LinkedIn/State of Georgia Judge Scott McAfee (l) and Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp.
Scott McAfee, a judge in the Georgia 5th Superior Court District Atlanta Circuit, was appointed by Republican Governor Brian Kemp, according to a March 2021 press release from Kemp’s office.
However, when it comes to his personal politics, is McAfee personally a Republican or Democrat? Judicial positions are nonpartisan posts in Georgia. He has donated money to two Republicans in 2018 and 2020, before his appointment to the office of inspector general, however, and he was an intern for two judges also appointed by Republican governors.
McAfee is the judge who will preside over the Fulton County District Attorney’s sweeping racketeering indictment against former President Trump, former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani and 17 others.
Here’s what you need to know:
Republican Governor Brian Kemp Chose Scott McAfee From a List of 4 Finalists Given to Him by a Judicial Nominating Commission
State of GeorgiaGov. Brian Kemp
According to Ballotpedia, Kemp appointed McAfee to the bench in 2022 to replace Christopher Brasher.
The governor chose McAfee from a list of four finalists given to him by the Judicial Nominating Commission, according to Law.com. The other candidates were Fulton County Chief Magistrate Judge Cassandra Kirk, Atlanta attorney K. Eric Morrow and Municipal Court of Atlanta Chief Judge Christopher T. Portis, Law.com reported.
“I will do my homework,” McAfee said, according to Law.com, which said he was inspector general before being appointed. “Lawyers can expect that I’ll have read their pleadings and be ready to dive into the issues.”
However, Kemp and Trump had a falling out when he would not overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election, according to Politico.
In 2018, McAfee donated $200 to Kemp, according to Open Secrets.org. In 2020, he gave $200 to Lyndsey Rudder, a Republican who ran unsuccessfully for the Georgia House of Representatives, Open Secrets.org reported.
Scott McAfee Was a Judicial Intern for 2 Georgia Judges Appointed by Republicans, Including 1 on Trump’s Short List for U.S. Supreme Court
BallotpediaKeith Blackwell
McAfee served as a judicial intern in 2012 for Justice Keith Blackwell of the Georgia Supreme Court and for Georgia Supreme Court Justice David Nahmias, according to his LinkedIn page.
According to Ballotpedia, Blackwell “was appointed by Republican Governor Nathan Deal on June 25, 2020” and was “included on President Donald Trump’s (R) June 2018 list of 25 potential Supreme Court nominees to replace Justice Anthony Kennedy on the court.”
Nahmias “was appointed to the state supreme court by Governor Sonny Perdue (R) on August 13, 2009,” Ballotpedia reported, and he once received a rating of “mild Republican.”
Judge Scott McAfee Previously Served as a County & Federal Prosecutor in Georgia
Judicial photoJudge Scott McAfee
As Georgia’s inspector general, McAfee “was tasked with overseeing fraud and corruption within Georgia’s executive branch,” according to ABC News.
“Scott McAfee is a strong addition to my administration,” Kemp said when he appointed him, according to his press release. “His experience as a tough prosecutor equips him to search out fraud, waste, abuse, and corruption, and bring those to justice who break the law.”
According to ABC News, McAfee worked as a prosecutor with the Fulton County District Attorney’s Office, as a federal prosecutor in Georgia, and as a prosecutor in Barrow County, Georgia.
While with the Fulton County District Attorney’s Office, Judge McAfee started in the complaint room and worked his way up to the major case division where he exclusively handled homicide prosecutions. As an AUSA in the Northern District of Georgia, he investigated and prosecuted major drug trafficking organizations and fraud conspiracies.
The website continues: “On February 1, 2023, he was sworn in as Fulton County’s newest Superior Court Judge. Scott is running for election in 2024 so that he can continue serving our community by clearing the COVID backlog, giving everyone their fair day in court, and keeping our community safe.”
It says that he is married to Danielle McAfee. No campaign donations under her name were discovered.
According to Kemp’s press release:
McAfee obtained his undergraduate degree from Emory University, where he majored in music and received a scholarship to play the cello in the university symphony orchestra. He earned his law degree from the University of Georgia. While in law school, McAfee was inducted into the Order of the Barristers. He has also previously worked for Justice David Nahmias and Justice Keith Blackwell of the Georgia Supreme Court.
McAfee is active in the legal community, serving as the board member and past president of the Criminal Law Section of the Atlanta Bar. He is a volunteer scuba diver at the Georgia Aquarium and captains his ALTA tennis team.
A lifelong Georgian, McAfee grew up in Kennesaw, and currently resides in Atlanta with his wife and their two children.
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