Sheri Smallwood Gilligan (, born March 25, 1963) is an American politician who served in the

Georgia House of Representatives The Georgia House of Representatives is the lower house of the Georgia General Assembly (the state legislature) of the U.S. state of Georgia. There are currently 180 elected members. Republicans have had a majority in the chamber since 2005. T ...

for the 24th district from 2015 to 2023. Gilligan was first elected in 2015 in a special election after previous representative Mark Hamilton resigned; she beat out three other opponents to complete Hamilton's remaining 18-month term. Gilligan was born and raised in Forsyth County. While in high school, she competed at rifle shooting and set a new state record. After graduating from the

University of Georgia , mottoeng = "To teach, to serve, and to inquire into the nature of things.""To serve" was later added to the motto without changing the seal; the Latin motto directly translates as "To teach and to inquire into the nature of things." , establ ...

, Gilligan moved to the

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

area, where she worked as an intelligence analyst for two decades, including at the

CIA The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian intelligence agency, foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gat ...

. She also joined the Naval Reserve. She is also a substitute teacher for

Forsyth County Schools Forsyth County Schools is a public school district in Forsyth County, Georgia, United States, based in Cumming. FCS serves over 51,000 students and is the largest employer in the county with over 8,000 full-time employees and substitutes. Out ...

; she previously taught as an adjunct instructor at

Lanier Technical College Lanier Technical College (LTC or Lanier Tech) is a public technical college with multiple locations in the U.S. state of Georgia. It is part of the Technical College System of Georgia and provides education services for a seven-county service ar ...

. A self-described

conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...

, Gilligan supports

gun rights The right to keep and bear arms (often referred to as the right to bear arms) is a right for people to possess weapons (arms) for the preservation of life, liberty, and property. The purpose of gun rights is for self-defense, including securi ...

, wants to lower taxes, and restricting

abortion Abortion is the termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. An abortion that occurs without intervention is known as a miscarriage or "spontaneous abortion"; these occur in approximately 30% to 40% of pregn ...

. Gilligan plays the

oboe The oboe ( ) is a type of double reed woodwind instrument. Oboes are usually made of wood, but may also be made of synthetic materials, such as plastic, resin, or hybrid composites. The most common oboe plays in the treble or soprano range. A ...

Elections

Special election, 2015

A special election was held on June 16, 2015 to fill Mark Hamilton's seat in district 24. Gilligan won the election with nearly half the vote.

General election, 2016

Gilligan ran unopposed during the 2016 primaries, going on to earn 25,996 votes in the

general election A general election is a political voting election where generally all or most members of a given political body are chosen. These are usually held for a nation, state, or territory's primary legislative body, and are different from by-elections ( ...

Primary and general elections, 2018

In 2018, Gilligan was challenged during the May 22 primary elections by Joanna Cloud, but defeated Cloud with 60% of the vote. In the general election, Gillian ran unopposed once again, garnering 23,646 votes.

Primary and general elections, 2022

Gilligan was defeated by Carter Barrett in a runoff in 2022.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gilligan, Sheri 1963 births Living people Republican Party members of the Georgia House of Representatives 21st-century American legislators 21st-century American women politicians Women state legislators in Georgia (U.S. state) 21st-century Georgia (U.S. state) politicians