Georgia CommonsSenate · Introduced · 2025-2026 Regular Session
SB 510: Board of Education of Cobb County; future elections for members of the board of education shall be nonpartisan; provide
Last action March 4, 2026 · Senate Read Second Time
A Georgia Senate bill would make future elections for the Cobb County Board of Education nonpartisan, meaning candidates would no longer run with a political party label starting with elections held after January 1, 2028.
The summaries below were written by an AI model (claude-sonnet-5) from the text of the bill and are not part of it. Quote the text, not the summary. The stored text is the Introduced version, the latest the General Assembly's website lists.
In plain language
Members of the Cobb County Board of Education are currently elected in partisan elections, where candidates run under a political party. This bill would change that by amending the 1974 local act that governs how the board is elected. Starting with board elections held after January 1, 2028, candidates would run without party labels, following the nonpartisan election rules set out in Georgia's election code (O.C.G.A. § 21-2-139). The bill specifically protects current board members and anyone elected before January 1, 2028: their terms would not be cut short, and they could still run for re-election under the existing rules. The bill also repeals any conflicting laws, a standard closing provision.
What the bill does
- Adds a new subsection to the 1974 act governing Cobb County school board elections requiring those elections to become nonpartisan.
- Applies the nonpartisan election requirement only to board elections held after January 1, 2028.
- Ties the nonpartisan process to the procedure in Georgia's election code (O.C.G.A. § 21-2-139) for nonpartisan elections.
- Preserves the current terms of sitting board members and members elected before January 1, 2028, letting them serve out their terms and run again.
- Repeals any existing laws that conflict with this change.
Who it affects
Cobb County residents who vote in school board elections, current and future candidates for the Cobb County Board of Education, and the current members of the board whose existing terms and eligibility to run again are explicitly protected by the bill.
Why it matters
Voters in Cobb County would choose school board members without seeing a party label on the ballot starting in 2028, changing how candidates campaign and how voters identify them. Current board members would not lose their seats or be barred from running again under the new system.
Key provisions
- Section 1 adds subsection (c.1) to Section 2 of the 1974 Cobb County school board election act.
- The new subsection requires elections held after January 1, 2028 to follow Georgia's general election code (O.C.G.A. Title 21, Chapter 2) and be nonpartisan under O.C.G.A. § 21-2-139.
- The subsection explicitly protects members currently in office or elected before January 1, 2028, letting them finish their terms and remain eligible for re-election.
- Section 2 repeals any conflicting laws, a standard closing provision common to Georgia local acts.
From the bill
“All elections for members of the board conducted after January 1, 2028, shall be nonpartisan elections as provided for in Code Section 21-2-139 of the O.C.G.A.”
“Nothing in this subsection shall affect the term of office of the members of the board in office on the effective date of this subsection”
Discussed in meetings (5)
The House and Senate meetings that took this bill up, from their machine transcripts. Each account was written by Georgia Commons with AI and is not part of the record; the video is what was said.
Senate floor session, February 24, 2026 (legislative day 23)
From 1:52:27 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel · Confirmed by the bill's status history (Senate Withdrawn & Recommitted)
Summary by Georgia Commons: A senator requested moving SB 510 from State and Local Government Operations to that committee's general-legislation counterpart. The clerk described the bill as making future Cobb County school board elections nonpartisan. One opponent argued that the matter should remain with the local delegation and that disagreement within the delegation should not be bypassed through the full Senate. A second opponent also urged leaving the decision to local people. The senator requesting the move said disagreement made the ordinary committee and floor process more appropriate than the accelerated local consent process. The Senate approved the transfer, 30-19.
Senate State and Local Governmental Operations Committee, March 2, 2026
From 0:28:41 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel
Summary by Georgia Commons: The sponsor said SB 510 would make Cobb County school board elections nonpartisan beginning in 2028, leaving the 2026 elections unchanged. The sponsor argued that party conflict had worsened board relations and cited Marietta’s nonpartisan board as a better model. Asked about local support, the sponsor said three of Cobb’s six senators had signed the bill and the delegation was divided. The sponsor also said local officials and school board members from both parties had privately requested the change. One committee member questioned the timing, citing the board’s current four-Republican, three-Democrat split, disputed district boundaries and the possibility of a Democratic majority in 2028. The sponsor defended the current maps and said future election results could not be predicted. Another member questioned why the proposal was not moving through the local delegation process. A member offered an amendment delaying implementation to 2030 so every board seat would first complete another partisan election cycle. The sponsor opposed the delay, saying 2028 allowed an orderly transition without extending partisan elections unnecessarily. The committee rejected the amendment and approved the bill. A subsequent exchange about the vote count was unclear, so no reliable numerical tally was established.
Status timeline
- Senate Read Second Time (Senate)
- Senate Committee Favorably Reported (Senate)
- Senate Withdrawn & Recommitted (Senate)
- Senate Read and Referred (Senate)
- Senate Hopper (Senate)
Sponsors
- Ed Setzler (R, SD-37)
- John Albers (R, SD-56)
- Kay Kirkpatrick (R, SD-32)
Votes
- Senate voteFebruary 24, 2026
30 yea, 19 nay (4 not voting, 2 excused)
Topics
- Cobb County schools
- school board elections
- nonpartisan elections
- election rules
- local government