Alicia Johnson ‘Intersects History & Responsibility’ Becoming 1st Black Woman On Georgia’s Public Service Commission
Source: Instagram @alicia4georgia
On Jan. 1, Alicia Johnson became the first Black woman to hold statewide office in Georgia when she joined the state Public Service Commission.
According to AP, Alicia Johnson was sworn in to the role on Monday during a ceremony in the commission chambers. Johnson called her election a “historic milestone” during the ceremony. “You stand with me at the intersection of history and responsibility. This oath connects me to a long arc of progress in Georgia — one shaped by citizens who dared and expanded the promise of democracy through courage, sacrifice, and persistence,” Johnson said in prepared remarks.
The impact of her election was not lost on Alicia Johnson during her swearing-in ceremony. “I think that anybody who does something for the first time has a — you know it could be an overwhelming sense of responsibility,” Johnson told reporters after the ceremony. “It’s a shame that a commission that has over a 100-year history, that I’m the first anything on it. But the reality is, that’s who we are.”
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According to CBS News, the Georgia Public Service Commission regulates the rates charged by the Georgia Power Co. With 2.7 million customers, the unit of Atlanta-based Southern Co. is Georgia’s only private electrical utility. Until the November election, the Georgia Public Service Commission was entirely controlled by Republicans. Alicia Johnson and Peter Hubbard won in landslide victories against Republican incumbents Tim Echols and Fitz Johnson. The two became the first Democrats to be elected to statewide office in nearly 20 years.
Their victories were largely driven by discontent over rising utility prices, which have coincided with increased development of AI data centers in Georgia. “I accept this responsibility fully aware that the decisions made in this room and in this role affects families’ monthly bills, their community health, their economic opportunity, and our shared future,” Johnson said during the ceremony.
The post Alicia Johnson ‘Intersects History & Responsibility’ Becoming 1st Black Woman On Georgia’s Public Service Commission appeared first on MadameNoire.
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