ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) — In a race that initially drew more than 20 candidates, Democrat Shawn Harris will face Republican Clay Fuller next month to determine who will replace Marjorie Taylor Greene in Congress.

Harris and Fuller finished as the top two contenders in Tuesday’s special election in northwest Georgia’s 14th congressional district, with Harris beating out Fuller in the heavily Republican district, unofficial results from the Georgia Secretary of State’s Office showed.

Harris got 37.33% of the vote and Fuller got 34.87%, according to results from the office as of 11:23 p.m.

>> LIVE RESULTS: Georgia’s 14th congressional district special election

Fuller, the district attorney for the Lookout Mountain Judicial Circuit, was endorsed by President Donald Trump in the race.

Fuller was a White House fellow in the first Trump administration and is a lieutenant colonel in the Georgia Air National Guard. He finished fourth in the 2020 Republican primary that Greene won before becoming a district attorney. Fuller had set an outright win as his goal for Tuesday’s vote.

Harris, a cattle farmer and retired brigadier general, is likely to face an uphill battle to win a majority in the district. Nevertheless, Democrats are likely to boast of his first-round showing as a further success in a period when they have focused on strong performances in special elections.

Harris has promised moderation and a focus on the district’s problems, contrasting himself with Greene’s bomb-throwing style.

“Finally, finally, we can break through as a coalition of Democrats, independents and Republicans,” Harris said. “Tonight, you would imagine everybody was here as Democrats. No. It’s also Republicans here, because they want change.”

Fuller said the results showed that voters “support what President Trump is doing in endorsing our campaign.”

He added, “And I think the Republican Party is going to unite around us because they know that the Democrat is too dangerous. We can’t have a Democrat representing Georgia 14.”

On Nov. 21, Greene — who was elected to the northwest Georgia in 2020 and overwhelmingly re-elected since — said she was resigning over her disillusionment with the nation’s current political climate, stemming from a recent political split with Trump.

With so many candidates in the race, the April 7 runoff was virtually assured. Whoever wins the runoff will officially fill out the remainder of Greene’s congressional term through next January.

However, if the winner wants to run for reelection in Georgia’s nationally watched 2026 midterms, he will have to run in the May 19 statewide primary. If a runoff is needed, it will be held on June 16.

Then, it’s on to the Nov. 3 general election, whose winner will serve in Congress for a full, two-year term. A Dec. 1 runoff will happen if needed.

“With that many candidates on the ballot, it’s hard not to get past a runoff,” said Paulding County elections director Deidre Holden. “It is a very important seat. It’s an important election. People should’ve been out voting.”

Georgia’s 14th congressional district stretches from the Chattanooga, Tennessee, metropolitan area in an east/south arc toward metro Atlanta’s outlying suburbs.

The district’s major population centers are Dalton (Whitfield County), Rome (Floyd County), Cartersville (Bartow County area near Paulding County) and portions of Paulding County (Dallas).

The district includes most, if not all, of Catoosa, Chattooga, Dade, Floyd, Gordon, Haralson, Murray, Paulding, Polk, Walker, Whitfield, and part of Pickens counties.

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Copyright 2026 WANF. All rights reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.