U.S. Rep. Nikema Williams resigns as Georgia Democratic Party chairwoman
U.S. Rep. Nikema Williams is stepping down as head of the Democratic Party of Georgia.
Williams announced her resignation as the party chair in a statement on Monday.
'As the first Black woman to chair the DPG, I set out to build a party that wasn't just reactive but proactive, not just present but powerful. That's exactly what we did. I remain committed to electing Democrats, expanding opportunity and fighting for a future where every Georgian has a voice and stake in our democracy. That work doesn't end here and neither do I as I remain a member of both the state committee and executive committee and the Congresswoman for Georgia's Fighting Fifth,' Williams said in part.
Williams, who represents Georgia's 5th Congressional District, faced criticism, backlash, and calls for her to resign after President Donald Trump's election win over former Vice President Kamala Harris.
Williams cited the new bylaws passed that would make chair of the Democratic Party of Georgia a full-time role as a reason for her stepping down.
Matthew Wilson, who currently serves as the party's 1st Vice Chair, will take over as the interim chair.
This is a developing story. We'll have reaction from both parties, on Channel 2 Action News.
[DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


The Hill
25 minutes ago
- The Hill
Trump isn't done with Musk yet, Michael Cohen says
President Trump's ex-personal attorney Michael Cohen on Saturday said that Trump isn't done with tech billionaire Elon Musk yet, after tensions between the two men became incredibly heated in a public social media spat last week. 'They're going to really go after Elon Musk like nobody has seen, ever, in this country, because they can,' Cohen told MSNBC's Ali Velshi. 'And one thing Elon doesn't understand is this political guerilla warfare that they're going to conduct against him,' he added. On Thursday, a fight between Musk and Trump over the president's 'big, beautiful bill' earlier in the week escalated rapidly on Musk's X platform and Trump's Truth Social platform. The president said the tech billionaire 'just went CRAZY!' and threatened Musk's government contracts. Musk alleged that Trump had ties to convicted sex offender and financier Jeffrey Epstein on X. The public spat followed the end of Musk's recent service in the Trump administration and an alliance with the president that appeared to start off strong. Musk endorsed Trump in July 2024 in the wake of Trump surviving an assassination attempt in Pennsylvania. Musk's administration service was marked by intense backlash from those on the left and Democrats over actions taken by Musk's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) on the federal government. 'He doesn't care about Elon Musk,' Cohen said in his MSNBC appearance, talking about Trump. 'He used Elon Musk for what he needed. Initially it was the money, so that he didn't have to lay out any of his own, and also, more importantly, for his access with X.' The Hill has reached out to the White House and X for comment.
Yahoo
28 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Minnesota budget deal cuts health care for adults who entered the US illegally
ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — Adults living in the U.S. illegally will be excluded from a state-run health care program under an overall budget deal that the closely divided Minnesota Legislature convened to pass in a special session Monday. Repealing a 2023 state law that made those immigrants eligible for the MinnesotaCare program for the working poor was a priority for Republicans in the negotiations that produced the budget agreement. The Legislature is split 101-100, with the House tied and Democrats holding just a one-seat majority in the Senate, and the health care compromise was a bitter pill for Democrats to accept. The change is expected to affect about 17,000 residents. Democratic Gov. Tim Walz, who insisted on maintaining eligibility for children who aren't in the country legally, has promised to sign all 14 bills scheduled for action in the special session, to complete a $66 billion, two-year budget that will take effect July 1. After an emotional near four-hour debate, the House voted 68-65 to send the bill to the Senate, where Majority Leader Erin Murphy, of St. Paul, had already said she would supply the necessary Democratic vote to pass it. Under the agreement, the top House Democratic leader, Melissa Hortman, of Brooklyn Park, was the only member of her caucus to vote yes. 'This is 100% about the GOP campaign against immigrants,' said House Democratic Floor Leader Jamie Long, of Minneapolis, who voted no. 'From Trump's renewed travel ban announced this week, to his effort to expel those with protected status, to harassing students here to study, to disproportionate military and law enforcement responses that we've seen from Minneapolis to L.A., this all comes back to attacking immigrants and the name of dividing us.' But GOP Rep. Jeff Backer, of Browns Valley, the lead author of the bill, said taxpayers shouldn't have to subsidize health care for people who aren't in the country legally. Backer said California Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, has proposed freezing enrollment for immigrants without legal status in a similar state-funded program and that Illinois' Democratic governor, JB Pritzker, has proposed cutting a similar program. He said residents can still buy health insurance on the private market regardless of their immigration status. 'This is about being fiscally responsible,' Backer said. Enrollment by people who entered the country illegally in MinnesotaCare has run triple the initial projections, which Republicans said could have pushed the costs over $600 million over the next four years. Critics said the change won't save any money because those affected will forego preventive care and need much more expensive care later. 'People don't suddenly stop getting sick when they don't have insurance, but they do put off seeking care until a condition gets bad enough to require a visit to the emergency room, increasing overall health care costs for everyone,' Bernie Burnham, president of the Minnesota AFL-CIO, told reporters at a news conference organized by the critics. Walz and legislative leaders agreed on the broad framework for the budget over four weeks ago, contrasting the bipartisan cooperation that produced it with the deep divisions at the federal level in Washington. But with the tie in the House and the razor-thin Senate Democratic majority, few major policy initiatives got off the ground before the regular session ended May 19. Leaders announced Friday that the details were settled and that they had enough votes to pass everything in the budget package.
Yahoo
28 minutes ago
- Yahoo
‘It won't end well for Trump' if he does this amid LA protests, ex-GOP rep says
The execution of a legal method to crack down on dissent, if used by President Donald Trump amid or after current protests in Los Angeles, will not end well for the president, according to one Republican who previously served in Congress. Three days of chaos started after Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents arrested several people at a Home Depot in Paramount, a city just south of Los Angeles. Since then, protests erupted with more arrests, cars destroyed and, as the New York Times reported, reporters shot at by law enforcement. On Saturday, Trump ordered 2,000 National Guard troops to be deployed to Los Angeles without Gov. Gavin Newsom's request. In a series of posts on X, former Rep. Adam Kinzinger, R-Ill., a frequent critic of Trump's and someone who served on the Jan. 6 Investigative Committee in the wake of the 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol, commented on the deployment and Trump not using the Insurrection Act. 'DO NOT FEDERALIZE THE GUARD,' Kinzinger wrote. 'This is absolutely wrong at this moment.' Kinzinger posted shortly after and said the National Guard has 'no ability to do law enforcement without the Insurrection Act.' 'They are essentially no longer National Guard and now are active duty federal troops with all the restrictions,' he continued. 'Only a governor can activate them for law enforcement without the Insurrection Act.' His last remark on the matter, on Sunday morning, read that 'Now, if Trump invokes the Insurrection Act, then we're in a whole new world and it won't end well for Trump.' He did not elaborate further. Trump told reporters on Sunday that the events over the weekend were a riot rather than an insurrection, thus not invoking the Insurrection Act, the Los Angeles Times reported. This act gives the president the legal power to send the military and the National Guard to suppress civil disorder. Los Angeles was the epicenter of the Insurrection Act's last usage, by President George H.W. Bush in 1992, when riots broke out following the acquittals of four Los Angeles Police Department officers charged in connection with the beating of a Black man named Rodney King on Interstate 210. Newsom and Los Angeles officials slammed the Trump administration's response to the protests. The governor called out the president after Trump congratulated the National Guard before they were deployed. 'The California National Guard wasn't even deployed in Los Angeles yet when this rant was posted,' Newsom wrote in a post on X. 'Facts matter.' On Sunday night, Newsom formally requested that Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth rescind the National Guard from Los Angeles. 'We didn't have a problem until Trump got involved,' Newsom wrote in another post on X. This is a serious breach of state sovereignty — inflaming tensions while pulling resources from where they're actually needed. Rescind the order. Return control to California." Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and the Los Angeles Police Department both described the protests as peaceful. 'We will always protect the constitutional right for Angelenos to peacefully protest,' Bass wrote on X. 'However, violence, destruction and vandalism will not be tolerated in our city and those responsible will be held fully accountable.' '[On Saturday,] demonstrations across the city of Los Angeles remained peaceful, and we commend all those who exercise their First Amendment rights responsibly,' police said in a statement. '... We will maintain a heightened readiness posture and remain ready to ensure the continued safety of our communities.' 'I don't know if I want to do this anymore': leaked audio highlights turmoil among Dems Graffiti on tank in Trump's parade calls for hanging 2 well-known Americans 'I would': Trump calls for arrest of California's Newsom amid lawsuit over National Guard in LA All Ivy League schools are supporting Harvard lawsuit — except these 2 Embassies directed to resume processing Harvard University student visas Read the original article on MassLive.