On the Georgia trail: Election Day edition

Stacey Abrams and Brian Kemp

Credit: WSB-TV

Credit: WSB-TV

Stacey Abrams and Brian Kemp

It's Election Day, and the two major party candidates for governor are taking different approaches.

Democrat Stacey Abrams has scheduled a full day of events, starting her day with a breakfast visit to Pearly’s Famous Country Cooking in Albany. She will move north through six retail stops that also include Buena Vista, Columbus, Fairburn, Atlanta and Stone Mountain.

Abrams’ campaign is focused on cities and towns where early-voting data indicates that a large number of Democratic voters still haven’t cast ballots.

Her watch party begins at 8:30 p.m. at the Hyatt Regency in downtown Atlanta. The ballroom is already at capacity, so members of the public can no longer register to attend.

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Republican Brian Kemp, meanwhile, is taking a lower-key approach.

After a frenzied five-stop flyaround tour that ended with a final phone bank event, he has but two events on his public schedule for Election Day.

The first is a 2 p.m. trip to vote in Winterville. The second is his election watch party at the Classic Center in downtown Athens, where doors open just as polls close at 7 p.m.

Kemp ended his campaign with a final event late Monday at his campaign headquarters in Buckhead. He was joined by U.S. Sens. Johnny Isakson and David Perdue, who revved up volunteers as they dialed conservatives.

“We’re very confident. Our energy on the ground is great,” Kemp said. “We just gotta keep working hard until the polls closed.”

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As supporters begin to gather at watch parties and results trickle in, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution will have updates on our Election Day Live Blog. We'll bring you analysis and insights on the governor's contest and other top races down the ballot.

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The national chairman of the New Black Panther Party spoke to the AJC about those photos that went viral of members carrying long guns while campaigning for Stacey Abrams.

Hashim Nzinga said that members are supporting Abrams even though they don’t agree with her stance on gun control -- because they disagree even more with Brian Kemp’s platform.

Georgia law does not require a permit to carry a long gun like a shotgun or rifle.