1980Final results
1980 election for Georgia Senate District 1
Georgia State Senate · Georgia
J. Tom Coleman Jr. (D) won with 80.7% of the vote, defeating Erie Lee Downing (R) by 61.4 points.
J. Tom Coleman Jr.Democrat · winner
80.7%16,383
Erie Lee DowningRepublican
19.3%3,922
20,305 votes
Source: Harvard Dataverse / Carl KlarnerUpdated Sep 30, 2026, 7:29 AM ET
The seat over time
D − R margin in this seat's races around 1980
Races before and after
Source: Harvard Dataverse / Carl KlarnerUpdated Sep 30, 2026, 7:29 AM ET