Gov. Kemp to address Cobb County business leaders following MLB All-Star exit

Gov. Brian Kemp speaks at a press conference at the Capitol on Saturday, April 3, 2021, as he and his supporters blast Major League Baseball's decision to move the All-Star game from Georgia over the state's new voting law. (Steve Schaefer/AJC

Credit: Steve Schaefer/AJC

Credit: Steve Schaefer/AJC

Gov. Brian Kemp speaks at a press conference at the Capitol on Saturday, April 3, 2021, as he and his supporters blast Major League Baseball's decision to move the All-Star game from Georgia over the state's new voting law. (Steve Schaefer/AJC

Gov. Brian Kemp’s keynote address at the Cobb Chamber’s annual luncheon on Monday was scheduled far in advance of Major League Baseball’s decision last week to pull its All-Star Game out of Truist Park

But now Kemp will address a room full of business leaders and politicians whose communities will miss out on lost revenue because of the league’s decision to have the Midsummer Classic played in Denver over concerns about Georgia’s new voting law.

A Chamber spokeswoman said she did not know if the governor would mention the controversy during his address.

Supporters have praised the new law for restoring integrity to the state’s elections, while critics have denounced it for unfairly impeding minority access to voting.

When MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred announced that baseball was moving the game, he cited the league’s opposition to “restrictions to the ballot box.”

Kemp has criticized the MLB for caving to liberal lies and for ignoring the consequences of the decision to the local community.

The Chamber’s event, which will be held at the Cobb Galleria Centre from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., is sold out. But the public can view it on the Chamber’s Facebook page starting at noon.

Kemp will talk about his administration’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, workforce development, small businesses, transportation and the military, the Chamber spokeswoman said.

The amount of lost economic impact from the relocation of the All-Star game is unclear. Economists have told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution that it could be minimal. Cobb Travel and Tourism, on the other hand, put the figure at nearly $100 million. Travel and Tourism officials haven’t said how they calculated their estimate.