[1][2][7] After his second term, he was named floor leader to Governor Joe Frank Harris,[1][2] and was appointed chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee.

[11] In 1998, Barnes ran for governor again, this time defeating Secretary of State Lewis A. Massey to win the Democratic primary.

[13] In January 1999 after being elected governor, Barnes’ first act of his new administration was to sign an order banning all lobbyist gifts to the 56,000 employees working in the state government's executive branch.

[15] Barnes' education reform measures[1] included eliminating tenure for newly hired teachers[16][17] and ending social promotion by requiring students to pass a test before advancing to the next grade.

[19] Barnes proposed highway safety measures to curb teen driving in an attempt to save lives of young drivers who are killed in automobile crashes.

[18] Barnes proposed a curfew for teens at 10 p.m., a limit on passengers riding in their vehicles, and a ban on 16-year-olds driving without adult supervision in 18 metropolitan Atlanta counties.

[18] Further, Barnes supported the building of the Northern Arc, an outer perimeter north of Atlanta, which met with opposition from locals.

[20] Although some commentators have pointed to the ire of voters opposing the flag change[2] and him upsetting teachers as leading to his defeat, the cause was finally attributed toward a strong shift to GOP within that election cycle across many offices in the State of Georgia, at that time.

[15] His nickname 'King Roy' was an affectionate term accorded him by supporters because he knew how to pull the levers and make things happen in the legislature.

During this time, he provided legal advice to indigent clients pro bono, and established a website outlining the rights of consumers: www.myconsumerrights.com.

[9] The Georgia Supreme Court, on June 11, 2007, unanimously dismissed a legal challenge to the state's voter ID law.

Legislators revised the law and made it easier for people to get free photo cards for voting, but the rules were repeatedly barred from implementation until early 2008.

[4] Barnes’ campaign, Roy 2010, emphasized growing jobs, securing water sources, improving education, and expanding transportation options.

[26] Barnes won the 2010 Democratic Primary on July 20, 2010, and faced off against Republican Nathan Deal and Libertarian John Monds.