Jan Jones | |
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| Speaker Pro-Tempore of theGeorgia House of Representatives | |
| Assumed office January 11, 2010 | |
| Preceded by | Mark Burkhalter |
| Speaker of the Georgia House of Representatives | |
| Acting November 16, 2022 – January 9, 2023 | |
| Preceded by | David Ralston |
| Succeeded by | Jon G. Burns |
| Member of theGeorgia House of Representatives | |
| Assumed office January 13, 2003 | |
| Preceded by | Roger Hines |
| Constituency | 38th district (2003–2005) 46th district (2005–2013) 47th district (2013–present) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1958-01-28)January 28, 1958 (age 67) Warner Robins, Georgia, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | Kalin Jones |
| Children | 4 |
| Education | University of Georgia (BA) Georgia State University (MBA) |
Jan Slaughter Jones (born January 28, 1958) is an American politician inGeorgia. ARepublican, she has been a member of theGeorgia House of Representatives since 2003, and was actingSpeaker of the House from November 2022 to January 2023 following the death of former SpeakerDavid Ralston. Jones serves as Speakerpro tempore of the House, a position she has held continuously since 2010 with the exception of her brief stint as acting Speaker. She is the state representative for Georgia's 47th House district, which covers some of the northernAtlanta suburbs, including parts ofMilton,Roswell,Alpharetta,Mountain Park, and unincorporatedCherokee County.
Jones was born inWarner Robins, Georgia. She is the granddaughter of two Laurens County, Georgia farmers and the daughter of a career soldier. She graduated with a B.A. in journalism from theUniversity of Georgia.[1] She later received an M.B.A. fromGeorgia State University. She is a former marketing manager forHBO.
Jones was elected to theGeorgia House of Representatives in 2002, taking office on January 13, 2003. In the 2005-2006 legislative session, she briefly served as the House Republican Majority Whip.
Jones is currently the state representative for Georgia's 47th House district, which covers some of the northernAtlanta suburbs (including parts of NorthFulton County, such asMilton,Mountain Park,Alpharetta, andRoswell, as well as a portion of unincorporated easternCherokee County).[2]
Jones' district became more heavily Republican in 2021, during theredistricting cycle; starting in the 2022 elections, her district took in a part of Cherokee County, shifting her district from one that voted 53.4% forDonald Trump in 2020 to one that voted 57% for Trump in 2020.[3]
In January 2010, Jones was elected speakerpro tempore of the Georgia House (the second-highest leadership position in the chamber), becoming the first female to serve in the role and the highest-ranking woman in Georgia legislative history.[1][4]
In 2014, Jones supported legislation to blockMedicaid expansion in Georgia.[5]
In 2016, GovernorNathan Deal and others encouraged Jones to seek the Republican nomination in the2017 Georgia's 6th congressional district special election, for theU.S. House of Representatives seat vacated byTom Price. Jones declined to run.[6]
In 2019, after Republican U.S. SenatorJohnny Isakson announced his intent to resign from the Senate, Jones was one of many well-known Republican applicants who sought an appointment to fill the vacancy (others included Price,Jack Kingston, andRandy Evans). GovernorBrian Kemp ultimately choseKelly Loeffler to fill the vacancy.[7]
In early 2020, Jones opposedlegislation to ban books in schools deemed "obscene"; the proposal targeted various works that address issues of race and gender, such asToni Morrison's novelBeloved andMaia Kobabe's memoir and graphic novelGender Queer. In late 2021, however, Jones reversed positions, backing an "anti-obscenity" bill similar to the one she had previously opposed.[8][9]
AfterJoe Biden won the 2020 presidential election and Trump refused to concede while making false claims of fraud, Jones supported a controversial effort to change Georgia's election laws. Critics deemed the Georgia election legislation an effort to restrictvoting rights (seeRepublican efforts to restrict voting following the 2020 presidential election).[10] Jones was later involved in efforts to initiate a performance review of local election officials in Fulton County (a heavily Democratic county), which could later be used to remove the election officials.[11] Trump and his Republican allies targeted Fulton County when they were making false claims of fraud.[11]
In November 2022, Georgia House SpeakerDavid Ralston died in office.[12] Jones was temporarily elevated to speaker following Ralston's death, becoming the first female speaker of the Georgia House.[12][13] Jones decided not to seek to run in the November 2022 Republican caucus election for speaker; she chose, along with the rest of Ralston's Republican leadership team, to support Majority LeaderJon G. Burns's bid for speaker.[13][14] Jones instead chose to seek reelection as presidentpro tem.[14]
Jones is a longtimeschool voucher proponent, and was leading figure supporting a push in the 2023 legislative session to give $6,500 per student in state-funded vouchers for private school tuition and homeschooling;[15] students zoned for public schools scoring in the lowest 25% would be eligible.[16] The proposed program would cost $110 million, if 1% of Georgia public school students participated.[16] The bill was supported by conservative advocacy groups, such as the right-wing groups such asAmericans for Prosperity and opposed by public education groups and teachers' organizations.[17][18] The bill stalled in March 2023, with the House voting 95–70 to table it;[16] an amended version of the bill also later failed, 85–89, in the final hours of the session, after more than a dozen Republican representatives (mostly representing rural districts) joined almost all Democrats in voting against it.[17][18]
Jones and her husband, Kalin, have four children. They reside inMilton, Georgia.
| Georgia House of Representatives | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Roger Hines | Member of theGeorgia House of Representatives from the 38th district 2003–2005 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Member of theGeorgia House of Representatives from the 46th district 2005–2013 | Succeeded by John Carson |
| Preceded by | Member of theGeorgia House of Representatives from the 47th district 2013–present | Incumbent |
| Preceded by | Speaker pro tempore of theGeorgia House of Representatives 2010–present | |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Speaker of the Georgia House of Representatives Acting 2022–2023 | Succeeded by |
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