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Cobb County, GA ballot

Penny Brown Reynolds

Democrat

Secretary of State · Cobb County, Georgia · November 3, 2026

Also on the ballot: Tim Fleming (Republican)

Penny Brown Reynolds is a Democrat, former Fulton County judge, and Biden-administration USDA civil rights official running on voter-access and government-transparency themes. She won the June 2026 Democratic runoff and is seeking to become Georgia's first Democratic secretary of state since 1999.

What this office decides

Georgia's Secretary of State is the chief election official, overseeing voter registration lists, election procedures, voting equipment, and certification of results. The office also registers businesses and corporations and licenses dozens of professions. Its rulings affect how easily voters register and cast ballots and how elections are audited.

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: opposed. Donald Trump gave his 'Complete and Total Endorsement' to Reynolds's opponent, Tim Fleming, in this same Secretary of State race on July 23, 2026. Separately, Reynolds herself has publicly accused Trump of sowing election doubt as 'a pretext to interfere in the upcoming elections.' source

  • Roy Barnes (former Georgia Governor) (for) source
  • Reproductive Freedom for All (for) source
  • Krimson PAC (for) source
  • Georgia Association of Black Women Attorneys (for) source

Who they are

Penny Brown Reynolds is a Democrat and former Fulton County state court judge (2000–2008) who later worked as an attorney for former Governor Roy Barnes and served in the Biden administration as Acting Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights at the USDA (2022–2025) (Ballotpedia). She also hosted the reality court show "Family Court with Judge Penny" (CBS News Atlanta). She announced her campaign September 18, 2025, with Barnes chairing it (Hoodline). Confirmed as the correct person by multiple outlets naming her the 2026 Democratic nominee.

Positions

  • Voting rules: Platform calls for "free, fair, and accessible elections for all eligible Georgians," expanded early voting, and stronger absentee/drop-box access (Hoodline).
  • Business & regulation: Proposes a "Business Access Georgia" digital dashboard, streamlined business formation, and a "Statewide Fraud Protection Campaign" against elder/consumer fraud (BallotReady).
  • Party politics in courts/agencies: No public position found.

Record

Never held elected office. Record: eight years as a Fulton County state court judge (2000–2008), attorney for Governor Roy Barnes, and USDA Acting Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights under Biden, 2022–2025 (Ballotpedia, Fox 5 Atlanta).

Money

No fundraising totals found. Krimson PAC (advocacy group, not an official filing) says she "raised more money than any other Democratic candidate for Secretary of State" without figures (Krimson PAC). ethics.ga.gov's filing database could not be queried directly with the tools available.

Recent news

  • 2025-09-18: Announced her campaign for Secretary of State (Hoodline).
  • 2026-06-16: Won the Democratic runoff over Dana Barrett, about 63.1% (WRDW).
  • 2026-07-21: On MSNBC, said Trump's election claims are "a pretext to interfere in the upcoming elections ... because he knows that he's losing" (CBS News Atlanta).

What we couldn't find

  • Campaign finance totals or largest donors.
  • Position on courts/agencies partisanship.
Sources (14)