ATLANTA – A conservative activist defeated a state senator in the race for an open seat on Georgia’s Public Service Commission.
Unofficial returns Tuesday show Tim Echols with 52 percent of the vote against state Sen. John Douglas after 94 percent of precincts reported.
The two were forced into the runoff when none of the four GOP candidates earned more than 50 percent of the vote in the July primary.
Echols will face Democrat Keith Moffett in the general election.
The commission regulates power utilities, natural gas companies and telecommunication firms in the state. It decides issues worth billions of dollars to the utilities industry.