Everton Blair and Maryce Scott head to a runoff in Georgia’s 13th Congressional District.
Healthcare issues could once again become a focal point in Georgia’s midterms.
Doug Collins is accused of delaying a veterans benefits bill.
Voting reset
A paper ballot supporter attends a State Election Board meeting at the Dawson County Government Center in April. (Miguel Martinez/AJC)
Georgia’s next statewide voting system will be shaped by a nine-member committee with a decidedly Republican tilt.
The panel is set to meet Aug. 7 after lawmakers created it during a June special session. That same law pushed back a prohibition on using QR codes printed by Georgia’s current touchscreen system to tally votes until 2028.
Now, the awkwardly named Election Equipment Specifications and Standards Committee must recommend a new system based on hand-marked paper ballots printed on demand.
Its report is due by Jan. 31, 2027 — presumably to give whoever is elected secretary of state in November time to prepare for a rollout during the 2028 election cycle. The panel includes Republican state Rep. Tim Fleming, the GOP nominee for secretary of state. If he wins in November, Fleming could end up certifying a system he helped shape.
“Ensuring that every Georgian has confidence in our elections is one of the most important responsibilities we have as public servants,” Fleming said in a statement.
Many of the panel’s newly appointed members are veterans of Georgia’s long-running ballot wars. Gov. Brian Kemp tapped former state Elections Director Chris Harvey, Paulding County Elections Supervisor Deidre Holden and Sam Hatcher, his office’s executive counsel.
The legislative contingent includes Republican Reps. Victor Anderson and Fleming, along with Republican state Sens. Max Burns, Bo Hatchett and Rick Williams.
State Rep. Scott Holcomb is the panel’s lone Democrat — and he notably broke with his party to support the measure during the special session.
The lack of political, racial and gender diversity on the panel brought criticism. Democratic state Rep. Saira Draper, one her party’s experts on voting rights, tied it to the GOP nominee for governor’s recent visits to Black-owned businesses.
“Rick Jackson can go to all the Black barbershops he wants, but the fact that this committee only includes one woman and no people of color tells you everything you need to know about the Georgia Republican Party and the importance they place on women and people of color in our state,” she said.
Things to know
A masked immigration agent asks LaGrange resident Alex Orellana for identification in this screenshot taken from a livestream posted on Facebook on July 7. (Courtesy of Alex Orellana)
Good morning! Here are three things to know for today:
Jackson isn’t just running against Democratic nominee for governor Keisha Lance Bottoms. The Republican is running against her record as Atlanta’s mayor.
Recent weeks have brought increased immigration enforcement activity in Georgia and across the nation, according to reports from media outlets, witnesses and immigrant community advocates, Lautaro Grinspan writes.
OpenAI is offering every college student in Georgia a $100 credit to be used on Codex, its artificial intelligence program that enables users to build software, apps, websites and other technical projects, Jason Armesto reports.
Health tour
Democratic nominee for governor Keisha Lance Bottoms, seen here outside of a shuttered rural hospital in Commerce in June. (Riley Bunch/AJC)
For more than a decade, Georgia Democrats have made healthcare the focus of their statewide campaigns for governor. It hasn’t worked. Making more people eligible for Medicaid — the government-funded health insurance program for people with low incomes — hasn’t moved enough voters to succeed at the ballot box.
But this year’s race could be different. Jackson speaks with more authority on healthcare issues than most given his role as CEO of Jackson Healthcare, a major staffing company for the medical industry.
Democrats aren’t ceding the issue. Today, Bottoms will kick off a three-day tour of southeast Georgia focusing on healthcare workers and the plight of rural hospitals. The tour comes one day after Democratic state Rep. Stacey Evans held a news conference highlighting what she says is Georgia’s healthcare crisis and Jackson’s failure “to present any plan to fix it.”
“Why would a healthcare billionaire not have a plan on healthcare? Because we know that his plan is to keep propping himself up while we pay more for less care,” Evans said.
During the primary, Jackson opposed expanding Georgia’s Medicaid program. Instead, he wants the federal government to fund it through block grants that are contingent on work requirements. He says this would give the state more authority over spending, resulting in better prices and care.
Bottoms campaigned on expanding Medicaid, lowering insurance premiums through state subsidies and launching an affordability board to review excessive drug price increases.
Ballot questions
A woman casts her ballot at Austell's Calvary Baptist Church polling location in May. (Ben Hendren for the AJC)
The midterms are less than 100 days away. But there’s more to your ballot than just the races for U.S. Senate and governor.
All Georgia voters will be asked to weigh in on three proposed amendments to the state Constitution. These amendments were all put on the ballot by the state Legislature earlier this year. They are:
Create a fund to pay for a new 911 system. Georgia’s 911 system has been mostly unchanged since it was first built in the 1960s. This fund would help pay for a Next Generation 911 system that would improve audio and allow for more precise locations from callers.
Increase how much agricultural and timber land can be classified as a “conservation use property.”
Require nonpartisan election of probate judges. The state Legislature passed a law last year making magistrate judges nonpartisan. If voters approve then, then every state judge in Georgia will be nonpartisan.
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Special election
From left, Everton Blair and Marcye Scott. (Melissa Golden; Courtesy of Marcye Scott)
The race to complete the term of the late U.S. Rep. David Scott is now down to two people: former Gwinnett County School Board Chair Everton Blair and Marcye Scott, David Scott’s daughter.
The runoff will be held Aug. 25. The winner will likely be sworn in six days later when the U.S. House returns from summer recess.
Scott had biggest share of votes on Tuesday at 46% followed by Blair’s 47%.
Listen up
U.S. Rep. Mike Collins celebrates with supporters after winning the Republican U.S. Senate nomination last month. (Miguel Martinez/AJC)
Today on the “Politically Georgia” podcast we discuss Republican U.S. Senate nominee Mike Collins’ strategy against Democratic U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff.
You can listen and subscribe to “Politically Georgia” for free on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts.
Have a question or comment for the show? Email us at politicallygeorgia@ajc.com or give us a call at 770-810-5297 and you could be featured on a future episode.
Veterans Affairs
Veterans Affairs Secretary Doug Collins speaks during a live-to-tape recording of the "Politically Georgia" podcast at the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library in Washington in February. (Nathan Posner for the AJC)
Republican officials are reportedly upset with Veterans Affairs Secretary Doug Collins over his part in delaying a veterans benefits bill, according to reporting by Politico.
The bill was scheduled for House vote earlier this month but abruptly pulled from consideration after it became clear that it did not have the votes to pass. Politico writes that Republican lawmakers complained that Collins, a former House member from Georgia, privately indicated he agreed there were problems with the bill, which worsened the intraparty divides.
The latest dustup only piled onto lingering complaints abut the way Collins is running the agency, and Politico says lawmakers are unhappy that he did not provide advance notice about staffing cuts and other changes.
The White House released a statement saying it was standing by Collins, a Gainesville Republican, and that he is doing a good job.
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Today in Washington
President Donald Trump will celebrate the Football Championship Subdivision champions Montana State University at the White House and later make an announcement with Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy.
The House is out until Aug. 31.
The Senate will continue consideration of a bill creating new sanctions against Russia.
Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh will hold a news conference to discuss any decisions on interest rates.
Final goodbye
President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance and other guests, attend the funeral of U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham on Tuesday at the Washington National Cathedral. (Jacquelyn Martin/AP)
Former Georgia U.S. Sen. Saxby Chambliss was an honorary pallbearer during U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham’s funeral at the Washington National Cathedral on Tuesday.
The two met in 1994 when they were both campaigning for U.S. House seats in their neighboring states: Chambliss in Georgia and Graham in South Carolina. They would both be sworn into office in January 1995.
Eight years later, each successfully won U.S. Senate campaigns. When Chambliss announced he would not seek a third term in office, Graham called him “one of my best friends in or out of politics.”
Chambliss, now a D.C.-based lobbyist, returned the sentiment in a statement after Graham died on July 11.
“South Carolina and the country lost an irreplaceable statesman and patriot,” he wrote on X. “Lindsey made the Senate and the world a better place.”
Prior to the funeral, a short memorial service was held in the U.S. Capitol Rotunda. Most senators, including U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock, attended.
U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff did not attend either service for Graham. His office cited a scheduling conflict.
Campaign shuffle
Democratic nominee for governor Keisha Lance Bottoms poses for a selfie at a rally in Savannah last month. (Sarah Peacock for the AJC)
Veteran Democratic operative Ben Waldon is moving to a senior adviser role with Bottoms’ campaign.
The Atlanta native is best known in Georgia as a senior adviser to Warnock.
Waldon was hired in June to succeed longtime Bottoms aide Rashad Taylor as campaign manager after Taylor shifted to lead the Democrat’s leadership committee.
Shoutouts
Fulton County Commissioner Bob Ellis, seen here in 2021. (Rebecca Wright for the AJC)
Today’s birthdays:
State Rep. Lisa Campbell, D-Kennesaw.
Fulton County Commissioner Bob Ellis.
Atlanta City Council member Matt Westmoreland.
Transition:
Veteran Democratic operative Ben Waldon is now a senior adviser Bottoms’ campaign for governor. The Atlanta native has been a senior adviser to Warnock. He was hired in June to succeed longtime Bottoms’ aide Rashad Taylor as campaign manager after Taylor shifted to lead the Democrat’s leadership committee.
Want a shoutout in the Politically Georgia newsletter? There’s a form for that. It’s not just birthdays. We’re also interested in new jobs, engagements, birth announcements, etc.
Before you go
Republican nominee for governor Rick Jackson speaks at President Donald Trump's rally at Wheeler High School in Marietta last week. (Arvin Temkar/AJC)
Jackson got a vote of confidence in St. Marys during his second campaign swing to the coastal town, the Brunswick news reports.
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