ATLANTA – State Sen. Tyler Harper, the Republican nominee for Georgia agriculture commissioner, has picked up an endorsement from a prominent Democrat.
Former Gov. Roy Barnes threw his backing Thursday behind the seventh-generation farmer and small business owner from Ocilla.
“Tyler has a proven track record of delivering results for Georgia families and communities,” Barnes said in a prepared statement.
“Tyler will use his background and experience to fight for our farmers, producers, and consumers across Georgia and advance our state’s No.-1 industry.”
“Even though Governor Barnes and I may not see eye to eye on every policy position, I look forward to our continued work together to ensure the Georgia agriculture industry is successful,” Harper added.
Harper was elected to the Georgia Senate a decade ago and chairs the chamber’s Natural Resources and the Environment Committee.
He entered the race for agriculture commissioner when incumbent Republican Gary Black announced he was leaving the post to run for the U.S. Senate. Harper won the GOP nomination last May unopposed.
Harper is being opposed in the Nov. 8 general election by Democrat Nakita Hemingway, a cut-flower farmer from Dacula.
“Former Governor Barnes is a private citizen and has the right to support or endorse whoever he chooses,” Hemingway responded to Barnes’ endorsement of Harper. “For me, the only endorsement that matters will come from Georgia voters, so I encourage voters to educate themselves about all candidates and to form their own opinions about my opponent.”
Hemingway pointed to Harper’s sponsorship of a soil amendment bill critics said took away the power of county commissions to protect their communities from the dumping of industrial waste by chicken processing facilities. She also criticized Harper for supporting “The Freedom to Farm” bill making it harder to file nuisance suits against farmers.
While supporters said the legislation adds protection to farmers, opponents said it replaces a 1980s law that actually gave farmers greater protection.
This story is available through a news partnership with Capitol Beat News Service, a project of the Georgia Press Educational Foundation.
ATLANTA – Republican Gov. Brian Kemp is holding a 10-point lead over Democratic challenger Stacey Abrams, according to a poll released this week.
Brian Kemp
But on spending and taxes, abortion, and gun rights, most respondents to the same survey sided with Abrams’ positions.
The poll of 1,030 likely general election voters was conducted Sept. 15-Oct. 4 by the University of Georgia on behalf of the Georgia News Collaborative (GNC), a consortium of more than 100 news organizations including Capitol Beat.
On spending and taxes, 55% of the respondents said Georgia should use its record budget surplus to increase spending in areas like education, health care and public safety. Just 31% favored using the surplus to cut taxes.
On abortion, 62% of survey respondents said they oppose the “heartbeat bill” Kemp steered through the General Assembly in 2019, which bans most abortions after fetal cardiac activity is detected, often as early as six weeks of pregnancy. Just 32% said they support the legislation.
On guns, 62% said they oppose a law the legislature passed this year that allows Georgians 21 and older to carry a concealed weapon in public without a license. Just 36% said they support the law.
Kemp has championed both one-time tax rebates and permanent tax cuts. This year, the Republican-controlled General Assembly passed a $1.6 billion tax rebate and the largest tax cut in Georgia history, which will gradually reduce the state income tax rate from 5.49% to 4.99% over six years, starting with the 2024 tax year. The current tax rate is 5.75%.
In addition, the governor has pledged a further $2 billion tax rebate if he wins a second term.
But most respondents to the GNC poll preferred spending the state’s huge budget surplus to improve core government services, a stand taken by Abrams and Democratic legislative leaders.
Donald Baker, who runs a heating and air conditioning business in Glynn County, said there are other ways to help low-income Georgians besides dipping into the surplus.
“I wish [politicians] would spend more money on the poor and the homeless than they would on advertising their races,” he said. “They’re spending so much money on ads. … There’s so much need out here in this country.”
Baker, however, noted he plans to vote for Kemp as well as Republican Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger because they refused to back then-President Donald Trump’s attempts to overturn the 2020 presidential election in Georgia.
Most poll respondents also agreed with Abrams’ opposition to the abortion bill Kemp and GOP lawmakers passed along party lines three years ago.
Angela Brewington, a software engineer from Henry County, said the heartbeat bill went too far and that a ban on abortion after 12 weeks would be more reasonable.
“These are not my views, personally, on abortion of what choices I would make,” Brewington said. “But I don’t think that the state has a right to have a six-week ban. You barely know that you’re even pregnant at six weeks.”
Most respondents to the GNC survey also objected to the permit-less carry gun legislation Republican lawmakers passed this year with Kemp’s backing.
Aaron Williams of McDonough, who works for a telecommunications company, said the gun law should have excluded weapons of war.
“I understand where the Founding Fathers were coming from with the right to keep and bear arms,” he said. “Guns don’t bother me, but AR-15s are unnecessary. Pistols, shotguns and single-shot rifles in my opinion are completely reasonable. … The argument that it’s a slippery slope that’ll lead to all guns being taken is just a smoke screen.”
Abrams said the poll was a snapshot of how voters felt at a certain point in time, which could change considering what most had to say about her positions.
“The plans and policies I’m proposing are popular,” she told reporters Thursday. “My responsibility is to make sure they show up and vote.”
While most of the poll respondents took Abrams’ side on taxes and spending, abortion and gun rights, the survey also found voters are deeply concerned about inflation, an issue Republicans in Georgia and elsewhere are using on the campaign trail and in ads to hammer Democrats.
An overwhelming 92% of survey respondents indicated the current cost of living will play a role in deciding how they will vote next month.
Nearly that many – 88% – said rising prices have had an impact on their day-to-day lives.
“I’ve got friends that had to get a second job just to make ends meet, and they’re in businesses that pay very well,” said Susan Hasel of Walton County, an assistant in a publications business.
“Our economics have crumbled,” added Sarah Simcox, a kindergarten teacher in Forsyth County. “We were thriving prior to [the Biden] administration – and now I don’t even know if we can recover.”
The GNC poll had a margin of error of 3.1 percentage points. It was conducted via telephone, about 90% through cellphone interviews and 10% over landline connections.
The results were weighted to represent respondents proportionally in terms of race, sex, age, and education.
Staff writer Rebecca Grapevine contributed to this report.
This story is available through a news partnership with Capitol Beat News Service, a project of the Georgia Press Educational Foundation.
ATLANTA – The Port of Savannah experienced a strong first quarter of the fiscal year.
But there were signs toward the end of the quarter of a slowdown in demand, the Georgia Ports Authority reported Thursday.
Savannah handled more than 1.5 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) of containerized cargo in July, August, and September, up 9.6% over the first quarter of fiscal 2022.
“A high number of ad hoc vessel calls, the addition of three new Mediterranean services, and one new service to Asia contributed to the growth,” said Griff Lynch, the authority’s executive director.
“Additionally, our regular services have been arriving with significantly more cargo destined for Savannah.”
However, container volumes last month were off by 7.6% compared to September of last year. A nearly three-day suspension of service related to Hurricane Ian affected September volumes at the Port of Savannah.
GPA Board Chairman Joel Wooten said economic factors also have begun to slow the port’s business.
“We’re expecting a gradual easing in demand based on several factors, including a shift in the balance of consumer spending away from goods back to services and the impact of inflation on the economy,” he said.
“After having increased trade at a compound annual growth rate of 14% over the past two fiscal years, this change will represent a return to a more typical rate of growth for GPA.”
A silver lining in the anticipated easing in demand is that the Port of Savannah expects to clear a backlog of vessels waiting at anchor by the end of next month. Currently, about 204,600 containers are on the water headed for Savannah, down from a record high of 262,500 in July.
This story is available through a news partnership with Capitol Beat News Service, a project of the Georgia Press Educational Foundation.
ATLANTA – Republican Gov. Brian Kemp has opened a double-digit lead over Democratic challenger Stacey Abrams, according to a poll released Wednesday.
However, Georgia’s U.S. Senate race is in a dead heat, the Capitol Beat/Georgia News Collaborative Poll found in a survey of 1,030 likely general election voters conducted Sept. 15-Oct. 4 by the University of Georgia’s School of Public and International Affairs.
The survey found state Sen. Burt Jones, R-Jackson, with a slight lead for the open lieutenant governor’s seat over Democrat Charlie Bailey.
GOP incumbents hold a solid lead in both the races for attorney general and secretary of state, according to the poll.
Kemp drew the support of 51% of poll respondents to 40.7% for Abrams, giving the governor a lead of 10.3%. Libertarian Shane Hazel was a distant third with 2.3%, while 6% of those surveyed were undecided.
Sen. Raphael Warnock, D-Ga., was favored by 46.4% of the poll respondents, to 43.4% for Republican challenger Herschel Walker. Given the poll’s margin of error of 3.1 percentage points, the race is essentially tied. Chase Oliver, the Libertarian candidate, trailed at 4.1%, while 6.1% of those surveyed were undecided.
Support for Jones stood at 43.5%, with 38.8% of survey respondents favoring Bailey. Factoring in the margin of error left Jones with a slight lead over his Democratic rival for lieutenant governor. Libertarian Ryan Graham was third at 4.0%, and 13.8% of respondents were undecided.
While Kemp polled slightly above the 50%-plus-one margin needed to avoid a Dec. 6 runoff, the race for Senate and possibly the contest for lieutenant governor could be headed toward an extra round of voting.
The survey found Republican Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger well ahead of state Rep. Bee Nguyen, 47.9% to 33.9%. Libertarian Ted Metz stood third at 6.3%, with 11.8% undecided.
Likewise, GOP Attorney General Chris Carr held a strong lead over Democratic state Sen. Jen Jordan, 47.4% to 38.8%. Libertarian Martin Cowen trailed at 3.6%, with 10.2% undecided.
Although both Raffensperger and Carr were short of the margin needed to win the Nov. 8 election outright, the large percentage of undecided voters left room for the two incumbents to get over the threshold.
Kemp’s lead over Abrams in the gubernatorial contest has widened over recent polls.
“I think he’s done a good job,” said Misty Dunn, 45, an archaeologist from Meriwether County, a regular Republican voter who supports Kemp even though she disagrees with his staunch opposition to abortion.
“I can’t vote the other way on that one issue,” Dunn said.
Aaron Williams, 42 of McDonough, who works for a telecommunications company, said he plans to vote for Abrams primarily because she is not a Republican, a party he has soured on.
“The conservative side has gone full on hypocrisy,” Williams said. “I can’t get behind a single conservative candidate.”
Wendy Meehan, 72, of Madison County, said she will vote to elect Warnock to a full Senate term because her positions in favor of Medicaid expansion and against the U.S. Supreme Court decision overturning the constitutional right to abortion align with the Democrats.
Meehan said she doesn’t believe Walker is qualified to serve in the Senate.
“He should not be a Senate candidate,” she said. “Georgia could do much better than him.”
Lisa Elias, 53, a business owner from Gainesville, said she liked Walker when she saw him speak at her church.
“He seemed like a good man,” Elias said. “I’m a Christian, and I’m conservative in my values.”
But some Republican voters are starting to have concerns about Walker following allegations of violence against his ex-wife and that he paid for a former girlfriend’s abortion.
“If these things are true, that’s horrible,” said Sarah Simcox, 56, a kindergarten teacher in Forsyth County. “But I think politically he might be better [than Warnock]. … I’m struggling with it. It’s going to take a lot of prayer.”
Black voters who responded to the poll overwhelmingly preferred Democrats Abrams and Warnock, not surprising since most Black voters support Democratic candidates. But Warnock outperformed Abrams among that group of voters, 89% to 80.7%.
Walker, a former University of Georgia football star, drew only 2% support among Black voters, while Kemp was preferred by 8% of Black survey respondents.
Kemp held a solid lead over Abrams among men, 58% to 33.3%. Walker’s lead among men was strong but not as large as Kemp’s. Walker was supported by 52.5% of men who responded to the poll, compared to 37.7% favoring Warnock.
Warnock, however, enjoyed a huge lead among women, 53.6% to 36.3% for Walker. Women were much more evenly divided in the governor’s race, with 46.6% preferring Abrams to 45.4% supporting Kemp.
Broken down by age, Kemp held the edge among all groups except for those between the ages of 30 and 44. Among that group, Abrams led 50.6% to 39%.
Warnock led decisively among younger voters, those between the ages of 18 and 44. Walker turned the tables with a solid lead among the 45-64 age group and a smaller lead among voters 65 and older.
Kemp polled strongest among voters with a high school education or less, while Abrams’ biggest advantage was among college graduates.
The same was true in the Senate race, with Walker scoring highest among those with a high school diploma or less, and Warnock’s best showing coming from poll respondents with a college degree.
The poll was conducted via telephone, about 90% through cellphone interviews and 10% over landline connections.
The survey results were weighted to represent respondents proportionally in terms of race, sex, age, and education.
Staff writer Rebecca Grapevine contributed to this report.
This story is available through a news partnership with Capitol Beat News Service, a project of the Georgia Press Educational Foundation.
ATLANTA – Cases of COVID-19 and monkeypox are continuing to decline in Georgia, officials with the state Department of Public Health reported Tuesday.
COVID cases in Georgia are down about 80% since mid-August, Dr. Cherie Drenzek, the agency’s epidemiologist and chief science officer, told members of the state Board of Public Health.
Hospitalizations are down 89% since the omicron variant hit its peak last winter, while the number of deaths from the virus in Georgia has fallen to about 100 per week, she said.
However, three new omicron subvariants are starting to show up in Georgia and around the country, Drenzek said. Together, they account for about 23% of the current caseload in Georgia, she said.
“Whether they will continue to grow or not, I can’t say for certain,” Drenzek said. “It warrants us keeping a close eye on them.”
Dr. Alexander Millman, chief medical officer for the Department of Public Health (DPH), said the new booster shots that target the omicron variant can be administered at the same time as annual flu shots.
The new boosters are widely available to adults, while the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is expected to approve the children’s version of the booster soon, he said.
Drenzek said cases of monkeypox have declined consistently during the last few weeks both in Georgia and nationally.
Georgia has 1,839 cases of the virus in 64 counties, she said. However, 85% of those cases are concentrated in metro Atlanta, she said.
The vast majority of cases are in men who have sex with men, Drenzek said. In fact, 98% of the Georgia cases are in men.
Only 5% percent of the state’s monkeypox patients are hospitalized, Drenzek said.
However, a small number of cases are severe, usually involving HIV-positive men with compromised immune systems, she said.
Millman said monkeypox vaccines are proving highly effective in preventing the disease.
“This vaccine is truly able to protect people who have had exposure from developing monkeypox,” he said.
Amy Benson, who heads the Georgia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities’ Opioid Substance Misuse Response Program, told board members a new version of multi-colored fentanyl is gaining national attention.
None of the “rainbow” fentanyl has appeared yet in Georgia or bordering states, but it’s likely a matter of time before it does, she said.
While law enforcement agencies haven’t uncovered any efforts to market the drug to children, the multiple colors would appeal to young people, Benson said.
“With Halloween coming up, this is something that potentially could be a problem,” DPH Commissioner Dr. Kathleen Toomey said.
Benson said efforts are underway in Georgia to increase public access to fentanyl test strips and to naloxone, a drug used to treat opioid overdoses.
This story is available through a news partnership with Capitol Beat News Service, a project of the Georgia Press Educational Foundation.
