Gisler’s freshman year: East side’s new house rep settles into the gold dome
Last December, East Athens witnessed a major political upset. In a special election for Georgia House District 121, Democrat Eric Gisler narrowly defeated Republican Mack “Dutch” Guest IV by only 200 votes. This election was significant because the seat had been controlled by Republicans since 2019, and they won it 61-39 in the 2024 general election, a 22 point margin.
The unexpected nature of Gisler’s race made it a national story covered by major outlets like CNN and NBC. Oconee County Democratic Committee (OCDC) Chair Harold Thompson recalls the joy of winning after serving a crucial role in Gisler’s election.
“It was just a moment of jubilation. We were all together watching the election returns come in, and as votes were getting counted it kept going back and forth. Finally, Eric got a call from someone at the Athens-Clarke County elections office saying ‘Hey, you’ve won.’ We were just ecstatic that we had pulled it off,” Thompson said.
Currently, Gisler is in the midst of his first term. The state legislative session lasts 40 legislative days, which typically stretches to about 80 calendar days, ending on April 2. Because the session is only a small portion of the year, legislators’ schedules often become packed, but Gisler finds the busy session rewarding.
“We only have 40 (legislative days) in the session, but they start early and they go late. There’s always groups having breakfast every morning, and a couple meetings at lunchtime, usually advocacy groups and state agencies. And then there’s somebody offering dinner too. So time management is critical,” Gisler said.
A major part of serving in the state house involves serving on committees. This year, Gisler’s committee assignments are intergovernmental coordination – focused on state cooperation with local governments, defense and veterans affairs and health.
Gisler has introduced various legislation this session, with limited success. Some of his bills included creating a committee for responsible use of artificial intelligence, expanding medicaid and bolstering rights for student journalists. Gisler believes passing legislation can be challenging, particularly as a Democrat in a Republican-controlled House.
“Early in the session, the Senate passed a resolution urging the Secretary of State to turn over Georgia’s voter data to the U.S. Department of Justice. However, state law does not allow them to do that. In response, I drafted a house resolution that simply reaffirmed that it was against existing state law to do that. I actually went to the floor and spoke from the well to ask for bipartisan support, but none of the Republicans signed on to it. I ended up dropping it and (it) went to a committee where it died,” Gisler said. “It tells you where we are in this country right now, where the Senate can pass a resolution urging a constitutional officer to break state law, and I can’t even get my bill just reaffirming state law out of committee.”
However, not all bills hit partisan friction. In introducing more bipartisan legislation, Gisler found greater success and support from his fellow representatives.
“One of the bills that I drafted would ask the University System of Georgia to translate military service into college credit, so that people who are coming out of the service can get a bit of a head start in college. That one actually did get a hearing, but I did not get a vote on it. That was my best overall bipartisan legislation. It had the best chance of actually getting somewhere, but it didn’t ultimately get through,” Gisler said.
Serving as a Democrat within an overwhelmingly Republican house has presented challenges. However, Gisler believes that being in the minority can also create opportunities.
“I have a very unique perspective here at the House, because I am in a district that was designed for the other party. While I’d much rather move toward a less partisan and less gerrymandered system, this is the way it is. However, being a Democrat in a traditionally Republican district gives me a motivation to be as open and transparent as possible and show the people that most of what I’m doing has nothing to do with what party I am. It’s all about voting on good legislation,” Gisler said.
“In nearly all of the special elections that have occurred since the 2024 general election, Democrats have been doing very well. It looks like the Republicans are headed into another regime change war without an end in sight or a plan. I think that’s going to hurt the entire Republican Party going into November. Federal leadership has been horrible, and if it continues the way it has been this year through election day, it’s going to demotivate a lot of traditional Republican voters and motivate a lot of Democratic voters,”
Beyond the official procedures, collaboration behind the scenes is necessary for passing legislation. Spencer Frye represents District 122 in the house, the sole Democrat from Athens since 2022. He has worked with Gisler on Athens-related issues like income tax.
“Having another Democrat around has been really enjoyable. I’ve been the only Democrat in our local affairs commission for a while and a lot of bad policy has gotten through, but now that it’s a 2 vs. 2 vote we’ve done a lot better. My immediate reaction to his arrival has just been appreciation. Eric is a highly qualified individual and he’s just taken to this like a duck to water,” Frye said.
Together, Gisler and Frye have passed several healthcare focused bills, including legislation improving healthcare access for young children. Frye hopes that their work will support constituents in Athens.
“We’ve done some good work together so far. We’ve cosponsored a couple pieces of legislation, particularly in healthcare. I know that’s something Eric and his constituents care a lot about so it’s great that we were able to create some policy together,” Frye said.
While most state house representatives serve for two years, Gisler was elected in a special election, meaning he will run again this November. The election will be a rematch of last December’s, as Guest is the only other candidate in the race. While the cycle can be tiring, he is looking forward to potentially having more Democratic colleagues.
“It’s really kind of tiring. Being a freshman legislator in an election year, we’ve seen a lot of messaging bills and less hard legislation. A lot of the session has been with an eye towards the elections. With any luck, we’ll come back next year with the majority and then we can actually get some things done,” Gisler said.
Looking forward, Gisler believes that Democrats will succeed in this year’s elections due to the turbulent conditions since the last election.
“In nearly all of the special elections that have occurred since the 2024 general election, Democrats have been doing very well. It looks like the Republicans are headed into another regime change war without an end in sight or a plan. I think that’s going to hurt the entire Republican Party going into November. Federal leadership has been horrible, and if it continues the way it has been this year through election day, it’s going to demotivate a lot of traditional Republican voters and motivate a lot of Democratic voters,” Gisler said.
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Recommendation graphic by Sophie Meile.
As the election cycle approaches, Thompson and the OCDC have been starting up their advocacy and fundraising efforts. They plan to use a wide range of methods to campaign this year.
“I’m continually telling our members to volunteer and donate. However, once the primaries get done, we’ll meet with all the candidates and discuss what their plans are and how they want us to help. We usually do things like canvassing, text banking, writing postcards and whatever the campaigns need. So we’ll be actively involved in all of the Democratic campaigns in our area,” Thompson said.
Gisler hopes that voters will remember his efforts to remain nonpartisan when they vote this year.
“I hope that they take away that I’m not an ideologue. I’m voting for what I think is right and not just with my party. I’m willing to work across the aisle, and I’m focused on trying to do what’s right for Athens-Clarke County and the state of Georgia,” Gisler said.
While his own focus rests on the session and re-election, Gisler urges his constituents to remain active in the time in between.
“Even after the session is over, I’m still a state representative all year long. If they need help with any state agencies or if there are issues they’re passionate about, don’t hesitate to reach out to me. Even if you do not agree with anything that I say, I’m willing to listen. I want to have real conversations and do whatever I can to help people,” Gisler said.
