Presidential primaries

Presidential general election

In the general election, Republican nominee John McCain prevailed over Democratic nominee Barack Obama in Georgia by 52.23% to 47.02%. McCain's five point margin of victory was significantly down from George W. Bush's seventeen point margin of victory over John Kerry in 2004. Though Obama benefited from high turnout by black and young voters as well as strong performance in Georgia's Urban areas, McCain's comparatively stronger performance in the rural northern and southeastern parts of the state, as well as winning seventy-seven percent of white voters,^[3] gave him the overall victory.

The 2008 Presidential election was particularly interesting in the state of Georgia considering that of the several independent and third-party candidates who ran for president that year, two of them were from Georgia (those being former Republican Representative Bob Barr (L) (who placed third overall in the popular vote in Georgia) and former Democratic Representative Cynthia McKinney (G)).

United States Senate election

In 2008, incumbent Senator Saxby Chambliss (R) ran for re-election for a second term. His opponents were former Commissioner of Human Resources Jim Martin (D) and Attorney and CPA Allen Buckley (L).

Despite holding a substantial lead over Martin for most of the year, however, the race tightened following the September 2008 market collapse and Chambliss's vote for the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008, otherwise commonly known as the bailout package. Martin criticized his opponent for voting for the bailout and also, as earlier, repeatedly claimed he supported a supposed twenty-three percent increase in taxes (referring to the FairTax) during his career in Congress. Chambliss accused his opponent, who cast himself as a fiscal conservative, of acting hypocritically for increasing and padlocking his own salary as Commissioner of Human Resources from 2002 to 2003 while the state of Georgia was experiencing a budget crisis. Libertarian nominee Allen Buckley, who on occasion joined Martin in his disapproval of Chambliss's vote for the controversial bailout, campaigned positioning himself as an alternative to both of the major party candidates.

On election day, Chambliss was kept below the minimum of fifty percent plus one vote to win outright, winning 49% to Martin's 46%, and was thus forced into a runoff. Both campaigns sought the endorsement of Buckley, but he refused to endorse either candidate. Chambliss ultimately prevailed over Martin in the December runoff winning 57.4% to 42.6%.

United States House of Representatives elections

All thirteen of Georgia's incumbent Representatives sought re-election in 2008. Going into the elections, Republicans held seven of Georgia's U.S. House seats and Democrats held six seats.

Despite significant gains by Republicans in Georgia since 2002, such as consecutive Republican victories since in Presidential elections since 1996, gaining both of Georgia's U.S. Senate seats, the election of Sonny Perdue as Georgia's first post-Reconstruction Republican governor in 2002, successful elections of Republicans to other state executive offices, and gaining control of both chambers of the Georgia General Assembly for the first time since Reconstruction, Democrats have succeeded in gaining seats of Georgia's House delegation in recent House elections.

Despite Republican efforts to oust Representatives Jim Marshall (GA-8) and John Barrow (GA-12), who were each re-elected in 2006 by extremely close margins despite that being a bad year for Republicans, both of them were re-elected by significant margins. None of Georgia's House seats changed hands in this election.

Georgia Public Service Commission elections

In 2008, two seats on the Georgia Public Service Commission were up for election. Though candidates must come from the districts that they wish to represent on the commission, they are elected statewide.

Georgia Public Service Commission, District 1

2008 Georgia Public Service Commission District 1 election

November 4, 2008

Candidate H. Doug Everett John Monds Party Republican Libertarian Popular vote 2,147,012 1,076,726 Percentage 66.6% 33.4%

Everett:      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90% Monds:      50–60%      60–70%

2008 Public Service Commissioner District 1 election, Georgia

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	H. Doug Everett	2,147,012	66.60%
	Libertarian	John Monds	1,076,726	33.40%

Georgia Public Service Commission, District 4

2008 Georgia Public Service Commission District 4 election

November 4, 2008 (first round) December 2, 2008 (runoff)

Candidate Lauren W. "Bubba" McDonald Jim Powell Party Republican Democratic First round 1,708,972 47.22% 1,732,147 47.87% Runoff 1,136,217 56.52% 874,112 43.48%

First round county results Runoff county results McDonald:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90% Powell:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%

2008 Public Service Commissioner District 4 election, Georgia

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Jim Powell	1,732,147	47.87%
	Republican	Lauren W. "Bubba" McDonald, Jr.	1,708,972	47.22%
	Libertarian	Brandon Givens	177,706	4.91%

2006 Public Service Commissioner District 4 runoff election, Georgia

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Lauren W. "Bubba" McDonald, Jr.	1,136,217	56.52%
	Democratic	Jim Powell	874,112	43.48%

Georgia Senate elections

Georgia State Senate elections, 2008^[5]

All 56 seats in the Georgia State Senate
Majority party Minority party   Leader Eric Johnson Robert Brown Party Republican Democratic Leader's seat 1st-Savannah 26th-Macon Last election 34 22 Seats before 34 22 Seats after 34 22 Seat change ±0 ±0 Popular vote 1,879,101 1,274,356 Percentage 57.8% 42.2%
President pro tempore before election Eric Johnson Republican Elected President pro tempore Eric Johnson Republican

In 2008, there were no particularly competitive general election races for the Georgia State Senate. The closest state Senate election was in the Forty-sixth District in which incumbent State Senator Bill Cowsert (R-Athens) defeated Sherry L. Jackson (D) 57.8% to 42.2%.^[5] However, of the incumbents who sought re-election that year, two were defeated in their respective parties primaries, those being Gail Davenport (D-Dis. 44) and Nancy Schaefer (R-Dis. 50).

Georgia House of Representatives elections

Georgia House of Representatives elections, 2008^[6]

November 4, 2008
All 180 seats in the Georgia House of Representatives
Majority party Minority party   Leader Glenn Richardson DuBose Porter Party Republican Democratic Leader's seat 19th-Hiram 143rd-Dublin Last election 101 seats, 56.11% 79 seats, 43.89% Seats before 107 seats, 59.44% 73 seats, 40.56% Seats won 105, 58.33% 75, 41.67% Seat change -2 +2 Popular vote 1,945,960 1,312,203 Percentage 59.7% 40.3%
Speaker before election Glenn Richardson Republican Elected Speaker Glenn Richardson Republican

Supreme Court of Georgia elections

Incumbent state Supreme Court Associate Justices Robert Benham and Harris Hines were re-elected without opposition.^[9]

Georgia Court of Appeals elections

Two judges, those being Gary Andrews and Charles B. Mikell, were re-elected without opposition and one, John H. Ruffin, Jr, retired.^[10]