Georgia Rep. Sam Park, D-Lawrenceville, will become the first Asian American to hold a leadership post.
ATLANTA – Democrats in the Georgia House of Representatives will field a mix of veterans and new leaders in the minority party’s leadership team during the upcoming 2023-24 legislative term.
The House Democratic Caucus reelected Rep. James Beverly Tuesday to serve as minority leader for the next two years. Beverly, D-Macon, was elected to the House in 2010 and chosen minority leader by his Democratic colleagues two years ago.
Rep. Sam Park was elected to leadership for the first time. Park, D-Lawrenceville, will become minority whip in January, making him the first Asian American to rise to a leadership position in the General Assembly.
“This caucus is the vanguard for change, and our diversity is our strength,” Park said. “We stand united in our common cause of creating a better Georgia, and I will work tirelessly in this role to serve each member of our caucus.”
House Democrats returned Rep. Billy Mitchell, D-Stone Mountain, to the chairmanship of the caucus. The 2023-24 term will mark his second in that role.
Rep. Karen Bennett, D-Stone Mountain, will step into a leadership role for the first time as caucus vice chair.
The caucus also elected Rep. Sandra Scott, D-Rex, chief deputy whip; Rep. Park Cannon, D-Atlanta, caucus secretary; and Rep. Shea Roberts, D-Atlanta, caucus treasurer.
Democrats posted a net gain of two seats in the House in the Nov. 8 elections, bringing their numbers to 79 of the chamber’s 180 seats.
The 2023 legislative session will begin under the Gold Dome Jan. 9.
This story is available through a news partnership with Capitol Beat News Service, a project of the Georgia Press Educational Foundation.
ATLANTA – The new Hyundai electric vehicle manufacturing plant being built in Bryan County is continuing to pay dividends for Georgia and the coastal region.
Hyundai Mobis, one of the world’s largest automotive suppliers, will invest $926 million in an EV Power Electric system plant in Bryan County that will eventually create at least 1,500 jobs, Gov. Brian Kemp announced Tuesday.
Hyundai Mobis is the second EV supplier to unveil plans to set up shop near the Hyundai EV plant since the Korean automaker broke ground on the $5.5 billion project late last month. Auto parts manufacturer Joon Georgia announced Nov. 7 it will invest $317 million in a new manufacturing plant in Bulloch County that will create 630 jobs, making it the first confirmed supplier for the new Hyundai EV plant.
“When we celebrated the groundbreaking of Hyundai’s new electric vehicle and battery manufacturing facility in Bryan County, we knew it would unleash transformational job creation and investment in that entire region of our state,” Kemp said. “As we announce the second supplier in just two weeks to locate in that area, we’re excited to see their impact on the surrounding communities and the growing list of other job creators that will soon follow.”
The EV Power Electric system plant will expand Hyundai Mobis’ footprint in Georgia. Hyundai Mobis has operated a manufacturing facility with about 1,200 employees in West Point since 2009 as a supplier to the nearby Kia plant.
“Hyundai Mobis’ investment project in Bryan County reflects an acceleration in the development of the EV supply chain in Georgia’s auto industry,” said H.S. Oh, vice president of Hyundai Mobis’ Electric Powertrain Business Unit. “We’re going to be a major production player in the EV market, and that’s going to trigger more growth within the sector.”
Construction on the 1.2 million-square-foot Hyundai Mobis plant in Richmond Hill is expected to start as early as January, with production due to begin in 2024.
The Georgia Department of Economic Development worked on the Hyundai Mobis project in partnership with the Development Authority of Bryan County, the Georgia Ports Authority, Georgia Power and the Technical College System of Georgia’s Quick Start program.
This story is available through a news partnership with Capitol Beat News Service, a project of the Georgia Press Educational Foundation.
ATLANTA – At least 13 Georgia counties will be holding weekend early voting this Saturday ahead of the Dec. 6 U.S. Senate runoff election between incumbent Democrat Raphael Warnock and Republican challenger Herschel Walker.
Counties including Chatham, Clarke, Clayton, Cobb, DeKalb, Fulton, Gwinnett, Muscogee, and Walton counties are moving forward with weekend early voting after the Georgia Court of Appeals turned back a challenge mounted by Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger’s office.
Immediately after the results of the Nov. 8 election put Warnock and Walker into a runoff, the secretary of state’s office indicated that Saturday, Nov. 26, would be set aside as a weekend early voting day.
Subsequently, however, Raffensperger said it would be illegal to hold early voting on that day, citing a state law that prohibits runoffs on any day immediately following a state holiday. Besides Thanksgiving Day this Thursday, Friday is a state holiday.
The Warnock campaign, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, and the Democratic Party of Georgia filed a lawsuit arguing the law the secretary of state cited applies to primary and general elections but not to runoffs.
A Fulton County Superior Court judge ruled late last week in favor of the plaintiffs, and the state Court of Appeals upheld that decision on Monday.
“This ruling is a victory for every Georgia voter,” Quentin Fulks, Warnock’s campaign manager, said in a joint statement with the two other plaintiffs. “We look forward to counties across the state providing voters the opportunity to cast their ballots on Saturday, November 26th.”
The Georgia Republican Party, Republican National Committee (RNC) and National Republican Senatorial Committee have joined forces to appeal the decision to the Georgia Supreme Court.
“Georgians deserve better than Democrats scheming to change election laws in the 11th hour,” RNC Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel said Tuesday. “This flawed ruling benefits a handful of wealthy Democrat counties at the expense of basic election integrity and cannot be allowed to stand.”
The court ruling makes weekend early voting optional for Georgia’s 159 counties.
Voting rights groups urged county election officials Tuesday to allow weekend early voting in their communities.
“Georgians deserve more than five or six days of early voting,” said Stephanie Ali, policy director for the New Georgia Project.
“Weekend early voting options should be universal and not be dependent on where in the state a voter lives, added Aunna Dennis, executive director of Common Cause Georgia.
“I have no doubt that the people of our state will overcome those barriers in this December 6 runoff election and turn out to vote. But we, the people, need to keep pushing for equitable access to the ballot in our state so that we can work towards building a government that truly is of, by, and for the people.”
Mandatory early voting statewide will run from Monday, Nov. 28, through Friday, Dec. 2.
This story is available through a news partnership with Capitol Beat News Service, a project of the Georgia Press Educational Foundation.
ATLANTA – Two Atlanta-area Veterans Affairs buildings are being renamed for two former U.S. senators from Georgia who served as longtime advocates for America’s veterans.
The U.S. House of Representatives passed two bills last week that authorized renaming the VA Regional Office in Decatur after the late Republican Sen. Johnny Isakson and the VA Medical Center in Atlanta for former Democratic Sen. Max Cleland, who died late last year.
“Our veterans deserve the best, and Senator Isakson always fought for them,” said Sen. Jon Ossoff, D-Ga., sponsor of the bipartisan bill honoring Isakson. “Renaming the Atlanta VA Regional Office in his honor will inspire us to stand up for Georgia’s veterans every day like Senator Isakson did.”
Cleland, who lost both of his legs and right arm serving in Vietnam, served as administrator of the VA under then-President Jimmy Carter in the late 1970s and later spent one term in the Senate.
“Max Cleland was an empathetic leader and a passionate patriot with a warrior’s heart for our veterans and for Georgia,” said Sen. Raphael Warnock, D-Ga., who sponsored the legislation honoring Cleland. “His life and legacy will live forever in our hearts.”
Both bills passed the House last week with bipartisan support after clearing the Senate earlier this year. They now head to President Joe Biden’s desk for his signature.
This story is available through a news partnership with Capitol Beat News Service, a project of the Georgia Press Educational Foundation.
ATLANTA – It looks like there will be early voting on a Saturday after all ahead of next month’s U.S. Senate runoff in Georgia.
A Fulton County Superior Court judge ruled Friday that holding early voting on the Saturday after Thanksgiving Day is legal and may proceed.
Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger’s office indicated shortly after the Nov. 8 election that put incumbent Democratic Sen. Raphael Warnock and Republican challenger Herschel Walker into a runoff that Saturday, Nov. 26, would be set aside for early voting.
However, Raffensperger subsequently declared that holding early voting that day would violate a state law that prohibits runoffs on any day immediately following a state holiday. Besides Thanksgiving Day on Thursday, Nov. 24, the following day, Nov. 25, is a state holiday.
Warnock’s campaign sued to force a reversal of Raffensperger’s decision and prevailed in Friday’s ruling.
“Allowing for Saturday early voting is a win for every Georgia voter, but especially for workers and students who will have a greater opportunity to make their voices heard in this election,” said Quentin Fulks, Warnock’s campaign manager. “We look forward to counties announcing that they will provide Georgians the opportunity to cast their ballots on Saturday, November 26th.”
While Warnock held a slight lead over Walker following the general election, neither candidate captured a majority of the vote as required by state law to avoid a runoff. Georgia voters will return to the polls Dec. 6 to decide the winner.
This story is available through a news partnership with Capitol Beat News Service, a project of the Georgia Press Educational Foundation.
