Category: Tom Baxter

President Joe Biden and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, potential rivals in 2024, made nice to each other last week as Hurricane Ian ripped across Florida and into the Carolinas, and by all reports the federal and state partners have worked together smoothly in the aftermath of the storm. But if storms like Ian become more frequent, the politics of catastrophe will become increasingly frayed.

Last week, Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger announced that his office was replacing the election equipment in Coffee County to the tune of around $400,000, an act he said “puts to an end any argument that the results in Coffee County, and anywhere else in Georgia for that matter, will not accurately reflect the will of Georgia voters.” But this story isn’t going away.

Draw a circle of three or four miles diameter with the WellStar Atlanta Medical Center at the center and you will have encompassed an enormous amount of territory, demographically, historically, culturally and politically. Not to mention a lot of Georgians in need of medical care.

By Tom Baxter In hearings over the past couple of weeks, a legislative committee has begun to sort out the issues that are going to come with the ever-increasing electrification of Georgia. There are quite a few, and more we may not have thought of. Chaired by Sen. Steve Gooch of Dahlonega and Rep. Rick […]

Looking back, the tipoff story of this summer was — go figure — the one about Jill Biden and breakfast tacos.

The shadow of Donald Trump will fall heavily on many races across the country this fall, as ardent defenders of the former president square off against Democrats and new controversies continue to unfurl. But not here.

Among the Republican Senate candidates endorsed by former President Donald Trump, Herschel Walker has a dubious distinction. Walker had the best second-quarter fundraising total of any candidate in this group, raising $6.2 million.

here used to be a pretty reliable political rule of thumb that said the popularity of the party in the White House tracked contrarily with the up-and-down movement of the price of a gallon of gas. As prices go up, poll numbers go down, and vice versa. This year will test whether that old maxim still holds true.

he big difference you see this year in political ads in Georgia and Illinois is the way they engage the issue of abortion.

Last week Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger spent more than five hours testifying before a special Fulton County grand jury. We have a pretty good idea of what he said — he’s written a book about it already — but it would be interesting to know how he said it.

As we await the U.S. Supreme Court’s verdict on Roe v. Wade in the coming weeks, it’s interesting to reflect on where things stood back in 1973, when the decision decriminalized abortion nationwide was handed down.

A few more questions to ponder before the voters supply the answers Tuesday. We’ll be back for more later in the week.

Georgia’s primary election day is next week, but one result is already clear. Whatever reservations they may have about other voting innovations, voters have gotten hooked on early, in-person voting, and they aren’t going back.