ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) — Democrat Keisha Sean Waites scored a major upset Tuesday night, defeating Republican incumbent John King to become Georgia’s next Insurance and Fire Safety commissioner.

Full election results here

The victory unseats King, who was seeking a second full term in the 2026 midterms after first being appointed to the post by Gov. Brian Kemp in 2019 following the federal indictment of then-commissioner Jim Beck on wire fraud, mail fraud, and money laundering charges.

Waites is a former Atlanta city councilor and member of the Georgia House of Representatives, where she served three terms.

Before holding elected office, Waites worked in emergency response and disaster recovery, serving with the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the U.S. Small Business Administration.

She previously ran as the Democratic nominee for Georgia Insurance and Safety Fire Commissioner against King in 2022, and ran in special congressional primaries for Georgia’s 5th Congressional District in 2020 following the death of Rep. John Lewis.

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