Newly elected Georgia lawmaker withdraws from legislature following arrest

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Former Rep.-elect Danny Rampey resigned his newly won seat after his arrest on prescription drug theft charges.

ATLANTA – A newly elected state representative from Barrow County is stepping down before the General Assembly convenes its 2023 legislative session next week.

Republican Rep.-elect Danny Rampey, 67, was arrested and charged with stealing prescription drugs from an assisted living complex he manages in Winder, the Athens Banner-Herald reported last month.

Rampey chose to resign the seat he just won rather than face being suspended from the General Assembly after lawmakers are sworn in next Monday.

Gov. Brian Kemp has scheduled a special election for Jan. 31 to fill the House District 119 seat, which includes a major portion of Barrow County.

“His withdrawal will ensure his constituents have a voice in this session of the General Assembly after the special election is held,” House Speaker Jan Jones, R-Milton, and Speaker-Nominee Jon Burns, R-Newington, wrote in a joint statement.

Rampey was elected without opposition in November, receiving 18,484 votes.

This story is available through a news partnership with Capitol Beat News Service, a project of the Georgia Press Educational Foundation.