Democrat Laura Murvartian defeated Republican incumbent Shawn Still in Georgia State Senate District 48, flipping a seat Still won in 2022. More than 34,000 votes were cast in the contest, which covered parts of Forsyth, Fulton and Gwinnett counties.
Published accounts differed on the final vote totals. At 10:58 p.m. Tuesday, with 86% of the estimated vote counted, Murvartian led Still 54% to 46%, according to AccessNorthGA. Appen Media later reported Murvartian with 57.92% to Still’s 42%, while a separate Appen Media results page listed 53.03% to 46.97%. AccessNorthGA describes the district as covering northern Gwinnett, southern Forsyth and northern Fulton counties; an earlier Appen Media candidate questionnaire described it as including parts of Forsyth County and the cities of Johns Creek and Alpharetta.
The contest also drew substantial spending: AccessNorthGA reported that Democrats and Republicans together spent more than $500,000 trying to win or defend the seat.
Affordability and Policy Priorities
Rachel Schiffer, a member of Murvartian’s campaign, said affordability was the issue she heard resonating most with voters. She described concerns about gas, grocery and health care prices, as well as the wealth gap. Schiffer also said Murvartian’s campaign tactics challenged the traditional mold.
In a candidate questionnaire published by Appen Media, Murvartian listed affordable health insurance, better wages, lower property taxes, attainable housing, thriving schools and civil rights among her priorities. She said she supported reducing corporate tax breaks and investing more in education, subsidized childcare and affordable health care. To address rising costs, she proposed reducing property taxes, eliminating the sales tax on food, lowering health insurance costs and subsidizing childcare.
Statewide Housing-Cost Context
The available figures provide statewide context, not a county-level comparison for Senate District 48. According to the Georgia Department of Community Affairs’ 2023 Housing Needs Assessment, 29.03% of Georgia households were cost-burdened in 2019, meaning they paid more than 30% of household income toward monthly housing costs. The report put the share at 43.4% for renters and 19.3% for homeowners; those statewide figures do not establish the extent of housing cost burden in the district’s counties.
What the housing data show
The available figures do not establish how rents or home prices have changed in the Atlanta region since 2019, or show conditions specifically in Forsyth, Fulton and Gwinnett counties. The statewide figures in the Georgia Department of Community Affairs’ 2023 Housing Needs Assessment show that 29.03% of Georgia households were cost-burdened in 2019, including 43.4% of renters and 19.3% of homeowners. Separately, the Atlanta Regional Commission’s 2025 Metro Atlanta Speaks survey found that 28% of respondents named housing affordability as the region’s biggest problem; that survey is not specific to District 48 voters. A separate statewide measure illustrates the gap between wages and rent: the National Low Income Housing Coalition says a worker earning Georgia’s $7.25 minimum wage would need to work 147 hours a week to afford a modest one-bedroom rental at Fair Market Rent. That figure does not provide a local estimate or a comparison for a two-bedroom home.
Supporters Describe an Emotional Night
Monisha Hogan, an Alpharetta resident who said she had worked closely with Murvartian for more than 10 years, cited the candidate’s commitment to the community as a reason for her support. Hogan said economic pressures on her household, her children and the school system shaped her own vote, and that she was eager to help advance Murvartian’s agenda.
Lukas Tull, who attended Murvartian’s watch party, said voters’ own experiences with economic problems had shaped the contest. He said the result left him excited about the future and relieved by the possibility of not worrying about Republican efforts to take away his rights or make his life more difficult.
Murvartian described the victory celebration as ecstatic and thanked supporters for advocating for her campaign. She said she was honored that voters trusted her to represent them at the Capitol and thanked them for working for change in Georgia. She also said she was excited by the opportunity to push back on President Trump and the Republican agenda. In comments to AccessNorthGA, she said, “I am just thankful to all the voters in Senate District 48 for giving me this opportunity to serve my community.”
One Flip Short Statewide
Murvartian’s victory was among the night’s notable results for Georgia Democrats, but it did not change control of the Senate. AccessNorthGA reported that Democrats came one flip short statewide, winning control of the State House while Republicans retained the State Senate, 29-27.
The district has shifted before. Still had defeated Josh Uddin to win the seat in the 2022 general election, according to a Ballotpedia summary of that race. Murvartian, for her part, had previously run unsuccessfully for a different seat, with incumbent Scott Hilton defeating her in the 2024 general election for Georgia House District 48, per Ballotpedia.
