The list of candidates who want to be Georgia’s next attorney general keeps growing, with another Democrat entering the race.

State Rep. Tanya F. Miller of Atlanta announced her candidacy outside the Gold Dome Monday.

The former chief senior district attorney in Fulton County, now in private practice, said she will focus her campaign on crimes of exploitation, such as predatory lending and human trafficking.

“For too long, this office has prioritized Washington, D.C., politics over the wellbeing of Georgia’s 159 counties. As your attorney general, my priority will be putting you and your family first,” Miller said.

She is among a growing field of candidates vying for an open seat currently held by Republican Chris Carr, who is running for governor.

Miller’s speech targeted Carr and President Donald Trump more than her competitors — two Republican lawmakers and a former Democratic lawmaker.

Last month, former House Minority Leader Bob Trammell became the first Democrat to announce his candidacy. Miller must face him in next year’s primary election. If she wins, she will be up against a Republican in the general election.

Sen. Bill Cowsert, R-Athens, a lawyer who chairs the state Senate’s Regulated Industries and Utilities Committee, was the first to enter the race. He was followed by Sen. Brian Strickland, R-McDonough, a lawyer who chairs the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Cowsert had reported raising the most money as of the last campaign finance reporting deadline in early July, collecting $531,000 against Strickland’s $435,000. Both Miller and Trammell have registered their intent to raise money but neither has filed a contribution report yet.

Cowsert chairs a committee that has been investigating Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis. The state Senate granted his committee authority to expand the scope to include groups founded by former gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams.

Cowsert also sponsored legislation to give his committee subpoena powers. It passed the Senate and the House of Representatives after bitter partisan debate, with one leading Democrat labeling it “authoritarianism.” Gov. Brian Kemp then signed it into law.

Strickland was the chief co-sponsor of legislation that sought tax credits for parents of young children, but the legislation did not pass. Lawmakers instead approved a general tax credit of between $250 and $500, which Kemp also signed.

Trammell grew up in Luthersville in Meriwether County and served as county attorney there. He was also the top Democrat in the state House, as minority leader from 2017 until 2021.

Miller was sworn in to the state House in 2023 and was elected chair of the House Democratic Caucus last year. She said she has taken on child abusers, rapists, murders, insurance companies and “greedy” corporations and “slumlords.”

“I will be guided by law, not politics, by principle, not polls, and by the people, not the powerful few,” she said.

Capitol Beat is a nonprofit news service operated by the Georgia Press Educational Foundation that provides coverage of state government to newspapers throughout Georgia. For more information visit capitol-beat.org.