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Cobb County, GA ballot

John Cowan

Republican

United States House of Representatives - District 11 · Cobb County, Georgia · November 3, 2026

Also on the ballot: Chris Harden (Democrat)

John Cowan is a neurosurgeon and small-business owner from Cartersville who won a crowded Republican primary and runoff for Georgia's open 11th District seat after incumbent Barry Loudermilk's surprise retirement. He campaigns on term limits, a ban on congressional stock trading, cutting federal spending and taxes, border security backing President Trump, and patient-directed health care, and received Trump's endorsement in the race.

What this office decides

A member of the U.S. House votes on federal taxes and spending, health care and immigration law, firearms and criminal justice statutes, and authorization of military action abroad. Representatives also conduct oversight of federal agencies and handle casework for constituents. One of 435 votes, but on a broad range of national issues.

How this race lines up with you

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Dossier

Researched 2026-09-22 · Claude Code research agent with web search

Donald Trump: endorsed. Ballotpedia's Endorsements section for Cowan's 2026 race lists President Donald Trump as an endorser, and AJC reported Trump endorsing Republican front-runners in Georgia U.S. House races around April 15, 2026. source

Who they are

John Cowan is a neurosurgeon (M.D., Johns Hopkins) and founder of Cortex Toys/Cortex Holdings from Cartersville (Ballotpedia). He previously lost the 2020 GA-14 Republican primary runoff (Ballotpedia). Barry Loudermilk's surprise retirement left the 11th District open in 2026 (AJC); Cowan led the seven-way primary (42.6%) on May 19, 2026, then beat Rob Adkerson 65.0%-35.0% in the June 16 runoff, in a field that included PSC member Tricia Pridemore (Ballotpedia). He faces Democrat Chris Harden and two independents on November 3, 2026.

Positions

  • Taxes & spending: Wants to "cut federal spending, slash taxes," supports term limits and a "total ban on congressional stock trading" (Ballotpedia survey, 2026-04-18).
  • Immigration: "President Trump is securing the border. Congress needs to back him up"; supports nationwide Voter ID (Ballotpedia survey).
  • Health care: Wants to "push the government out of the doctor's office and put patients... back in charge of their own medical care" (Ballotpedia survey).
  • Business & regulation: Calls for ending "burdensome regulations" (Ballotpedia survey).
  • Foreign policy, personal freedom: No public position found beyond border-security framing.

Record

Never held elected office; 20+ years as a neurosurgeon and founder of Cortex Toys/Cortex Holdings (Ballotpedia survey).

Money

Ballotpedia's summary (FEC/OpenSecrets, incomplete for the cycle) shows Cowan's 2026 campaign raised $1,739,445, spent $369,687; his 2020 run raised $1,459,715; two-cycle total $3,199,160 raised (Ballotpedia). His committee is "Friends of John Cowan" (FEC ID H0GA14048) (FEC). Largest donors not itemized in sources reviewed.

Recent news

  • 2026-04-15: AJC reported Trump endorsed GOP House front-runners in Georgia (AJC).
  • 2026-05-19: Led the primary with 42.6%, forcing a runoff (Ballotpedia).
  • 2026-06-16: Won the runoff (Ballotpedia).

What we couldn't find

  • No detailed donor/PAC breakdown.
  • No position on foreign policy beyond border security, or on abortion.
  • An AJC headline referenced "past Trump criticism" in this district (2026-04-22), but the article text could not be retrieved.
Sources (3)