# Georgia State House — District 146 — 2026 Candidates — The GA Files > Where the 2026 candidates for Georgia State House — District 146 stand — bio, prior offices, top donors, positions on DEI, LGBTQ+, abortion, and data centers, plus any scandals. Sourced. *Source: https://thegafiles.com/candidates/house-district-146.html · The GA Files (thegafiles.com)* --- [← 2026 Candidates](https://thegafiles.com/candidates.html) # Georgia State House — District 146 ## When no one runs, no one has to answer to you. In 2024, **2,224 of the 5,807 state-legislative seats on the ballot — about 38% — had no major-party competition** ([Ballotpedia](https://ballotpedia.org/Major_party_competition_in_state_legislative_elections,_2024)). This is one of them: **Shaw Blackmon drew no opponent and will appear alone on the November ballot.** An uncontested race isn't a sign of agreement — it's the absence of a choice. When a seat goes unchallenged, voters lose their one real point of leverage: the power to say _no_ and pick someone else. A healthy democracy contests every race, top to bottom, so that every officeholder has to earn the job. That's the idea behind [**Run for Office**](https://www.runforoffice.org/) — a nonpartisan effort to help everyday people run so no seat goes unchallenged and no community is left without a choice. [Read their mission →](https://www.runforoffice.org/) Below is the accountability profile for the person holding this seat unopposed. R ### Shaw Blackmon House Ways & Means Chairman · running unopposed Zell Shaw Blackmon III has represented Georgia House District 146 (part of Houston County — Warner Robins, Bonaire, Kathleen) since 2015. A University of Georgia graduate who works in business, he chairs the powerful House Ways & Means Committee — the chamber's tax-writing panel — and is a chief budget writer. He filed for re-election in 2026 and, after qualifying closed in March, drew no opponent, leaving him unopposed for a seventh term. #### Previously held - Chairman, House Ways & Means Committee (tax-writing committee) - Georgia State Representative, District 146 (2015–present) - Board, Technical College System of Georgia - Board, Houston County Development Authority #### Top contributors The donor profile of a powerful tax-committee chairman: his top givers skew toward regulated and tax-sensitive industries — lobbying firms (Allegis/Redwood/Maxim Public Affairs), utility contractors (GUCA), data centers (T5), real estate (Realtors PAC), telecom (AT&T), and the business-coalition Competitive Georgia Action — alongside the House Speaker's orbit. His committee holds more than it has spent, with no race to spend it on. - $6,600.00 — Allegis Redwood Maxim Public Affairs LLC (Hanover, MD) - $5,000.00 — James Burchett for House (Millwood, GA) - $4,000.00 — GUCA Political Action Committee (Forest Park, GA) - $3,500.00 — T5 Data Centers, LLC (Atlanta, GA) - $3,300.00 — Competitive Georgia Action INC (Griffin, GA) - $3,300.00 — Georgia Association Of Realtors Political Action Committee (Atlanta, GA) - $3,300.00 — Patriot Group Development, Inc. (Kathleen, GA) - $3,300.00 — AT&T Georgia Political Action Committee (Atlanta, GA) - $3,300.00 — Georgia Bankers Association Political Action Committee-State (Atlanta, GA) - $3,300.00 — Friends Of Jon Burns (Roswell, GA) **$547,374** raised · **$437,969** cash on hand — as of **May 7, 2026** (GA Ethics latest filing). Source: [Georgia Ethics Commission (PeachFile)](https://peachfile.ethics.ga.gov) #### Where they stand Education Emphasizes K-12 funding, technical-college transferability and dual enrollment, and as Ways & Means chair backed the GOP education agenda including 2024 school-choice/voucher legislation; lists “enhancing education” as a priority. Source: [Rep. Blackmon official bio (legis.ga.gov)](https://www.legis.ga.gov/api/document/docs/default-source/bios/blackmon-shaw-1878.pdf) · [Campaign site](https://www.shawblackmon.com/) Healthcare Like most House Republicans, has supported Gov. Kemp's limited “Pathways to Coverage” program over full Medicaid expansion, which the GOP majority has repeatedly declined to adopt; no personal statement endorsing full expansion was found. Source: [Georgia Recorder — Pathways extended through 2026](https://georgiarecorder.com/2025/09/26/georgias-limited-medicaid-expansion-program-is-extended-through-2026-despite-concerns-about-cost/) Minimum Wage No Blackmon statement or bill on the minimum wage was found; Georgia's statutory minimum remains $5.15 (the $7.25 federal floor applies in practice), and the Republican-led legislature, where he is a senior member, has not moved to raise it. Source: [Georgia Dept. of Labor — minimum wage](https://dol.georgia.gov/minimum-wage) Homelessness No specific position or vote by Blackmon on homelessness surfaced in public sources — reported honestly as no record found for this topic. Veterans Affairs Representing the Robins Air Force Base community, he names “strengthening our defense community” a top priority and touts bringing investment to Houston County, including a veterans training-center project. Source: [Rep. Blackmon official bio (legis.ga.gov)](https://www.legis.ga.gov/api/document/docs/default-source/bios/blackmon-shaw-1878.pdf) · [Campaign site](https://www.shawblackmon.com/) Immigration Part of the Republican House majority that passed HB 1105 (2024), a stricter immigration-enforcement / anti-“sanctuary” law requiring local cooperation with federal authorities, which cleared the House 99–75 largely on party lines; no dissent from his caucus was found. Source: [AJC — Georgia House passes immigration enforcement bill](https://www.ajc.com/politics/georgia-house-passes-immigration-enforcement-bill-after-athens-killing/ZY6CKX44E5HRDLVEP3G3ZHJUOY/) Gun Control No individual Blackmon gun roll-call was located; he describes himself as a “fiscally conservative Republican” who protects “our freedoms,” consistent with the GOP majority that enacted Georgia's 2022 permitless (“constitutional”) carry law. Source: [Campaign site](https://www.shawblackmon.com/) Abortion Voted for HB 481, Georgia's 2019 “LIFE Act” banning most abortions after roughly six weeks; abortion-rights trackers classify him as anti-abortion based on that record. Source: [Georgia Choice Tracker — Shaw Blackmon](https://choicetracker.org/ga/people/shaw-blackmon/133234688) · [GPB — what HB 481 does](https://www.gpb.org/news/2022/06/30/what-does-georgias-2019-abortion-law-hb-481-do) LGBTQ+ No Blackmon-specific roll call on LGBTQ measures was located; he is part of the GOP majority that advanced restrictions on gender-affirming care for minors (SB 30 in 2025). Reported honestly: an individual vote was not confirmed. Source: [Georgia Recorder — Senate passes ban on puberty blockers for minors](https://georgiarecorder.com/2026/02/10/georgia-senate-passes-surprise-ban-on-puberty-blockers-for-minors/) DEI No Blackmon-specific DEI vote was located; he belongs to the GOP majority that passed legislation (HB 127, 2025) banning diversity, equity and inclusion programs in Georgia schools and colleges. An individual vote was not separately confirmed. Source: [Georgia Recorder — Senate passes DEI ban](https://georgiarecorder.com/briefs/georgia-senate-passes-ban-on-dei-in-schools-and-colleges-as-2025-session-winds-down/) Marijuana No Blackmon-specific cannabis roll call was isolated, though the House passed a medical-cannabis expansion (SB 220, 2026) on a lopsided 138–21 bipartisan vote; recreational marijuana remains illegal in Georgia. Source: [Georgia Recorder — House passes medical cannabis access bill](https://georgiarecorder.com/2026/03/12/house-passes-bill-seeking-to-ease-access-to-georgias-medical-cannabis-program/) Data centers His clearest individual record: Blackmon was the lead sponsor of HB 1192 (2024) to suspend Georgia's sales-tax exemption for data centers pending a study of their strain on the grid — calling it “an immense subsidy for an industry that takes up a tremendous amount of resources, power and water.” The House passed it 96–71; Gov. Kemp vetoed it. Source: [GPB — House passes bill suspending data-center tax exemption](https://www.gpb.org/news/2024/02/29/georgia-house-passes-bill-suspending-tax-exemption-for-data-centers) · [Capitol Beat — data-center tax exemption suspension](https://capitol-beat.org/2024/02/georgia-house-passes-bill-suspending-tax-exemption-for-data-centers/) #### Scandals None documented. [Georgia House — official bio](https://www.legis.ga.gov/members/house/1878) · [Campaign site](https://www.shawblackmon.com/) · [Full legislator fact sheet](https://thegafiles.com/ShawBlackmon.html) [⬇ Share image](https://thegafiles.com/share/candidates/house-district-146.png) [⬇ Download for offline](https://thegafiles.com/candidates/house-district-146.offline.html) Every entry is drawn from published reporting, official records, or the candidate's own statements, with sources on each item. Policy summaries are condensed from that reporting and reflect the candidate's stated positions; where a matter is an allegation or unresolved, that is noted, and inclusion is not a finding of guilt. Contributor figures are early/partial where the official itemized filings (Georgia Ethics Commission) are still being compiled. Corrections welcome via the contact link in the footer. Last updated 2026-06-17.