Nikema Williams out as GA Dem chair

Matthew Wilson to serve as interim chair

Nikema Williams

U.S. Rep. Nikema Williams on Monday announced her immediate resignation as the head of the Georgia Democratic Party after state committee members voted to make the chairperson a full-time position.

The rules change, which Williams endorsed late last year, gained traction after donors, activists and elected leaders began questioning whether the three-term lawmaker could fully devote her time to the role.

"As we move forward as a state party and battleground state, with the approval of a majority of the state committee members voting, we will now have paid full time Chair, required by our bylaws,” Williams said in a statement.

Matthew Wilson, the party’s First Vice Chair and a former state legislator, will succeed Williams in an interim capacity until a replacement is chosen.

Williams, then a state senator, was elected chair in 2019 promising to help the party engage disengaged voters. The following year, committee members unanimously chose her to replace the late U.S. Rep. John Lewis on the ballot and has pulled double duty as state party chair ever since.

But questions about her leadership only grew after the party’s underwhelming performance in last November's election, which saw Donald Trump recapture the Peach State by roughly 120,000 votes and Republicans maintain their grip on power down at the Gold Dome.

The pressure on Williams ramped up after it was reported that U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff, who will be a top GOP target in next year’s midterms, called her and personally urged her to step aside. The details of the conversation, which was first reported by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, were not disputed by Ossoff, Williams or any of their top allies.

Her resignation reflects a broader national reckoning within the Democratic Party as its leaders struggle to explain last year’s electoral setbacks to donors and grassroots supporters. But she defended her record as party leader and says that her fight to elect more Democrats in Georgia and nationwide will continue, pointing to the statewide victories under her watch in 2020 and 2022.

"As the first Black woman to chair the DPG, I set out to build a party that wasn’t just reactive but proactive, not just present but powerful. That’s exactly what we did. I remain committed to electing Democrats, expanding opportunity and fighting for a future where every Georgian has a voice and stake in our democracy. That work doesn’t end here and neither do I as I remain a member of both the state committee and executive committee and the Congresswoman for Georgia’s Fighting Fifth.”