The race for the DeKalb County seat held by Senate Minority Leader Gloria Butler appears to be heading to a runoff between former Democratic state Rep. Randal Mangham and Iris Hamilton, a Democrat who works in health insurance.

Mangham and Hamilton will face off in a June 18 runoff after neither received more than one-third of votes in the five-person race, according to preliminary results.

Butler was the first Black woman to serve as Senate minority leader, chosen by her peers to the job in 2020. She has served in the Senate since 1998.

The winner of the Democratic runoff for Senate District 55 will compete against Republican Mary William Benefield in this fall’s general election. Benefield, who works in accounting services, didn’t face an opponent in the Republican primary.

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Republican Jason Frazier (right) speaks with a supporter after the public comment portion of the Fulton County Board of Commissioners meeting in Atlanta on Wednesday, June 7, 2023. (Arvin Temkar/AJC)

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In 2022, Georgia Power projected its winter peak electricity demand would grow by about 400 megawatts by 2031. Since then, Georgia has experienced a boom of data centers, which require a large load of electricty to run, and Georgia Power's recent forecast shows peak demand growing by 20 times the 400-megawatt estimate from just three years ago. (Illustration by Philip Robibero/AJC)

Credit: Illustration: Philip Robibero / AJC