In the State Senate District 26 runoff, incumbent Miriam Paris and David Lucas battled it out in a tight race throughout the evening.
Lucas came out on top, but wanted to wait to declare victory until he received confirmation from the Georgia Secretary of State's Office.
Shortly after 1 a.m., the Secretary of State website reported that results from all seven counties in the 26th district were in. The final numbers give Lucas the seat by 221 votes.
Lucas finished with 8649 votes to Paris's 8428 for a 50.65-percent to 49.35-percent victory.
Paris conceded the race earlier in the evening to Lucas, although she says she plans to run again in two years.
As Lucas took a definitive lead, he celebrated with friends, family and supporters outside his Forsyth Street headquarters.
He told them, "We got plenty more to do."
After winning the runoff, Lucas will face Republican candidate Bobby Gale in the November general election.
The 37-year veteran of the state legislature took a large lead in Bibb County and won also Houston County but fell short in the other five counties around the district. It proved enough in the end.
His supporters claimed victory, chanting, "We're going to the Gold Dome," but Lucas hesitated.
He said, "If that is the case, I want to thank everybody, period, that worked for the Davis Lucas campaign and David Lucas for the Senate, and will vow tonight and further on that I will represent the people."
Lucas credited what he called his "grassroots" campaign efforts with the lead, noting that Paris's campaign raised far more money.
Conceding the race, Paris said, "To my supporters, don't be discouraged, we are going to push on and press on. It might take us two years."
Paris promised her crowd another run, praising her team for an ethical and clean race. She said, "We kept the faith. We brought people together, and we didn't divide our community.
Lucas claimed Republicans threw their support behind Paris, muddying the race and making him out to be a "racist and a devil."
He said, "They put money in. They put the flyer out. We didn't have that kind of money."
Lucas said once the winner is certified by the state, he will hit the campaign trail again, prepping for the November election.