ATLANTA – Political newcomer and former Georgia state judge Denise Majette managed to beat five-term incumbent Rep. Cynthia McKinney Tuesday in a 4th District Democratic primary that many say nearly ensures Majette the seat in November.
Winning 58-42 percent, Majette danced on the tables at her victory party Tuesday night.
"This campaign is not about me. It was not about my opponent. It was about all of you -- all of you who represent the spirit, the heart and soul of America," Majette said thanking her campaign staff.
In another corner of the district, conceding her defeat, McKinney blamed crossover voters.
"We saw massive Republican crossover into the Democratic primary. And it looks like the Republicans wanted to beat me more than the Democrats wanted to keep me," she said.
In Georgia's predominantly Democratic 4th District, many traditional GOP voters opted for the Democratic ballot in hopes of unseating McKinney, whom they consider one of Congress' most left-wing voices.
"I really didn't like doing it. There are some GOP candidates I'd like to support, but, in this case, I thought it was very important to do what I could to remove Cynthia McKinney from office," said voter Ron Caruso.
During the campaign, McKinney took heat for comments she made suggesting President Bush ignored terrorists warnings before Sept. 11 so that he and his friends could benefit from the destruction. She also accepted donations that many said came from groups that have expressed sympathy for Islamic terrorists.
The congresswoman's father, longtime state Legislator Billy McKinney, whose own re-election campaign is now in a run-off, fanned the flames before the primary when he accused his daughter's opponent of being bought by Jews, going so far as to spell out "J-E-W-S" in a televised interview on election day.
When pressed by a Fox News producer, he later claimed he was referring to the pro-Israel lobby.
"About Zionists. You know what a Zionist is, don't you? Are you one? You're not Zionist, are you?" he asked.
Things were considerably more cordial in Georgia's redrawn 7the District where new boundaries forced two incumbent conservative congressman to run for the same seat in a Republican primary.
Rep. Bob Barr, a fighter during the campaign, proved to be a gentleman in defeat, showing up in person to concede to his opponent Rep. John Linder.
"This is a team sport. We are all Republicans. After every race, win or lose, we come together," Barr said.
The two Republicans, in fact, shared much in the way of substance, if not style. Both support gun rights, seek a ban on abortion and want to cut taxes.
"The most important thing we have to do right now is we don't lose the momentum we've had for the last eight years -- that we maintain the majority -- that we continue to work on less taxes and less spending," Linder said.
In other Georgia voting, White House-backed Rep. Saxby Chambliss defeated two opponents in the GOP primary and will face freshman Democratic Sen. Max Cleland in November. Cleland was unopposed.
Former state Sen. Sonny Perdue won the three-way GOP race to challenge Georgia Gov. Roy Barnes, a Democrat.
But the two big races left constituents making their choices starkly clear. In just one day, suburban Atlanta voters silenced two of the most outspoken members of Congress, and felled the seventh and eighth House incumbents in primaries this year.
Fox News' Jonathan Serrie contributed to this report.
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