GEORGIA
      Nov. 8, 2016 U.S. Senate

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+Johnny Isakson (R) i
 2,135,806 54.80%
Jim Barksdale (D)
 1,599,726 41.04%
Allen Buckley (L)
 162,260 4.16%

3,897,792
Registration: 5,443,046.  Ballots cast: 4,165,405.
Plurality: 536,080 votes (13.76 percentage points). 
 GA Secretary of State



Notes: A lot of the commentary on this race suggested that Democrats did not put forth their strongest candidate.  House Minority Leader Stacey Abrams and Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed declined to run.  Investment manager Jim Barksdale, a first-time candidate, won the May 24 primary but trailed Isakson consistently in general election polls.  Several prominent Democrats—former Sen. Sam Nunn, former Gov. Ray Barnes, and U.S. Rep. David Scott—even endorsed Isakson.  In Sept. 2016 Barksdale's campaign underwent a shakeup, as he replaced his campaign manager and the political director and communications director left.  Also factoring into the race was Libertarian candidate Allen Buckley, an attorney/CPA who had also run for Senate in 2008; his campaign centered on fiscal responsibility.  All three candidates participated in one debate, on Oct. 21 hosted by the Atlanta Press Club (>).  A question heading into Election Day was whether Isakson would achieve the 50% he needed to avoid a runoff.  He did, and secured a third term.  According to the FEC for 2015-16 the Isakson campaign reported disbursements of $11.0 million compared to total disbursements of $4.1 million for the Barksdale campaign (>).
Campaign Managers
Johnny Isakson: Trey Kilpatrick
(Jan. 2015)  Director to Sen. Isakson, Jan. 2011-Dec. 2014.  Political director on Isakson's re-election campaign, Sept. 2009-Dec. 2010.  Vice president at Morgan Keegan & Company, Nov. 2005-Aug. 2009.  Case assistant at Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton LLP, July 2004-Sept. 2005.  B.A. in history from University of Georgia, 2004.

Jim Barksdale: Rene Spellman
(Sept. 23, 2016)  Press advance director/director of medial logistics and earlier national press wrangler and director of traveling press on Bernie 2016.  Independent consultant.  International experience includes GOTV consultant for the prime minister race in Trinidad & Tobago, 2015; and general consultant for presidential campaigns in Ghana in 2008 and 2012.  Campaign manager for Michael Blake for NY State Assembly, 2014.  Vice president for local marketing at Mtheory, a music management and marketing firm, 2014.  Vice president for corporate communications, youth marketing, and entertainment PR at MWW Public Relations, 2012-14.  Senior advisor for Florida on Obama's 2012 campaign.  Deputy to the Director of the White House Council for Community Solutions, 2010-12.  Special assistant to the Office of the CEO and liaison to the White House at the Corporation for National and Community Service, 2009-10. Confidential assistant to the White House Liaison and Advance to the Secretary of Education, 2009-10.  Youth vote director for ten states on Obama's 2008 campaign.  Studied political science at Stanford University. Pennsylvania native.

...Spellman replaced Dave Hoffman.  Hoffman started in April 2016; he had been serving as campaign manager on Deborah Ross' U.S. Senate campaign in North Carolina, Oct. 2015-April 2016 .





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