Meet Mike

Mike Thurmond believes in Georgia’s promise. His life embodies Georgia’s greatness and promise of possibility. His vision and leadership are what our state needs to meet this moment.

Mike grew up in rural Clarke County, the youngest of nine children. While his parents hoped he’d become a preacher, Mike heard a different calling, a call to service. So he dedicated his life to helping others rise out of poverty, improving our schools and making Georgia a safer and more affordable place to raise a family.

Mike was the youngest of nine children and graduated from Clarke Central High School in  Athens. He graduated from Paine College in Augusta then earned a law degree from the South Carolina School of Law before returning home to Clarke County to establish  a law practice.

At 33, Mike was elected to the Georgia Legislature, defeating a long-term incumbent to become the first African American to represent Clarke County at the Capitol since Reconstruction. 

Mike led Georgia’s Division of Family & Children Services where he earned a reputation as a “turnaround-expert” creating the Work First program that helped 90,000 Georgians move back into the workforce.

He then went on to serve as Georgia’s Labor Commissioner, where he transformed outdated unemployment offices into state-of-the-art career centers that facilitated the employment of over 300,000 Georgians.. As Commissioner, Mike turned the unemployment office into a career center: created the Georgia Work$ model, that has been copied by more than 30 states.

So, when DeKalb County schools were in crisis, they turned to Mike. As interim superintendent, Mike erased a multi-million dollar deficit while improving test scores and raising graduation rates. Most recently, Mike served as CEO of Dekalb County where he ended a culture of corruption and debt, turning a $27 million dollar deficit into a $140 million dollar surplus.

Mike is also a historian and award-winning author, whose most recent book is a biography of Georgia’s founding father James Oglethorpe and his journey from slave trader to abolitionist.

Today, Mike Thurmond is ready to add a new chapter to Georgia’s story as our next governor. At a time of rising costs and declining trust Mike is exactly what our state needs to grow faster, stronger, safer and more equitable. While he lives in DeKalb with his wife Zola, Mike is at home in all 159 of Georgia’s counties and hopes to see you soon as he campaigns across the great state that he loves so much.