State Senate District 32 Race: Kirkpatrick Gets GOP Challenger

EAST COBB, GA — State Sen. Kay Kirkpatrick, who's held the District 32 seat in the Georgia Senate since 2017, will face at least one GOP challenger next year: state Rep. Charlice Byrd, who represents Cherokee County in the Georgia House of Representatives.

Kirkpatrick, a retired orthopedic surgeon, is the chairwoman of the Senate Veterans and Military committee and represents the Dobbins Air Reserve Base on the Georgia Joint Defense Commission. She's also a member of the Health and Human Services, Insurance, Judiciary and Appropriations committees.

In her announcement, Kirkpatrick said she will “continue to work tirelessly to support lower taxes, election integrity, public safety, life, families and businesses,” East Cobb News reported.

Byrd announced her candidacy for the newly-drawn version of state Senate District 32 as well, the news outlet reported. The district has always contained most of East Cobb and a portion of Sandy Springs, but was redrawn this year to include some of northeast Cobb and parts of Cherokee County, including a portion of Woodstock.

You can view the full reapportionment map online here.

Byrd, a longtime Woodstock resident, is a former president of the Cherokee Republican Women's Club and served on the Executive Committee for the Georgia Republican Party. She served in the Georgia House of Representatives from 2005 to 2013, and was elected to District 20 in November 2020. Her term expires in January 2023.

She was also recruited to join the paid staff of Donald Trump for President, Inc., according to her website.

Qualifying for the 2022 elections begins in March, and primaries are set for May.