Political Rewind

Thursday on Political Rewind: The latest polls all point to a similar conclusion — former Vice President Joe Biden and President Donald Trump are neck-and-neck in the race to win Georgia. Close Senate races mirror what looks to be a tight presidential election as Democrats hope to win the state for the first time in decades.

Also: In an election season with no lack of partisan attacks, Republican Senate candidates Rep. Doug Collins and Sen. Kelly Loeffler continue to sling mud. What does the tumultuous free-for-all primary reveal of the rift in the GOP?

In this election season's races, how crucial will Hispanic and Latinx voters to the results? We took a closer look with our panel of insiders and experts.

Panelists:

Dr. Alan Abramowitz — Professor of political science, Emory University

Mariela Romero — Journalist and Regional Community Empowerment Director, Univision

Kevin Riley — Editor, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Wednesday on Political Rewind: As the Senate Judiciary committee prepares to vote on the confirmation of Judge Amy Coney Barrett to the U.S. Supreme Court, our panel of experts takes a look at how she could help shape rulings that may have a big impact here in Georgia. How could this impact decisions on issues like abortion rights, healthcare, and immigration?

Our panelists included: Fred Smith, professor of Constitutional law at Emory University; Charles Kuck, immigration attorney; Dr. Amy Steigerwalt, professor of political science at Georgia State University; and Greg Bluestein, politics reporter for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Tuesday on Political Rewind: Top polling candidates for the second Georgia seat in the U.S. Senate exchanged sharp blows in a raucous debate. There were questions about QAnon, law enforcement, and President Donald Trump’s handling of the coronavirus, but few exchanges on matters of public policy. Also, we review the statewide constitutional amendments that will be on the ballot in Georgia.

Our panelists included: Tamar Hallerman, senior reporter for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution; Edward Lindsey, partner at Dentons and a Republican strategist; and Mary Margaret Oliver, Democratic State Representative from Decatur.

Monday on Political Rewind: A new investigation from Georgia Public Broadcasting and ProPublica shows the number of polling locations dropped since 2012 despite Georgia’s voter rolls increasing by nearly two million. GPB reporter Stephen Fowler joined our panel to discuss the changes at play.

His reporting suggests that while the decrease in polling locations occurred statewide, it appears to have had the biggest effect on wait times for voters in predominantly black precincts.

Also, Sen. David Perdue continues to face condemnation after he appeared to mock the pronunciation of the name of vice presidential nominee Sen. Kamala Harris at a rally for President Donald Trump in Macon. Sen. Perdue insists it was an accident, but the incident sparked a wave of fundraising for his Democratic challenger Jon Ossoff.

Panelists:

Jim Galloway — Lead Political Writer, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Dr. Audrey Haynes — Professor of political science, University of Georgia

Rene Alegria — CEO of Mundo Hispanico

Stephen Fowler — Politics Reporter, Georgia Public Broadcasting

Friday on Political Rewind: Georgia’s congressional and state races are quickly unfolding as we approach Election Day on Nov. 3rd. Our panel discusses the latest from the campaign trail.

U.S. Senate candidate Kelly Loeffler celebrated her endorsement from Marjorie Taylor Greene at a joint campaign appearance the two staged in Dallas, Georgia. 

Greene is running unopposed in her race for the 14th District congressional seat. She has been a vocal supporter of many of the theories of QAnon, the fringe movement that believes Democrats are engaged in child trafficking and cannibalism.

Our panel included Jim Galloway, lead political writer with The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Dr. Karen Owen, professor of political science with the University of West Georgia, Sam Olens, former Georgia Attorney General and Michael Thurmond, DeKalb County CEO.

Thursday on Political Rewind: Could Georgia be in for two Senate runoff elections? Political analysts have longed considered an eventual runoff likely in the free-for-all race for the seat currently held by Gov. Kemp-appointee Sen. Kelly Loeffler. But polling now shows the race between Democrat Jon Ossoff and incumbent Republican Sen. David Perdue in a virtual tie. Support behind the Libertarian Party candidate could prevent any candidate in that race going over the 50% mark on Election Day.

Our panelists included: Dr. Alan Abramowitz, professor of political science at Emory University; Ryan Graham, chairman of the Libertarian Party of Georgia; Patricia Murphy, politics reporter for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution; and Kevin Riley, the AJC's editor.

Wednesday on Political Rewind: We discuss the latest on a slate of crucial elections in Georgia — including two contentious congressional races — as early voting numbers show record turnout. Only two days into the in-person early voting period, more than 10% of the state’s registered voters have already cast their ballots, either in-person or absentee.

Our panelists included: Rep. Teri Anulewicz, State House Representative (D-Smyrna); Todd Rehm, conservative pundit and owner/editor of GaPundit.com; and Greg Bluestein, politics reporter for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Tuesday on Political Rewind: The first day of early in-person voting saw record turnout. The Georgia Secretary of State's office says more than 128,500 Georgians cast their ballots on Monday. That number is far above the 90,000 who voted on the first day of early voting in 2016. And, Sen. David Perdue and challenger Jon Ossoff met yesterday in the first televised debate in the race for Perdue’s Senate seat. Both lobbed harsh criticism towards their opponent with just weeks to go in the race.

Our panelists included: Dr. Andra Gillespie, professor of Political Science at Emory University; Donna Lowry, host of Georgia Public Broadcasting's Lawmakers; Riley Bunch, Georgia statehouse reporter for CNHI News; and Tia Mitchell, Washington correspondent for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Political analyst and writer Jonathan Alter is out with a new and comprehensive biography of former president Jimmy Carter. It’s called His Very Best: Jimmy Carter, A Life. The narrative spans Carter’s childhood growing up in Georgia to his roles as the state’s governor and U.S. President, and beyond. 

Alter joined Political Rewind to talk about the new book, sharing a historical and political perspective, as well as some lesser-known stories about the legendary peanut farmer-turned-president.

Friday on Political Rewind, early voting begins next week. Absentee ballot voting will no doubt play a crucial role in the upcoming election. We reviewed the latest data on requests.

And, a pro-Trump PAC is running an ad in out-of-metro markets, such as Savannah, Macon and Albany, accusing Joe Biden of being mentally unfit to be president. What does that ad tell us about the importance of Georgia as a battleground state, and campaign strategy at this point in the race?

Our panel was Amy Steigerwalt, professor of political science at Georgia State University and Jim Galloway, lead political writer with The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.