Incumbent Republican governor Nathan Deal was term-limited and unable to seek re-election to a third consecutive term.

[1] Georgia General Assembly Minority Leader Stacey Abrams won the Democratic nomination.

[8] Incumbent Republican attorney general Sam Olens resigned to become president of Kennesaw State University effective November 1, 2016, with Georgia Department of Economic Development Commissioner Christopher M. "Chris" Carr being appointed to serve the remainder of the term.

[19][20] Potential Democratic candidates included State Representative Stacey Evans and former Georgia Judicial Qualifications Commission Chair Lester Tate.

[21][22] 2010 nominee and former Dougherty County District Attorney Ken Hodges was considered a potential candidate, but decided to run for a seat on the Georgia Court of Appeals instead.

[29] Other potential Republican candidates included Alpharetta Mayor David Belle Isle and State Senators Steve Gooch, John Albers, and Michael Williams.

[29][30] The Democratic nominee was former U.S. Representative from Georgia's 12th congressional district, John Barrow, who defeated Dee Dawkins-Haigler and Rakeim "RJ" Hadley in the primary.

[48] Incumbent Republican Commissioner of Labor Mark Butler was eligible to run for re-election to a third term in office.

The gubernatorial race was particularly controversial during the 2018 elections, as Republican candidate Brian Kemp was also the Georgia Secretary of State, a position which involves overseeing the electoral process, leading to allegations of conflicts of interests.

[70][71][72] Despite calls from Georgia Democrats, organizations such as the NAACP[73] and Common Cause,[74] and former president Jimmy Carter,[75] Kemp did not relinquish the position until after the election.