John Barrow

Education, early career, and family

Barrow was born in Athens, Georgia, to Judge James Barrow and his wife, Phyllis (Jenkins) Barrow, who both had served as military officers during World War II. His family has deep roots in the Athens area, and according to his staff he is a great-great-nephew of David Crenshaw Barrow Jr., for whom nearby Barrow County was named. Through his Barrow ancestors he is related to 19th-century Georgia Governor Wilson Lumpkin.

Barrow graduated from the University of Georgia with a political science degree in 1976. While a student, he was a member of the university's Demosthenian Literary Society. In 1979, he earned a Juris Doctor degree from Harvard Law School. After graduation, he entered private practice as a lawyer, working until his election to public office. Barrow is married to the former Angèle Hawkins of Atlanta. Together they have 5 children: Charlie, Manette, Alex, James, and Ruth.

Barrow is a Baptist.

Athens-Clarke County politics

In 1990, voters from the City of Athens and Clarke County voted to consolidate the two governing bodies. Barrow was elected to the newly created Athens-Clarke County Commission, representing the county's fourth district. He won re-election in 1992, 1996, and in 2000.

U.S. House of Representatives

Elections

Shortly after Barack Obama's victory in the 2008 Georgia Democratic presidential primary, Barrow endorsed Obama for president.

Barrow drew a primary challenge from state Sen. Regina Thomas in 2008, who argued that the congressman voted too frequently with Republicans. Despite the district's substantial Black population, Obama endorsed Barrow over Thomas. Barrow ultimately defeated Thomas in a landslide, calling the outcome "a real victory for those of us who believe that the big things we agree on are more important than the little things that divide us."

He won a third term in November, defeating Republican John Stone by 32 points.

In 2010, Thomas again challenged Barrow in the Democratic primary. She attacked Barrow for his vote against the Affordable Care Act, accusing him of propagating "lies and more lies" by misrepresenting his political stances on the campaign trail. Barrow outspent Thomas by a margin of 21-to-one during the campaign. He defeated Thomas by double digits.

Barrow defeated Republican Ray McKinney in the general election. With his victory, Barrow became the last white Democrat from the Deep South left in the House.

During 2011 redistricting, the Republican-controlled state Legislature sought to gerrymander Barrow out of office by severing liberal Chatham County from his district. The enacted plan replaced it with more conservative counties in the Augusta metropolitan area, turning the 12th District into a seat that would have been carried by Republican John McCain with 59% of the vote in 2008. The new boundaries significantly hindered Barrow's reelection prospects, and The Washington Post named it the second-most gerrymandered district in the nation.

Barrow, a moderate Democrat who frequently bucked his party, remained competitive in the redrawn district nonetheless. He benefited from the lackluster campaign of his GOP opponent, state Rep. Lee Anderson, "whose laid-back and slow-talking demeanor" contrasted with Barrow's aggressive performance on the stump. Barrow defeated Anderson with nearly 54% of the vote.

Legislation

Barrow sponsored 59 bills of his own, including:

H.R. 2073, a bill to create a tax credit for businesses with no more than 50 employees equal to 50% of the amount paid by the employer for health insurance coverage for the business's employees, introduced May 4, 2005. A version of this tax credit would later be included as part of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA).

H.R. 5694, introduced June 28, 2006, reintroduced in the 110th Congress as H.R. 1473, the 111th Congress as H.R. 1662 and the 112th Congress as H.R. 4283, a bill to require states to recommend the purchasing of liability insurance for child care centers, and to require child care centers to disclose whether the center carries current liability insurance 1) publicly and conspicuously in the service area of the premises of the center, and 2) in a written notice to each child's parents or legal guardian. Child care centers would be required to receive a signature from at least one of the child's parents verifying that he or she has received the notice, and would be required to maintain records of these signatures while the child is receiving care and for one year thereafter. While this bill has yet to become law, many states, including Georgia, have adopted their own versions of it.

H.R. 1563, a bill to require Medicare Advantage organizations to provide at least the same amount provided under Medicare Part A or B if such services had been provided under either of those programs for critical access rural hospitals, introduced March 19, 2007

H.R. 2398, a bill to create the National Institute of Food and Agriculture to promote research aimed at improving agriculture, introduced June 21, 2007. This bill's provisions were included in the 2008 U.S. farm bill.

H.R. 3607, a bill to increase the allowable HOPE Scholarship tax credit from $1,000 to $2,000, allow it to be used for four taxable years, and allow it to include expenditures on books, classroom supplies, and housing, introduced September 20, 2007

H.R. 5897, a bill to create a registry of individuals exposed to excess formaldehyde in the Federal Emergency Management Agency's temporary housing units after Hurricane Katrina, to study the adverse effects of this excess exposure, and to provide free health care and counseling to individuals in the registry who are suffering from adverse effects of excess formaldehyde exposure linked to the temporary housing units, introduced April 24, 2008, reintroduced in the 111th Congress as H.R. 1661

Committee assignments

Committee on Energy and Commerce

Subcommittee on Environment and Economy

Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing and Trade

Subcommittee on Energy and Power

Subcommittee on Health

Political campaigns

2018

While considered to be a potential candidate for Governor of Georgia in the 2018 election, Barrow decided instead to pursue the office of Georgia Secretary of State. He announced his candidacy on September 24, 2017 and won the Democratic primary. Neither Barrow nor his Republican opponent, Brad Raffensperger, received 50% of the vote in the 2018 general election, so a run-off election was held. In that election, Barrow lost by 55,806 votes.

2020

In 2019, Barrow announced his intention to run for a seat on the Supreme Court of Georgia. The election was controversially canceled by Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger after outgoing Justice Keith R. Blackwell announced his intention to resign from his position before his term was complete. Blackwell's decision allowed Governor Brian Kemp to appoint a successor, which Kemp argued rendered an election unnecessary. Barrow sued in state court to force an election, but Raffensperger's decision to cancel the election was upheld by the state Supreme Court in a 6–2 vote.

2024

On May 21, 2024, John Barrow lost the Georgia Supreme Court election against sitting Justice Andrew Pinson by a 10-point margin.

Political views

Barrow is a Blue Dog Democrat as well as a member of the New Democrat Coalition. Based on Barrow's bill sponsorship, the GovTrack website had classified him as a centrist Democrat. Following the defeat of fellow Georgia Democrat Jim Marshall in 2010, he was the only white Democratic congressman from the Deep South.

Barrow got a 75% rating from the NAACP, which indicates a "mixed record" on civil rights; 83% from U.S. Border Control, indicating a "sealed-border stance"; 25% from Americans United for Separation of Church and State, indicating a "mixed record on church-state separation"; 0% from Citizens for Tax Justice, indicating opposition to progressive tax structure; 100% from the Campaign for America's Future, indicating support for energy independence; -10 from NORML, indicating a "hard-on-drugs" stance; 36% from the National Right to Life Committee, indicating a mixed record on abortion.

Abortion

Barrow has a mixed record on abortion. In 2005, Barrow voted for the Child Interstate Abortion Notification Act. The legislation would have punished any individual who helped transport a minor across state lines to obtain an abortion without receiving proper parental consent. He was one of 54 Democrats to support the measure, which was not enacted.

NARAL Pro-Choice America gave Barrow a 100% rating in 2013, citing his votes against the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act and legislation intended to make it easier for insurance providers to deny birth control.

While campaigning for a seat on the Supreme Court of Georgia in 2024, Barrow said, "I believe that abortion rights are protected by the Georgia Constitution, and I believe the federal Constitution allows me to say that."

Gun rights

In 2012, Barrow aired an ad that touted his support for the Second Amendment. The spot featured Barrow displaying his own weapons and pledging, "Ain't nobody gonna take them away."

Barrow ran for reelection in 2014 with the endorsement of the NRA Political Victory Fund, which praised him for standing "strong against the Obama-Bloomberg gun control agenda."

Healthcare

Barrow voted against both the first and final drafts of the Affordable Care Act. He argued that the legislation put "too much of the burden of paying for it on working folks who are already being overcharged" and expressed concerns that the bill would "overwhelm" Medicaid.

LGBT rights

Barrow was one of 34 Democrats to vote for the Federal Marriage Amendment in 2006, which sought to define marriage as being between one man and one woman. Four years later, he voted for the Don't Ask, Don't Tell Repeal Act of 2010, which allowed LGBT Americans to serve openly in the United States Armed Forces.

Stimulus spending

Barrow voted for the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. He was one of 44 Democrats in the House to vote against the American Clean Energy and Security Act, also known as the cap and trade bill.

Intellectual property

In 2011, Rep. Barrow became a co-sponsor of Bill H.R.3261 otherwise known as the Stop Online Piracy Act.