Election results in Washington County mirrored those of the state and nation in electing Donald Trump as the 47th President of the United States.
President-Elect Trump will become the second U.S. President to serve two staggered terms after winning the 2016 Presidential Election over Hilary Clinton and losing the 2020 election to current President Joe Biden. Grover Cleveland served as the 22nd and 24th U.S. President from 1885 to 1889 and 1893 to 1897.
Trump is the oldest individual elected to the office at the age of 78. Biden was elected earlier in his 78th year.
In Washington County, over 9,500 ballots were cast in the 2024 General Election. 153 votes separated the Republican candidate Donald Trump from the Democrat candidate Kamala Harris.
Trump received 4,824 votes, or 50.83 percent. Harris garnered 4,641 votes, or 48.9 percent. Third party candidates amassed less than 0.3 percent of the vote.
By particular polling precinct, Donald Trump won in Davisboro, Deepstep, Harrison, Oconee, Riddleville, and Warthen. He also carried more in-person early votes.
Kamala Harris won in Sandersville and Tennille. She received more mail-in votes.
Washington County also helped to re-elect a pair of incumbents in both the United States and Georgia House of Representatives.
Incumbent Republican candidate Rick Allen carried the county in route to retaining his seat as the District 12 representative for Georgia in the federal House.
District 12 contains 22 counties in full and portions of 2 additional counties in Eastern Georgia, spanning from Wilkes County in the north to Tattnall County in the south.
Allen garnered 4,730 votes, or 53.83 percent. He defeated Democrat Liz Johnson, who amassed 4,057 votes, or 46.17 percent.
As was the case in the race for President, Sandersville and Tennille were the only polling precincts to vote Democrat.
Representative Allen won District 12 with more overall “room to breathe.” He took 60.34 percent of the near 340,000 votes.
Comparatively, in a race that is still labeled as “too close to call,” only 49 votes of the near 28,000 cast separate the two candidates in the race for District 128 of the Georgia House of Representatives.
Incumbent Democrat Mack Jackson is positioned for re-election by receiving 13,923 votes, or 50.09 percent. Republican Tracy Wheeler amassed 13,874 votes, or 49.91 percent. With a small number of provisional ballots still awaiting final count across the District, this race has yet to be called final.
Representative Jackson carried his native Washington County with more ease, receiving 5,346 votes, or 57.8 percent. Wheeler garnered 3,903 votes, or 42.2 percent.
Again, the Democrat Party candidate only won in Sandersville and Tennille. But, unlike his party constituents in other races, Jackson also handily won the in-person early voting in the county.
In the only race on the 2024 General Election ballot that was completely decided by Washington County voters, WACO residents opted to vote in favor of E-SPLOST.
The continuation of the current 1% Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax for education purposes passed with 56.78 percent, or 5,059 total votes.
Harrison was the only precinct to vote “No.”
The tax is to raise $28 million over the next 20 quarters to benefit Washington County Public Schools.
Voters flocked to the polls during this election season. 72.8 percent of over 13,000 registered voters in Washington County participated in the election.
Early voting was the preferred method to make voices heard in the county. Almost 6,500 ballots, or nearly 69 percent of the over 9,500 votes were cast during the period which spanned from October 15 through November 1.