Newly elected State Rep. Eric Gisler (D) held a town hall meeting at the Oconee Veterans Park Community Center on January 10, 2026. Most of the town hall consisted of an extended Q&A session on widely varying topics.
Gisler’s constituents asked a number of questions about housing and healthcare affordability, homelessness and the 2026 state legislative session, which kicked off today. Cell phone use by high school students was another pressing issue for town hall attendees, who felt that it may interfere with student learning.
Other topics addressed during the town hall included taxes, vaccines, transportation infrastructure, gerrymandering, mass surveillance and mental health. One member of the audience even asked Gisler if he was a freemason (he’s not).
Gisler was elected last month after former State Representative Marcus Wiedower (R) suddenly stepped down. One meeting attendee asked Gisler about his plan for winning re-election in this majority Republican district, which has proven challenging for Democrats in the past. Candidly, Gisler explained that he intended to try and split the MAGA / Republican coalition by appealing to “traditional conservative” voters who may not support some of President Donald Trump’s more aggressive and authoritarian policies.
“The people in power are doing things that the people who voted for them didn’t ask for,” Gisler said. “You have a lot of the more traditional conservatives [in Oconee County]. They voted Republican last year because they wanted smaller government. They wanted lower prices. They wanted to do something about the border. Those are the things they voted for, but what they’re getting is chaotic tariff policy that’s driving prices through the roof. They’re getting private armies terrorizing cities. This week, they murdered a woman in Minneapolis. Nobody.. well, some of them actually did vote for that, I think. But here in Oconee County at lot of them did not. I think this year they’re going to be open to the other side.”
For a more in-depth article about this meeting, check out Oconee County Observations.
You can see the full list of topics discussed during the town hall, including timestamps, below:
0:00 – Town hall starts
1:30 – Eric Gisler introduces himself
8:30 – How to keep in touch with Eric (1)
10:34 – 2026 legislative session (1)
13:36 – Food, water & air regulations, vaccine recommendations
15:20 – State transportation board
16:45 – Cell phones in high schools (1)
17:52 – Voters in the district
19:00 – State income tax
23:19 – Housing affordability (1)
29:30 – Relationships with local officials
31:30 – Voting accessibility
34:05 – Georgia’s budget surplus
37:11 – Education and homelessness (1)
43:31 – Are you a freemason?
44:16 – Healthcare affordability (1)
47:52 – Housing affordability (2 – minimum lot size)
52:13 – Retention rates of special education teachers
53:34 – Cell phones in high schools (2)
57:40 – Housing affordability (3 – infill)
59:58 – Cell phones in high schools (3)
1:02:45 – How to keep in touch with Eric (2)
1:06:50 – 2026 legislative session (2)
1:08:58 – How will you reach out to Republicans?
1:12:05 – Independent redistricting (1)
1:16:13 – Mass surveillance and Flock Safety
1:17:49 – Independent redistricting (2)
1:18:45 – Gen Z’s anger
1:22:16 – Homelessness (2)
1:26:08 – Free lunches at school
1:28:08 – Transportation infrastructure, traffic calming
1:31:50 – HOPE Scholarship
1:34:30 – Rural internet
1:35:58 – Energy affordability and data centers
1:38:01 – Healthcare affordability (2 – Ob/Gyn, abortion ban)
1:40:22 – Youth mental health crisis
1:45:41 – Making a difference (1 – voting)
1:46:58 – Gun control and school shootings
1:51:42 – Making a difference (2 – getting involved)
1:53:30 – Donating to Eric’s re-election campaign
1:54:48 – Online gambling
Gisler currently has no primary challenger for State House District 121. Assuming he will be the Democratic party’s nominee, he will face off against his Republican opponent in November.
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