Newsource reporters gathered information on each candidate in Northeast Georgia to prepare local voters for the midterm elections in this 2026 Election Guide.
Greg Dolezal
Office Sought: Georgia lieutenant governor
Party: Republican
Occupation: Georgia State Senator, District 27
Years in Community: 47
Candidate’s Election Priorities
Secure borders, fair trade, and policies that put American workers and families ahead of global interests; property taxes and elimination of school taxes for seniors over 65; jobs and the economy
More Info for Voters
Website: gregdolezal.com | Social Media: @dolezalforgeorgia (Facebook)
Candidate FAQs
Q: Why are you running?
“I’m running for Lt. Governor because we are at a turning point as the radical left continues to threaten public safety, our livelihoods, our families, and our childrens’ future,” Dolezal said on his website. “We need a true conservative with backbone that will push back against the radical left and save America.”
Q: What experiences have prepared you for this office?
Dolezal has represented Georgia State Senate District 27 since 2018 and chairs the Transportation Committee. He said on his website that his bill, the Georgia Promise Scholarship, was the most sweeping pro-parent education reform enacted in Georgia history. He sponsored and passed SB 261, which limited diversity, equity and inclusion mandates in public schools.
“Over the past two decades, he has founded and led businesses across Georgia in manufacturing, health care, technology, and service, employing hundreds along the way,” says Dolezal’s campaign website.
Q: What are the most important issues facing the state of Georgia, and what would you do to address them?
Issue #1: Addressing high taxes. “The best way to grow Georgia’s economy is to lower taxes for everyone,” he said on his website. Dolezal aims to enact a statewide property tax freeze at the purchase price of a home. “You shouldn’t have to pay rent to the government to live in your own home.” He also plans to eliminate school taxes for seniors over 65. “Once you turn 65, you’ve paid your dues. Your school taxes should go away.”
Issue #2: Parent choice in schools. “Parents, not bureaucrats, should be in charge of their children’s education,” his website stated. Dolezal authored SB 233, which created the Georgia Promise Scholarship Program. This bill gives up to $6,500 per school year to eligible families which can be used toward schooling expenses.
Q: What is one accomplishment you hope to achieve during your office if elected?
Dolezal has said in interviews that he plans to eliminate property taxes at a home’s purchase price and exempt those 65 and older from paying school taxes. Georgia has the highest income taxes in the Southeast. If he were elected, he has said he plans on lowering the income tax.
Q: What is one thing you want voters to know about you?
“In the state senate, I led on school choice, banned DEI mandates in public schools and wrote the Riley Gaines Act to keep men out of women’s sports,” Dolezal said in a 2026 Atlanta Press Club debate. “Georgia families are getting crushed by the cost of gas, groceries, and exploding property taxes all while politicians take care of special interests. Georgia doesn’t belong to special interests, it belongs to you.”
*Dolezal did not respond to interview requests. Responses were pulled from his campaign website and the Atlanta Press Club debate.
Josh McLaurin
Office Sought: Georgia lieutenant governor
Party: Democrat
Occupation: Georgia State Senator, District 14
Years in Community: 38
Candidate’s Election Priorities
Tackling rising costs; workers’ rights; affordable and accessible housing
More Info for Voters
Website: joshmclaurin.com | Social media: @josh__mclaurin (Instagram)
Candidate FAQs
Q: Why are you running?
“I think voters need a voice to break through all the chaos that’s happening. I think people think it’s inexplicable why this much chaos could possibly be happening, and don’t see any sort of rationality in D.C. right now, and they see state government politicians who are unwilling to stand up to it,” McLaurin said in an interview. “I think that there will be a blue wave, and I hope to be a voice that is steady-handed and establishes some rationality at the state level, a little bit of courage, and can fight back against what’s happening.”
Q: What experiences have prepared you for this office?
“I’ve been in the state legislature for eight years, I’m an attorney. The Lt. Gov. is a procedural role, but it’s also a consensus-building political role and I have experience with both of those,” McLaurin said in an interview.
Q: What are the most important issues facing the state of Georgia, and what would you do to address them?
Issue #1: Cost drivers like housing, McLaurin said. He wants to expand the low-income housing tax credit and relax zoning and design standards to build more affordable units.
Issue #2: Cost drivers like healthcare, McLaurin said. He wants to expand Medicaid by using state dollars to subsidize lost premiums that have kicked people off their insurance. “We can subsidize premium subsidies that, you know, the lack of which has kicked people off,” McLaurin said.
Q: What is one accomplishment you hope to achieve during your office if elected?
“To help expand Medicaid,” McLaurin said.
Q: What is one thing you want voters to know about you? What is your message to younger voters, such as UGA students?
“I can build consensus around bold visions. So there’s often a tension between being bold and getting the buy-in of the establishment. I think young voters especially understand that and are aware of that,” McLaurin said. “What I have a talent for is to take bold ideas that wouldn’t otherwise get a hearing and build consensus around them with the establishment.”
