GEORGIA - Republican Brian Strickland claimed the majority vote in the Jan. 9 special election for the Senate District 17 seat vacated by Rick Jeffares, who resigned his post earlier this year to focus on his run for lieutenant governor. Strickland formerly served as the House District 111 representative. 

According to the unofficial election results released by Georgia Secretary of State Brian Kemp, Strickland brought in 5,001 votes, tallying 61.99 percent of the vote. Democrat Phyllis Hatcher brought in 34.36 percent of the vote with 2,772, while Republican Ed Toney brought in 2.45 percent and Republican Nelva Lee brought in 1.19 percent. 

The Senate District 17 seat represents parts of Newton, Henry and Rockdale Counties. Strickland owned the majority vote in all three counties. 

Of the 133,018 registered voters in the district, only 6.99 percent turned out at the polls, casting 9,292 votes.