Georgia gubernatorial candidates pitch competing plans at business forum
ATHENS — Georgia's two candidates for governor showcased their competing plans for healthcare, jobs and other top issues at a business-focused gathering Wednesday. Gov. Brian Kemp also gave his full-throated support to fellow Republican Rick Jackson, saying Jackson...
Metro Atlanta water authority investigates outage as federal authorities warn of Iran-linked hackers
ATLANTA — A water utility that serves 300,000 homes and businesses in metro Atlanta is still investigating whether a hacker caused a service outage last week. That July 27 shutdown in northern Clayton County occurred the same day that water utilities in at least seven...
Social media posts by Collins and those in his circle draw more political fire
ATLANTA — Social media posts by Republican U.S. Senate candidate Mike Collins and his associates have become a target of Sen. Jon Ossoff and his allies. U.S. Rep. Mike Collins, who hopes to unseat Ossoff, the Democratic incumbent, has a history of edgy online...
Student absenteeism a persistent problem, but Georgia is doing better than most states
ATLANTA — When COVID-19 struck, schools closed, students "attended" from home, and too many got out of the habit of going to school when the doors reopened. In 2022, nearly a quarter of Georgia's students had absenteeism rates high enough to be considered "chronic" —...
Another former state lawmaker pleads guilty to pandemic-related fraud
ATLANTA — A third former Georgia lawmaker has pleaded guilty to unemployment assistance fraud in federal court in connection with the COVID-19 pandemic. Sharon Henderson, 67, of Covington, pleaded guilty Thursday to making false statements to fraudulently obtain...
Scott, Blair advance to runoff in race for congressional seat
ATLANTA — Marcye Scott, the daughter of late U.S. Rep. David Scott, drew the most votes in Tuesday's special election to complete his term, and will face former Gwinnett County School Board Chair Everton Blair in an Aug. 25 runoff. Scott took 46% of the vote to...
Jackson launches ad blitz amid fight with Bottoms over economy
ATLANTA — Starting Saturday, Georgians who watch television or go online will likely encounter campaign ads from Rick Jackson, the Republican candidate for governor. The wealthy entrepreneur announced this week that he will spend $87 million on an initial ad buy to...
Kemp touts data centers, calls AI “scary” but essential
Gov. Brian Kemp weighed in on the rush to develop artificial intelligence, calling the technology "scary" while also welcoming data centers to Georgia and criticizing others who would pause their development. "I'm not saying we need a data center in every community...