia’s 6th District, a longtime Republican stronghold in 2018. Bourdeaux flipped Georgia’s 7th District in 2020. Both districts were seen as prime examples of metro Atlanta’s dramatically changing electorate.

What she’s saying: McBath said in a statement it’s “no mystery why Republicans and the NRA have decided I’m their top target. As a Black woman, activist, and mother on a mission, they would like nothing more than to stop me from speaking truth to power about the gun lobby and Republican Party in Congress.”

Yes, but: On the way to fighting Republicans, McBath will have to fight her fellow Georgia Democratic congresswoman, Bourdeaux, who is not backing down.

• Bordeaux has campaigned for the seat in five elections.
• “The people of the 7th deserve a representative that understands and cares about their needs and has a record of fighting for them in Washington,” she said in a statement. “It’s my hard-fought greatness to serve the people of Gwinnett and GA’s 7th District, and I look forward to continuing to do so.”

Of note: Neither McBath nor Bourdeaux lives in the newly created district. It is not required for members of Congress to live in their districts.

Team Bourdeaux points out that the new Georgia 7th is 60% made up of Bourdeaux’s current constituents.

Team McBath points out that the new 7th is 67% minority voters.

Big picture: Under the newly proposed district lines, Republicans are set to increase their majority of Georgia’s congressional seats to 9-5.

• Democratic voting rights attorney Marc Elias has promised the state will be sued once Gov. Brian Kemp signs the map.

Meanwhile, the RNC’s Georgia Press Secretary Garrison Douglas said McBath’s decision “shows just how desperate she and the Democrats are to hold onto power, and Republicans stand ready to defeat whoever comes out on top.”