The GA Files

State Level Legislator Fact Sheet · Georgia House of Representatives · District 53

Deborah Silcox

Party Republican
In Office 2017–2020; 2023 – present
House Role Member · competitive seat
Scope of This Review 2019 – 2026

Deborah Silcox represents House District 53 — Buckhead, western Sandy Springs, and southern Roswell — one of the only genuinely competitive districts in the Georgia legislature. She won re-election in 2024 by just 1,377 votes, and analysts rate the affluent, highly educated district as the state's most flippable. A competitive seat tends to produce a more independent record, and Silcox's is exactly that: mostly with her party, but with notable breaks.

7 / 10Silcox votes with the Republican majority on most bills, but breaks from it more than almost any GOP colleague here: she voted NO on the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, NO on the 2019 Heartbeat abortion ban, and was excused on the gender-affirming-care ban — a record shaped by her swing district.

Methodology. Each vote is Rep. Silcox's actual position from the official Georgia roll call (legis.ga.gov), transcribed into a verified vote database and cross-checked against the published Yea/Nay totals. The chamber tally and final status (became law / died in House) are noted per bill.

01

Riley Gaines Act

SB 1 · 2025 Session
YEA
Floor Vote
House vote (Passage), 2025 session — 100–64
Status
Became law (2025 session)
Rep. Silcox's Vote
Voted YEA — with the chamber majority, on a party-line vote.

Impact on Everyday Georgians

Bars transgender women and girls from competing on female school and college sports teams and requires K–12 and college sports, locker rooms, and restrooms to be designated by sex assigned at birth. Supporters framed it as protecting fairness and safety in women's sports; opponents — including LGBTQ advocates and some parents — said it stigmatizes transgender students and invites invasive enforcement.

Sources

02

Tort Reform

SB 68 · 2025 Session
YEA
Floor Vote
House vote (Immediately Transmit), 2025 session — 94–77
Status
Became law — Gov. Kemp's signature 2025 priority
Rep. Silcox's Vote
Voted YEA — with the chamber majority, on a party-line vote.

Impact on Everyday Georgians

Overhauled Georgia's civil-litigation rules — limiting when businesses and property owners can be sued (notably for negligent-security claims), changing how juries are told about medical damages, and allowing trials to be split into liability and damages phases. Backers said it would lower insurance costs and curb runaway verdicts; trial lawyers and consumer advocates warned it makes it harder for injured Georgians to recover full damages.

Sources

03

Religious Freedom Restoration Act

SB 36 · 2025 Session
NAY
Floor Vote
House vote (Passage), 2025 session — 96–70
Status
Became law (2025 session)
Rep. Silcox's Vote
Voted NAY — against the chamber majority, on a party-line vote. One of the few Republicans to vote against the Religious Freedom Restoration Act.

Impact on Everyday Georgians

Georgia's Religious Freedom Restoration Act bars state and local government from “substantially burdening” a person's exercise of religion without a compelling interest. Supporters called it a long-sought protection mirroring the 1993 federal law; opponents — including civil-rights groups and some businesses — warned it could be used to justify discrimination, particularly against LGBTQ Georgians, since the state has no statewide anti-discrimination law.

Sources

04

Gender-Affirming Care Ban (Minors)

SB 140 · 2023 Session
EXCUSED
Floor Vote
House vote (Immediately Transmit), 2023 session — 97–74
Status
Became law (2023 session)
Rep. Silcox's Vote
Excused — did not vote.

Impact on Everyday Georgians

Prohibits hormone therapy and surgical gender-affirming care for transgender minors in Georgia, with limited exceptions. Supporters said it shields children from irreversible decisions; major medical associations and families of transgender youth opposed it, arguing it overrides parents and doctors and strips away evidence-based care.

Sources

05

Heartbeat Bill (Abortion Ban)

HB 481 · 2019 Session
NAY
Floor Vote
House vote (Agree to Senate Substitute), 2019 session — 92–78
Status
Became law (2019); took effect in 2022 after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade
Rep. Silcox's Vote
Voted NAY — against the chamber majority, on a party-line vote. Cast in 2019 as District 52 (pre-redistricting) — a rare Republican vote against the Heartbeat Bill.

Impact on Everyday Georgians

Bans most abortions once embryonic cardiac activity is detected — around six weeks, before many people know they are pregnant — with narrow exceptions. Blocked by courts for years, it took effect in 2022 after Dobbs. It sharply curtailed abortion access in Georgia and has reshaped how doctors manage pregnancy complications across the region.

Sources

06

Right to IVF

HB 428 · 2025 Session
YEA
Floor Vote
House vote (Passage), 2025 session — 172–0
Status
Became law (2025 session)
Rep. Silcox's Vote
Voted YEA — with the chamber majority, on a bipartisan vote.

Impact on Everyday Georgians

Establishes a state right to access in-vitro fertilization (IVF) and protects providers — one of the rare bipartisan votes in this set. It followed national alarm after an Alabama court ruling threatened IVF, and aimed to reassure Georgia families pursuing fertility treatment that the procedure would remain legal and available.

Sources

07

State Income Tax Cut

HB 111 · 2025 Session
YEA
Floor Vote
House vote (Passage), 2025 session — 110–60
Status
Became law (2025 session)
Rep. Silcox's Vote
Voted YEA — with the chamber majority, on a party-line vote.

Impact on Everyday Georgians

Accelerated Georgia's move to a lower flat income tax, cutting the rate ahead of schedule (to 5.19%). Supporters said it returns surplus money to taxpayers; critics cautioned that flat-rate cuts deliver the largest dollar benefits to higher earners and reduce the revenue available for schools, health care, and public services.

Sources

08

Property Tax Relief (LHOST)

SB 33 · 2026 Session
YEA
Floor Vote
House vote (Agree to Senate Amend to House Sub), 2026 session — 97–72
Status
Became law (2026 session)
Rep. Silcox's Vote
Voted YEA — with the chamber majority, on a party-line vote.

Impact on Everyday Georgians

Authorizes a local-option homestead sales tax and related homestead relief, letting communities offset rising property-tax bills driven by climbing home values. Supporters framed it as relief for homeowners squeezed by reassessments; critics noted sales taxes are regressive and that any relief depends on each community choosing to adopt it.

Sources

09

Homelessness Enforcement

HB 295 · 2026 Session
YEA
Floor Vote
House vote (Agree to Senate Amend as HAm), 2026 session — 93–76
Status
Became law (2026 session)
Rep. Silcox's Vote
Voted YEA — with the chamber majority, on a party-line vote.

Impact on Everyday Georgians

Restricts unsanctioned public camping and sleeping and presses local governments toward enforcement and state-directed approaches to homelessness. Supporters said it keeps public spaces safe and orderly; homeless-services advocates warned it criminalizes poverty and can push people away from services without adding any housing.

Sources

10

Medical Cannabis Expansion

SB 220 · 2026 Session
YEA
Floor Vote
House vote (Agree to Senate Amend to House Sub), 2026 session — 144–21
Status
Became law (2026 session)
Rep. Silcox's Vote
Voted YEA — with the chamber majority, on a bipartisan vote.

Impact on Everyday Georgians

Expands Georgia's low-THC medical cannabis program — broadening the qualifying conditions and access for registered patients — and passed with bipartisan support. It widened eligibility for Georgians managing chronic and serious illnesses under the state's tightly regulated program.

Sources

Constituent Access

Town Halls

Public meetings with constituents · competitive HD-53

Silcox's affluent, politically engaged district draws unusually contested campaigns — her 2024 race was among the most expensive in the state — but no recurring open constituent town-hall series is documented in local press.

Documented Record

  • Competitive, closely contested district. The 2024 Silcox–Greenberg race was one of the costliest House contests in Georgia, fought over abortion, the economy, gun-violence prevention, and public safety before a large Buckhead/Sandy Springs electorate. No recurring open constituent town hall in the review period is documented in local press.

State legislators' constituent-event records are thin and locally reported; this section will be expanded as events are documented. Corrections with documented events are welcome via the contact link below.

Sources

Campaign Finance

Campaign Finance

Who's funding a swing-seat Republican · recent cycles

Pinned — A North-Metro Network

Shared donors with HD-48

Several of Silcox’s maxed-out donors — including David Howard and Debra Pettinato Ross — also max out to fellow north-metro Republican Scott Hilton (HD-48), a glimpse of the small individual-donor network that funds the suburban GOP. Her largest institutional backer is the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce.

Top Contributors

Silcox's largest reported contributors from the Georgia Ethics Commission (PeachFile) — a business-and-individual mix typical of an affluent swing district.

#ContributorTotal
1Ross, Debra Pettinato (Franklin, NC)$9,900.00
2Georgia General Assembly Fiscal Office (Atlanta, GA)$6,939.87
3Efstration, Chuck (Dacula, GA)$6,600.00
4The Georgia Medical Political Action Committee (Atlanta, GA)$3,300.00
5Evans, Olivia (Sandy Springs, GA)$3,300.00
6The Southeast Permanente Medical Group (Atlanta, GA)$3,300.00
7Metro Atlanta Chamber Political Action Committee (Atlanta, GA)$3,300.00
8Competitive Georgia Action Inc (Griffin, GA)$3,300.00
9Georgia Orthopaedic Society PAC Acct (Peachtree City, GA)$3,300.00
10Georgians for Tomorrow Inc (Gainesville, GA)$3,300.00

$971,142 raised · $376,397 cash on hand — as of Jun 3, 2026 (GA Ethics latest filing).

Source: the Georgia Ethics Commission (Georgia campaign-finance filings). Reported top donors, not a full sector breakdown; Georgia does not produce OpenSecrets-style sector/industry rollups, and the Georgia Ethics Commission holds the official itemized filings.

Sources

Verification Resources

Vote positions are Rep. Silcox's actual recorded votes from the official Georgia roll calls (legis.ga.gov), transcribed into a verified vote database and cross-checked against the published Yea/Nay totals. Campaign-finance figures are pulled live from the Georgia Government Transparency & Campaign Finance Commission (PeachFile) and are current to the committee's most recent filed disclosure report; Georgia does not produce OpenSecrets-style sector/industry rollups.

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