Buddy Carter, a pharmacist and businessman from Pooler, Georgia, defeated Democratic opponent Brian Reese in the race for Georgia’s 1st Congressional District. Carter will be replacing outgoing U.S. Rep. Jack Kingston, who has held the seat for the past 22 years.
Carter has been a pharmacist for over 30 years and will be the only pharmacist in the 114th Congress. He owns and operates three pharmacies in his District and has also worked as a consultant for Omnicare, Inc.
One of Carter’s core campaign messages was focusing on healthcare reform, which he says starts with repealing the Affordable Care Act. In a statement on his campaign website, Carter notes the healthcare system can be improved by “bringing real conservative reform with market-driven solutions.” One way he plans on accomplishing this is by working to allow insurance companies to compete across state lines, which he argues will improve competition and lower costs.
In August, Carter said it is extremely important to have leaders who “have been in the trenches on healthcare issues before and [who] understand the importance of the relationship between a healthcare service provider and the patient.”
In addition to healthcare, Carter is interested in tackling the nation’s long-term debt and fixing the tax code when he gets to Washington.
Working on legislation that addresses these issues won’t be anything new for Carter—before running for the U.S. House of Representatives, he was a State Senator in Georgia from 2009-2014 and a State Representative from 2005-2009. Prior to that, Carter served as mayor of Pooler, Georgia, from 1996-2004.