The GA Files

State Level Legislator Fact Sheet · Georgia State Senate · District 17

Gail Davenport

Party Democrat
In Office Senate since 2009
Senate Role Member · Clayton/Henry
Scope of This Review 2019 – 2026

Gail Davenport, a longtime Clayton-county Democrat, represents Senate District 17 across Clayton and part of Henry. A veteran of the chamber, she moved from the former Senate District 44 to District 17 in the 2024 court-ordered Senate redraw. On the Republican majority's marquee bills she has voted with the Democratic minority. (Her 2019 and 2023 votes were cast under her former district number.)

2 / 11Davenport voted NO on the Republican priorities below and YEA only on the two bipartisan measures (IVF protection and medical-cannabis expansion). She was recorded excused on the Riley Gaines Act.

Methodology. Each vote is Sen. Davenport'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
EXCUSED
Floor Vote
Senate vote (Agree to House Substitute), 2025 session — 34–20
Status
Became law (2025 session)
Sen. Davenport's Vote
Excused — did not 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
NAY
Floor Vote
Senate vote (Agree to House Substitute), 2025 session — 34–21
Status
Became law — Gov. Kemp's signature 2025 priority
Sen. Davenport's Vote
Voted NAY — against 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
Senate vote (Passage), 2025 session — 32–23
Status
Became law (2025 session)
Sen. Davenport's Vote
Voted NAY — against the chamber majority, on a party-line vote.

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
NAY
Floor Vote
Senate vote (Agree to House Substitute), 2023 session — 31–21
Status
Became law (2023 session)
Sen. Davenport's Vote
Voted NAY — against the chamber majority, on a party-line vote. Cast while Davenport represented the former Senate District 44 (pre-2024 maps).

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

Gender-Affirming Care Funding Ban

SB 39 · 2025 Session
NAY
Floor Vote
Senate vote (Motion to Immediately Transmit), 2025 session — 32–18
Status
Passed the Senate; died in the House (2025 session) — did not become law
Sen. Davenport's Vote
Voted NAY — against the chamber majority, on a party-line vote.

Impact on Everyday Georgians

Would have barred the use of state funds — including the State Health Benefit Plan and Medicaid — to pay for gender-affirming care for state employees and prisoners. It cleared the Senate but died in the House. Supporters said taxpayers should not fund the care; opponents said it singles out transgender state workers and inmates for denial of medically recognized treatment.

Sources

06

Heartbeat Bill (Abortion Ban)

HB 481 · 2019 Session
NAY
Floor Vote
Senate vote (Passage by Substitute), 2019 session — 34–18
Status
Became law (2019); took effect in 2022 after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade
Sen. Davenport's Vote
Voted NAY — against the chamber majority, on a party-line vote. Cast while Davenport represented the former Senate District 44 (pre-2024 maps).

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

07

Right to IVF

HB 428 · 2025 Session
YEA
Floor Vote
Senate vote (Passage by Substitute), 2025 session — 53–1
Status
Became law (2025 session)
Sen. Davenport'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

08

State Income Tax Cut

HB 111 · 2025 Session
NAY
Floor Vote
Senate vote (Passage), 2025 session — 30–23
Status
Became law (2025 session)
Sen. Davenport's Vote
Voted NAY — against 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

09

Property Tax Relief (LHOST)

SB 33 · 2026 Session
NAY
Floor Vote
Senate vote (Agree to House Substitute as Amended), 2026 session — 32–21
Status
Became law (2026 session)
Sen. Davenport's Vote
Voted NAY — against 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

10

Homelessness Enforcement

HB 295 · 2026 Session
NAY
Floor Vote
Senate vote (Agree to House Amendment to Senate Amendment), 2026 session — 34–19
Status
Became law (2026 session)
Sen. Davenport's Vote
Voted NAY — against 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

11

Medical Cannabis Expansion

SB 220 · 2026 Session
YEA
Floor Vote
Senate vote (Agree to House Substitute as Amended), 2026 session — 38–14
Status
Became law (2026 session)
Sen. Davenport'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 · since 2009

Davenport chairs the Clayton County Senate delegation, which meets with constituents and local leaders, and publishes regular session updates.

Documented Record

  • Davenport was elected chair of the Clayton County Senate delegation (which also includes Sens. Parent and Wicks), the body that convenes constituent and local-government meetings on legislative priorities for the county.
  • A fixed standalone Davenport-only town-hall series is not separately catalogued. She also publishes regular session columns and works direct constituent service.

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

Sources

Campaign Finance

Campaign Finance

Who's funding Sen. Davenport · recent cycles

Pinned — A Modest Ledger

Small, mixed donor base

Davenport’s reported top donors are a small, mixed group — the Atlanta Motor Speedway, a fellow senator’s committee, and a national retailer — a modest fundraising footprint for a safe-seat Clayton Democrat.

Top Contributors

Davenport's largest reported contributors from the Georgia Ethics Commission (PeachFile).

#ContributorTotal
1Georgia Association of Realtors Political Action Committee (Atlanta, GA)$3,300.00
2Civil Justice PAC (Atlanta, GA)$3,000.00
3Davenport, Carolyn (Jonesboro, GA)$2,000.00
4Friends of Elena Parent, Inc. (Atlanta, GA)$1,000.00
5Atlanta Motor Speedway (Hampton, GA)$1,000.00
6Atlanta Motor Speedway (Hampton, GA)$1,000.00
7Molson Coors Beverage Company LLC (Milwaukee, WI)$1,000.00
8Democratic Party of Georgia (Atlanta, GA)$1,000.00
9Delta Air Lines Georgia PAC (Atlanta, GA)$1,000.00

$37,129 raised · $14,783 cash on hand — as of May 16, 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 Sen. Davenport'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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