2 women win Georgia Dem runoffs, extending streak for female candidates

Two female Democratic candidates won their respective House runoffs in Georgia on Tuesday, as women continue to rack up primary victories in what is shaping up to be the “Year of the Woman.”

In Georgia’s 6th District, gun control activist Lucy McBath is projected to advance to the November election after beating Democratic rival Kevin Abel, a businessman who immigrated to the United States from South Africa when he was 14 years old, according to The Associated Press.

McBath, who was motivated to run after her teenage son was shot and killed, will face freshman Rep. Karen Handel (R-Ga.). She took 53.5 percent of the vote in Tuesday’s contest, while Abel came in at 46.5 percent, according to the AP.

{mosads}Meanwhile, in Georgia’s 7th District, Democrat Carolyn Bourdeaux, a professor at Georgia State University, is projected to advance to the general election, according to the AP, after beating Democratic rival David Kim, the son of South Korean immigrants and founder of a tutoring company.

With 99 percent of precincts reporting, Bourdeaux edged out Kim with 51.9 percent of the vote, compared to his 48.1 percent.

Bourdeaux, who previously ran the Georgia Senate’s budget office, will face Rep. Rob Woodall (R-Ga.), who hasn’t faced a serious challenge since he took office in 2011.

The runoff wins by the two women come after Georgia Democrats elected former state house Democratic leader Stacey Abrams as their gubernatorial candidate in the fall, making her the first black woman nominated for governor by a major party.

Abrams will go on to face Brian Kemp, Georgia’s secretary of State, who beat out Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle in the runoff for the Republican gubernatorial nomination on Tuesday.

Georgia’s 6th and 7th districts are a top priority for Democrats as they look to take over the House. No Democratic candidate won a majority in the May primary, forcing runoffs in both races.

The 6th District, in Atlanta’s suburbs, could be the easier race. President Trump won Handel’s district by less than 2 points in 2016. The Cook Political Report rates the district as “lean Republican.”

Handel won her seat by beating Democratic rising star Jon Ossoff in a House special election last year that received outsized attention as Democrats made a huge play for the seat and sought to make it an early referendum on President Trump.

Handel clinched the seat by fewer than 4 points.

The 7th District will be more challenging for Democrats. Trump carried Woodall’s district by a little more than 6 points in 2016, though the district’s demographics have dramatically changed over the years with an influx of immigrants.

Cook rates the 7th District contest as “likely Republican.”

Women are performing well in midterm primaries across the country, especially in the Democratic Party, leading some analysts to label 2018 as the year of the woman. Among the most high-profile winners was Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who stunned the political word by beating Democratic incumbent Joseph Crowley in a primary in New York last month.

Max Greenwood contributed. Updated at 11:13 p.m.