Vernon Angus Jones (born October 31, 1960) is an American politician who served in the Georgia House of Representatives from 1993 to 2001 and from 2017 to 2021.

[7] Jones did not stand for reelection in 2000, instead running for DeKalb County CEO, and was succeeded in the Georgia House by Ron Sailor.

[6] Jones was also primarily responsible for creation of DeKalb County's first economic development department, which generated $4 billion in new investments.

Shortly after taking office Jones went back on his campaign pledge to keep the homestead exemption sales tax in place.

[7] He was initially accused of illegally using campaign funds to promote the 2005 bond referendum, but the State Ethics Commission "found no reasonable grounds" for the complaint.

[20] On March 23, 2007, Jones announced he was running for the United States Senate against incumbent Republican Saxby Chambliss.

Jones sent out a flier in which he appeared in a digitally altered picture next to Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama with the words "Yes We Can."

The Black turnout in the run-off was also substantially lower than the initial primary election, further hurting Jones' chances in the runoff.

[34] On April 14, 2020, Jones became the first state elected Democratic official in Georgia to endorse President Donald Trump's re-election bid.

[35] Jones said he had no plans to switch political parties and cited Trump's "handling of the economy, his support for historically black colleges and his criminal justice initiatives" as reasons for his endorsement.

[36][37] After initially saying he would resign from the state House, Jones reversed himself and said that he would complete the rest of his term, but would not seek reelection.

[39] On October 16, 2020, Jones spoke at a Trump rally in Macon, Georgia and crowd-surfed afterwards, which drew criticism as it occurred in the middle of a pandemic with a mostly maskless crowd.

[43] On January 6, 2021, he spoke at the rally in Washington D.C. before Trump's own speech, saying that he stands "firm for President Donald J. Trump" and announcing that he was changing his party affiliation from Democrat to Republican amid cheers from the audience; after the rally, the pro-Trump protesters stormed the United States Capitol Building.

[44][45] In April 2021, Jones announced his intention to declare a run in the 2022 Georgia gubernatorial election against incumbent Republican Brian Kemp.

[49] After withdrawing his candidacy for governor, Jones announced he would run for the United States House of Representatives in Georgia's 10th congressional district.

[52] During his 2008 Senate campaign, Jones described himself as a "conservative Democrat" who favors "tough immigration laws and fiscal responsibility" as well as "supporter of gun rights and a staunch environmental advocate".

[57][58] In a 2014 press release, Jones characterized himself as an "advocate for limited government, security and protections for all citizens, balanced budgeting, ethical and efficient elections, [and] job creation".

[59] Jones was the only Democratic cosponsor of the bill to legalize the concealed carry of firearms on Georgia's college campuses.

[66] In 2004, DeKalb County Commissioner Elaine Boyer made a complaint to Decatur police that Jones "deliberately walked into her and made hard shoulder-to-shoulder contact" after a heated public meeting; she did not pursue charges against Jones, but accused him of verbally abusing commissioners and staff and making "derogatory and degrading comments.

[69] In 2004, two current (Michael Bryant, John Drake) and two former (Becky Kelley, Herbert Lowe) senior employees of the Parks Department at the time filed suit against Jones (as CEO of the county), as well as three of Jones' subordinates (former parks director Marilyn Boyd Drew, his former executive assistant Richard Stogner, and Morris Williams), and DeKalb County.

[70] At a jury trial in 2010, the plaintiffs' attorneys called witnesses from across county government in an attempt to demonstrate a countywide policy of discrimination.

The jury found that Jones, Stogner, and Drew "created and maintained a hostile work environment"; they were ordered to pay $185,000 in damages, which was lower than the $2 million requested by plaintiffs.

[75] While the verdict was initially hailed as a victory for Jones, the judge later awarded the plaintiffs an additional $1.9 million in legal fees.

[75] In a post-trial settlement, DeKalb County ultimately agreed to pay the plaintiffs a total of $1.3 million for legal fees and damages.