Phil Gingrey - Political Campaigns

Political Campaigns

Georgia gained two districts after the 2000 Census, but the Democratic-controlled state legislature wanted to see more Democrats in the congressional delegation. They produced a map that was designed to elect seven Democrats and six Republicans; the delegation at the time consisted of eight Republicans and three Democrats. In the process, they drew Republicans Bob Barr and John Linder into the same district. The new district was numbered the 7th — Barr's former district number — but contained most of the territory in Linder's 11th District.

The remainder of Barr's former territory was renumbered the 11th and redrawn to include some Democratic-leaning rural territory northwest of Atlanta. It was also 28 percent black. Gingrey faced Democrat Roger Kahn, who had lost to Barr in 2000, and narrowly defeated him by three points.

The Republicans won control of the state legislature in 2004, and immediately redrew the district map again. In the process, they made the 11th much more Republican than its predecessor. The new 11th is more compact and extends further into the Atlanta suburbs, and is only 12 percent black. George W. Bush won the old 11th with 55 percent of the vote, but would have won the current 11th by a staggering 71 percent margin. Gingrey won a third term with 70% of the vote, and was reelected with 68 percent of the vote in 2008.

Gingrey is one of four OB/GYNs in the current House, the other three being fellow Republicans Michael Burgess and Ron Paul of Texas and Phil Roe of Tennessee.