The All-Star Game returns tonight to Atlanta, four years after Major League Baseball yanked the event from the city in protest of a GOP-backed election law that Democrats at the time decried as “Jim Crow 2.0.”
While Georgia Republicans are taking a victory lap, the state’s top Democrats have been mostly silent about the league’s U-turn. Former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms and state Sen. Jason Esteves — the two most prominent Democratic contenders for Georgia governor — both declined to comment. Esteves even attended last night’s Home Run Derby and wished fans a “Happy All-Star Week” on social media.
But Democratic state Rep. Derrick Jackson, who is also in the race, didn’t mince words. He questioned why the league brought the game back to Georgia even though “nothing has substantially changed” with the law that made Truist Park off-limits four years ago.
“Is the lure of economic opportunity now outweighing the moral stand that was once taken? This isn’t about casting blame or pointing fingers; it’s about seeking consistency and understanding. If an organization takes a stand against injustice, that stand should ideally remain until the injustice is rectified,” he said.
Four years ago, many Democrats struck a told-you-so tone. Back then, Bottoms posted on social media that she was disappointed in the decision but predicted it was “likely the 1st of many dominoes to fall” until the law was rolled back.
That law, Senate Bill 202, restricted the mailing of absentee request forms to voters, capped the number of ballot drop boxes in each county, required an ink signature on absentee applications, required more proof of ID and shortened deadlines to request ballots.
Republicans quickly adopted Gov. Brian Kemp’s mantra that the law cleared hurdles to voting while safeguarding against fraud. Now, the GOP is relishing the league’s return and mocking Democrats.
U.S. Rep. Barry Loudermilk, R-Cassville, praised the league for “righting a wrong that shouldn’t have happened.”
“And the best part, Georgia’s elections bill that makes it ‘easy to vote and hard to cheat’ is still law,” he said.
Good morning! Congressional candidates’ fundraising reports are due today. Many candidates have already announced their totals. But we’ll be checking the details for interesting tidbits this week.
Here are three other things to know for today:
Georgia voters are deciding today who will be the Democratic nominee for a seat on the Public Service Commission. But a review of election data from last month’s primary shows today’s contest could have been different.
Of the nearly more than 143,000 ballots cast in the Democratic primary last month, more than 17,000 of them — nearly 12% of the vote — were not counted in the District 3 election, according to an analysis by the AJC’s Phoebe Quinton.
These “undervotes” usually happen when voters leave a contest blank on their ballot. But in this case, it’s safe to assume a big chunk of those votes were for Daniel Blackman, the Democratic candidate who appeared on the ballot but was disqualified because a judge ruled he didn’t live in the district long enough to be eligible.
Blackman was a strong candidate in 2020, when more than 2.2 million people voted for him in a narrow loss to Republican Lauren “Bubba” McDonald Jr. Voter turnout was much higher in that race because the election coincided with competitive contests for president and U.S. Senate.
We’ll never know how many votes Blackman would have received had he not been disqualified and allowed to campaign for the seat. But the data suggests he had an impact in the race.
Today’s election is between Peter Hubbard, chief executive of Georgia Center for Energy Solutions, and former Atlanta City Council member Keisha Sean Waites. Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Georgia’s public schools will be back in session next month, and most of them might have to make do without their share of $200 million in federal funding.
Congress OK’d that money, but Trump administration officials delayed it because they said they wanted to make sure states aren’t using it to promote “a radical leftwing agenda.”
More than 20 states sued the Trump administration on Monday to get the money released. That doesn’t include Georgia. But state Sen. RaShaun Kemp, a former high school principal, says Georgia has the perfect person to push for getting its money released: Republican Gov. Brian Kemp.
“I know that our governor and our president have conversations about choosing a Senate candidate, so they absolutely have a connection to do what’s right for Georgia’s children and have a conversation about releasing these funds,” said RaShaun Kemp, an Atlanta Democrat.
While Gov. Brian Kemp and Trump have famously feuded in recent years, the two did have a face-to-face meeting earlier this year to discuss the possibility of uniting behind a Republican candidate to challenge Democrat U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff in next year’s election.
Garrison Douglas, the governor’s spokesperson, declined to comment on the federal government’s spending review. But he noted Georgia during Kemp’s tenure has “fully funded K-12 education for several years in a row.”
“All told, we are spending more on education than we ever have before,” he said.
Tim Fleming’s campaign for secretary of state has yet to file a fundraising report. But his bid to become Georgia’s top election official could get a jumpstart today thanks to an assist from House Speaker Jon Burns.
Burns green-lighted a Blue Ribbon Study Committee on Election Procedures to meet this summer, and he appointed Fleming — a GOP state legislator from Covington — as its chair.
Today, Fleming will gavel in the first of the panel’s six scheduled meetings. The agenda is light, with lawmakers scheduled to hear from experts “to provide background and context.” But the hearings give Fleming a chance to bolster his own election bona fides in what could be a competitive Republican primary.
The secretary of state’s job has become one of the most watched election officers in the country, given Georgia’s relatively new role as a swing state in presidential elections and its importance to control of the U.S. Senate.
Republican incumbent Brad Raffensperger is expected to run for higher office next year, whether it be for governor or the U.S. Senate.
Today on the “Politically Georgia” podcast, Republican state Rep. Todd Jones, R-Cumming, calls on Major League Baseball to apologize for pulling the 2021 All-Star Game from Atlanta in protest of a GOP-backed election law.
Then, AJC Savannah Bureau Chief Adam Van Brimmer recaps Democratic U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff’s campaign rally over the weekend.
You can listen and subscribe to the show for free at Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.
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The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that President Donald Trump can move forward with firing nearly half of the Department of Education’s employees.
Trump indicated on social media that he will proceed with laying off 1,400 workers as part of his plan to dismantle the agency and return its functions “back to the states.”
The concern from critics is that states are not equipped or willing to take on all of these duties.
“This unlawful plan will immediately and irreparably harm students, educators and communities across our nation,” the American Federation of Teachers said in a news release. “Children will be among those hurt the most by this decision.”
The underlying lawsuit challenging the legality of the layoffs is still pending.
Members of the Congressional Black Caucus delivered a series of floor speeches Monday night to mark five years since Georgia U.S. Rep. John Lewis died. Lewis, an Atlanta Democrat known as “the conscience of Congress,” died on July 17, 2020, just months after announcing that he had pancreatic cancer.
Every Democrat in Georgia’s delegation spoke except for U.S. Rep. David Scott, D-Atlanta.
U.S. Rep. Nikema Williams, D-Atlanta, who now holds Lewis’ seat, said his legacy provides a blueprint for Democrats who may find the current political climate challenging. The civil rights icon was known for his enduring optimism despite his own near death experience during the 1965 Bloody Sunday march in Selma, Alabama.
“Getting into ‘good trouble’ was never a one-size-fits-all call to action, and we honor the legacy of Congressman Lewis when we all find all ways to get in the way,” Williams said. “This moment is not the last struggle that we will face, but we fight anyway.”
Today’s birthday:
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U.S. Rep. Hank Johnson, D-Lithonia, rewrote the lyrics to Jason Isbell’s “Dreamsicle” to encourage President Donald Trump to release all files related to the investigation of accused sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein, who was found dead at a federal jail in New York City in 2019.
That’ll do it for us today. As always, you can send your best scoops, gossip and insider info to [email protected], [email protected], [email protected] and [email protected].
