This piece is part of a series of articles examining where 2026 Southeastern candidates for state and federal offices stand on key energy and climate issues, like data centers and energy costs.
Note: The Southern Alliance for Clean Energy does not support or oppose candidates or political parties. Links to reports, candidate websites, and outside sources are provided as citizen education tools.
In this blog post, we examine the policies and positions of Josh Tolbert, the Republican candidate running to represent District 5 on the Georgia Public Service Commission. Also in this series, we profile Democratic candidate Shelia Edwards. All eligible Georgia voters can vote in this election, no matter where they live. Election Day is November 3.
Josh Tolbert is a business owner, engineer, and educator. Tolbert has worked in or provided technical support to many different power facilities, including nuclear, coal, methane gas, oil, biomass, geothermal, and renewables, and many different types of industrial facilities. He serves as an expert witness, formerly taught engineering at Kennesaw State University, and worked as the Chief Technology Officer for a small modular nuclear reactor company. His full bio is available on his campaign webpage here.
Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency
Josh Tolbert’s most direct statement on renewables was shared at a District 5 Republican runoff debate. When asked whether he supported Georgians’ ability to have plug-in solar or had concerns about safety based on his engineering background, Tolbert answered, “I support Georgians to have opportunities for distributed power, including solar power. So as we look through the competitive market, the best way that we can reduce the prices of electricity or to provide more opportunities. And solar is certainly a piece of that pie.”
Climate Change
In response to a question about his views on environmental policies and climate change, Tolbert answered, “Stricter environmental laws often destroy jobs, raise costs, and weaken U.S. energy independence. We should pursue responsible stewardship of natural resources, but through innovation and free-market solutions — not burdensome regulations.”
In that same survey, offered in multiple-choice format, he answered that the following statements, “Stricter environmental laws and regulations cost too many jobs and hurt the economy” and “Stricter environmental laws undermine U.S. energy independence and deter development of reliable electricity sources,” align most closely with his views. The statements “Stricter environmental laws and regulations are worth the cost” and “Climate change is real and requires urgent policy action” did not.
Electric Transportation
We were unable to confirm Josh Tolbert’s position on electric transportation in published media, public records, or on his campaign website.
Energy Equity and Energy Burden
We were unable to confirm Josh Tolbert’s position on energy equity or energy burden in published media, public records, or on his campaign website.
Energy Affordability
Josh Tolbert is upfront about his plans to protect ratepayers, particularly if the cost of predicted load growth spurred by data center construction is shifted onto residential customers. On his campaign website, his list of commitments includes the following: “I will ensure costs are allocated to those who cause them — not shifted onto ratepayers.”
High-Risk Energy: Nuclear, Coal, Methane Gas
In this candidate questionnaire, Josh Tolbert stated that he believes that nuclear power is the most reliable energy source, but it is overregulated and too costly. He concluded his answer with the following statement, “gas remains the most dependable, affordable base-load source to meet America’s growing electricity demand.”
In the Republican primary runoff debate, Tolbert provided a more thorough explanation of his views on nuclear power: “I love the technology of nuclear. I hate the price of nuclear power we built. We can build conventional power plants at one to $2 million a megawatt. And we built Plant Vogtle for almost $17 million a megawatt. The problem with the cost of nuclear power is regulation at the federal level. That’s not something we can fix at the state level or on the Public Service Commission. So while I like nuclear power, the only way that I would support future development of nuclear power is with very strict cost controls and that overruns were not potential burdens on the ratepayers, but actually on the private investors and the projects.
[…], I do not see in the near future us going down another road because getting private investment for a nuclear project that has major cost overruns is going to be a challenge. So while I love the technology of nuclear power, it is a cost problem that we have to address before it’s developed in the future.”
Data Centers
Josh Tolbert supports data centers for the economic opportunity they bring to Georgia, labeling himself “pro-data center.” He also is wary of the risks of data center costs being pushed onto other consumers, shown in statements such as his comments to the PSC at a public hearing in December 2025, when he cautioned the PSC about potential financial risks to the general public from building too much electric power infrastructure for data centers. He has details about his positions on data centers on his campaign website.
Voting Information
All eligible Georgia voters can vote in this election, no matter where they live. Election Day is November 3. Here are important dates and deadlines to consider:
- Oct. 5, 2026: Voter registration deadline
- Oct. 13, 2026: In-person early voting period begins
- Oct. 23, 2026: Absentee ballot request deadline
- Oct. 30, 2026: In-person early voting period ends
- Nov. 3, 2024: General Election Day
- Nov. 3, 2026: Absentee ballot return deadline
- Nov. 6, 2026: Vote-by-mail ballot return deadline for military and overseas citizen voters
Find additional important election information here.
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