| Senator Ben Watson M.D., a Republican, was elected to the Georgia State Senate in 2014. He represents Senate District 1 which includes all of Bryan and Liberty, and most of Chatham County. Sen. Watson is the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Health and Human Services and the Appropriations Subcommittee on Health and Human Development. He also serves as a member of the Senate Committee on Appropriations, Judiciary and Rules and an Ex Officio member of the Senate Committee on Economic Development and Tourism. In 2010, Sen. Watson was elected to represent the island's district of Savannah in the Georgia House of Representatives. While in the Georgia House, he served as the Vice-Chairman of the Health and Human Services Committee, Secretary of the Science and Technology Committee and a member of the Higher Education Committee. In his last two years as a Georgia House Representative, he served on the Appropriations Committee and Health Subcommittee. During his four years in the Georgia House, Sen. Watson was proud to be the only medical doctor to serve as a legislator. Sen. Watson has served as a primary care physician in Savannah since 1988. He practices internal medicine with a specialty in geriatrics. He is a native of Twin City, Georgia and is a graduate of Emanuel County Institute and the University of Georgia. He earned his medical degree from the Medical College of Georgia. Sen. Watson and his wife, Bernice, a retired public school special education teacher, live on Isle of Hope. They have three sons, two daughters-in-law, and one grandson. |