ATLANTA – State Rep. Jasmine Clark, D-Lilburn, will challenge veteran incumbent U.S. Rep. David Scott, D-Atlanta, in next year’s Democratic primary, Clark announced Monday.
Clark, a microbiologist, said she wants to bring a science perspective to Democrats’ fight against Republican President Donald Trump’s agenda and to congressional Republicans who won’t stand up to the president.
“These are not normal times, and I cannot sit back and watch my community come under attack while our leaders in Washington fail to show up,” she said in a prepared statement. “I’m running for Congress to be a fighter for Georgia families, science and reason.”
Clark was elected to the General Assembly in 2018 and has survived two attempts by GOP House leaders to defeat her by redrawing her Gwinnett County district to favor Republican challengers.
After receiving a bachelor’s degree at the University of Tennessee, Clark earned a doctorate in microbiology and molecular genetics from Emory University and now serves as an assistant biology professor at Emory. She is a single mother raising two children.
Scott, who will turn 80 this month, was elected to the House in 2002 and is seeking his 12th term representing Georgia’s 13th Congressional District, which includes all of Rockdale County and parts of Gwinnett, DeKalb, Henry, Clayton, and Newton counties.