‘The honor of a lifetime:’ Sen. Freddie Powell Sims announces retirement, gives endorsement to Edward Brown

ALBANY – After more than two decades in elected office, state Sen. Freddie Powell Sims made her retirement official with a Monday announcement outside the Dougherty County Justice Center and gave her endorsement for another candidate in the race.

Powell, a Dawson Democrat who has represented District 12 in the Georgia Senate since 2009, threw her support behind Edward Brown, one of the four Democratic candidates who qualified to be on the May 19 primary ballot.

Prior to being elected to the Senate in 2008, Sims served two terms in the Georgia House after being elected to office in 2004. After Sims hurried home from the 2026 legislative session to be with her ailing husband, Norman Sims, last month, she announced her intention to resign. Norman Sims died on March 27.

“Twenty-two years is a long time for public service, especially with a district this big with 13 counties, and these are some of the poorest in the state,” the retired middle school principal said during an interview with The Albany Herald before she gave her remarks. “We were able to help farmers, to help teachers, to help some of the underserved communities.”

Health care was another issue Sims said she pursued throughout her time in office, as was education, particularly projects that benefited Albany State University and Georgia Southwestern State University as well as area technical colleges and public schools.

The work on all of those issues will “never finish,” Sims said.

“They’re pretty much continuous, but we do the best we can,” she said. “If southwest Georgia wants viable, sustainable economic prosperity, southwest Georgians must sit at the table and work together regionally to plan for one of the poorest quadrants in the state and these United States.”

During her time in office, Sims served on two education commissions appointed by Republican Govs. Nathan Deal and Brian Kemp.

Retiring was a tough decision, one that Sims said was made easier because Brown is ready to step in and continue that work. She elected to endorse her former opponent in the race over candidates Corey Morgan, a member of the Camilla City Council, and Albany firefighter Tracy Taylor.

“(The endorsement is) not hard to do when the Lord sends a good person who can do that,” she said.

Of her time in office, Sims said it was “truly the honor of a lifetime.”

In endorsing Brown, Sims noted his master’s degree in economics from Southern Methodist University and a master’s degree and Ph.D in economic history from the University of Cambridge. Brown also served on President Barack Obama’s Council on Economic Advisors and also worked at the Open Source Policy Center, where he developed analytical tools used by members of Congress from both parties to assess long-term tax policy implications.

Yet, Sims said, those educational and real-life accomplishments are not what distinguishes Brown. That, she said, is instead his commitment to southwest Georgia.

“Like many young people from our region, Dr. Brown left to pursue educational opportunities,” Sims said. “Unlike many, he always intended to return. At a time when his credentials could have secured him a lucrative career in any major financial center, he chose to come home – to Albany – with a purpose: to apply his expertise to the real economic challenges facing everyday Georgians.”

For his part, Brown said in a statement that the retiring senator’s endorsement was “both a humbling and deeply meaningful moment for me.”

“I am honored to receive her endorsement for Georgia state Senate District 12,” he said. “I do not take this endorsement lightly. It is both an honor and a responsibility.”

The candidate noted Sims’ work in advancing literacy, strengthening economic development and championing agriculture.

“Her work has touched classrooms, supported families and ensured that rural communities like ours continue to have a voice,” he said. “This is not just a record of policy; it is a legacy of impact.

“I understand that leadership in southwest Georgia must always be grounded in the real needs of our communities, our schools, our farmers and our working families. I am ready to serve, and I will work every day to earn the trust that Sen. Sims has placed in me.”

Powell said her appointment to committees by Republican officials is one proof of her ability to work across the aisle for the district. Her biggest collaborator in that regard has been state Rep. Gerald Greene, who often seemed joined at the hip with Sims, with whom he worked closely on issues that affected southwest Georgia. Their efforts often were in sync because eight of the nine counties the representative from Cuthbert represents are in Senate District 12, Greene said.

“We looked like we were kind of attached,” he said. “Our philosophies coincided. We always tried to look after the district. (It) was not always what Atlanta wanted us to do, but it was what the district needed. Freddie and I have worked together on many issues.”

The next person elected to the senate district will have big shoes to fill, Greene said.

“We supported each other through thick and thin,” he said. “I’m going to miss her.”

The winner of the May 19 Democratic primary will face Republican candidate Terence Fowler in the November general election.