The five Republican candidates for governor traded barbs Sunday on gun rights, “religious liberty” and rival tax plans in their final debate ahead of the May 22 primary election.
In a televised matchup hosted by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Channel 2 Action News, the Republicans all hardened their stances on school safety and access to firearms two days after a 17-year-old student opened fire on his classmates in a Texas high school, killing 10.
None of the candidates – Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle, former state Sen. Hunter Hill, Secretary of State Brian Kemp, business executive Clay Tippins or Georgia Sen. Michael Williams — said new gun control measures were needed. All endorsed beefing up security at schools, and several called for allowing teachers to carry firearms into classrooms to defend their students.
“We’ve got to instill local control with our school systems and trust parents, school boards, local administrators and local law enforcement to address school security,” Kemp said.
One of the most pointed exchanges came on taxes.
Cagle pointedly criticized Hill’s pledge to eliminate the state income tax over seven years, saying it would disproportionately hurt seniors on fixed incomes. And he defended the state’s current tax structure, which he said has helped lure businesses to Georgia and solidify the state’s AAA bond rating.
“We do not need schemes. We do not need hot air,” he said. “We need someone as governor who understands how to prepare a budget and make sure that we’re prioritizing our spending.”
Hill said Georgia is losing out on business to many of its neighbors in the Southeast because of its income tax and said his plan would not harm seniors.
“The income tax only taxes honest Georgians,” he said. “Why not leverage visitors to our state, folks in the underground economy and illegal immigrants?”
The candidates also tangled over the state’s long running debate over “religious liberty” legislation.
Cagle pledged to sign a “mirror image” of the Religious Freedom Restoration Act that President Bill Clinton signed into law in 1993. He insisted that such a statute wouldn’t hurt the state’s standing as a destination for business.
Tippins, meanwhile, defended his status as the only GOP candidate to refuse to sign a RFRA pledge while also emphasizing his Christian faith.
“I don’t sign things until I read them. All these folks up here have vowed to sign a bill they haven’t read yet,” he said, adding that his opponents’ vow to sign the bill was a “pandering political step.”
The debate came amid a frenzied final weekend of campaigning as the candidates sought to win over undecided voters. Roughly one-quarter of likely GOP primary are still undecided, according to one recent poll.
Cagle has led the field in both fundraising and in the polls, but recent surveys show him lacking the majority support necessary to avoid a July 24 runoff.
The remaining candidates have angled for the second spot in an expected nine-week overtime battle by trying to outdo one another on conservative red meat issues such as cutting down on illegal immigration.
Trailing in recent polls, Williams last week embarked on a headline-grabbing "deportation tour" aboard a gray school bus last week. He said at Sunday's debate that illegal immigration is "harming our country and our state."
“We need a governor who’s going to take a strong stance against some of these issues and not rely so much on the federal government, especially when we have the ability to do it here in the state,” he said.
The five Republican opponents, along with Democratic candidates Stacey Evans and Stacey Abrams, have collectively raised more than $22 million in the lead-up to the primary.
However, turnout this year could be muted without a presidential contest also on the ballot. Early-voting numbers appear to be down compared to the 2016 primary.
2018 campaign
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution is covering the issues and candidates ahead of Georgia’s primary on Tuesday. The AJC has already produced stories looking at gun rights, tax policy and how President Donald Trump factors in the stances candidates are taking. It also has conducted polls to determine what’s most important to voters from the two major political parties. Look for more at ajc.com/politics.
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