Jon Ossoff urges Jews to stay resilient amid global antisemitic attacks
Today’s newsletter highlights:
- A look at Georgia politics by the numbers.
- Five new members will join the Georgia Legislature in 2026.
- Mike Collins praises Donald Trump at Turning Point USA event.
Ossoff’s homecoming
U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff took the pulpit at The Temple over the weekend to commemorate Hanukkah and deliver a broader message about Jewish resilience and public faith.
His speech came just days after a father-and-son duo opened fire at Hanukkah event on Australia’s Bondi Beach, killing at least 15 people and wounding dozens more.
The Democratic senator reminded the audience at his childhood synagogue that it was just the latest in a surge of antisemitic violence. Ossoff, the first Jewish U.S. senator in Georgia history, urged Jews to be prouder than ever.
“It’s as vital as ever that we kindle these lights in public,” he said, “and we will not be driven by hate or by violence to do it secretly indoors.”
It’s no secret that Ossoff has had an up-and-down relationship with parts of the Jewish community over his votes for failed legislation to block some U.S. arms sales to Israel. The dispute added to the uncertainty surrounding Ossoff’s 2026 reelection campaign as Republicans were buoyed by Trump’s 2024 victory in Georgia.
While some pro-Israel supporters remain uneasy of his track record, the controversy over the votes has largely faded as fights over President Donald Trump’s agenda take center stage. Meanwhile, more Democratic elected officials have shifted toward similar positions on Israel. Now, it’s Republicans who seem more worried about 2026.
For Ossoff, the appearance at the Midtown synagogue was also a personal homecoming. He opened his remarks with a laugh, noting that The Temple is where he celebrated his bar mitzvah.
“The most challenging public speaking engagement of my life remains 25 years ago, standing right there,” he said while gesturing to Rabbi Peter Berg.
Things to know
Good morning! Georgia’s legislative session starts in 21 days. The primary for U.S. Senate, governor and other races is in 148 days.
Here are three other things to know for today:
- A citizen board responsible for investigating the deaths and serious injuries of people in Atlanta police custody has a backlog of about 50 cases waiting for action, the AJC’s Samantha Hogan reports.
- A Georgia judge has ruled the State Election Board can subpoena Fulton County for ballots and other documents from the 2020 election, the AJC’s David Wickert reports.
- AJC Senior Political Columnist Patricia Murphy hands out her “Cookie and Coal” awards for 2025 in Georgia politics.
By the numbers
We’re almost done with 2025, so you’ve probably been inundated with retrospectives on this extra newsy year. We’ll bring you our Top 10 political stories of the year on Wednesday.
But before then, let’s detour from our typical storytelling to explore the year’s news stories by the numbers that defined them. Special thanks to Charles Minshew and Phoebe Quinton, the AJC’s dynamic data duo, for digging up some of these figures:
- 1,309: Number of bills introduced in the state Legislature this year. Lawmakers are only in session for 40 days. They’d have to vote on more than 32 bills per day to get through the list. Instead, they ignore most of them.
- 370: Number of bills the Legislature sent to Gov. Brian Kemp. That’s a lot of reading. The budget bill by itself was 242 pages. Do you think he read them all?
- 7: Number of bills Kemp vetoed.
- 17: Number of years since the Legislature overturned a governor’s veto, a streak that continued this year.
- 888: Number of elections held across Georgia on Nov. 4. All of them were local races except for the two Public Service Commission seats and a special election in the state Legislature.
- 1,671,780: Number of people who voted in at least one Georgia election this year. Of those, 78% voted only once.
- 313: Number of people who voted in eight elections this year. All of them live in Cobb County, which held a record nine elections this year across state and local races. Were you a member of this club? Let us know.
- $14.85 billion: Amount of individual income taxes Georgia collected this year (through November). Some Republicans want to get rid of the income tax, a debate that could dominate the upcoming legislative session.
- 6,252: Number of posts on Truth Social by President Donald Trump as of Friday. That included 160 posts in one night.
New kids on the block
State lawmakers won’t be on the ballot until next year. But the Legislature will have four new members in January after a series of special elections this year.
Get to know your newest members:
- Akbar Ali. The Kennesaw State University graduate will succeed Shelly Hutchinson in House District 23. Ali will be 21 when the Legislature convenes in January. (He’ll turn 22 later that month). He might be the youngest person ever elected to the Georgia General Assembly.
- Jason Dickerson. The Republican will replace Brandon Beach in the Senate. Dickerson owns Quest Trucking. You might have seen the company’s tractor trailers on the highway decorated to honor U.S. military veterans.
- Eric Gisler. The Democrat flipped the Athens area seat in House District 121 previously held by Republican Marcus Wiedower. Gisler is head of product for Assurified, an insurance tech startup focused on rental housing. He also owns the Olive Basket, an Athens shop that sells olive oils and balsamic vinegars. Listen to the “Politically Georgia” podcast interview with him.
- Jaha Howard. The Democrat succeeds Jason Esteves in the Senate. The former Cobb County school board member thought his career in public office was over when he lost an election for the Cobb County commission earlier this year. But Esteves’ resignation gave him another shot at returning to public office, and voters chose him over former state Rep. Roger Bruce in a close race.
The Legislature will add a fifth new person after a special runoff election on Jan. 6. Republican Bill Fincher and Democrat Scott Sanders are vying to replace former state rep. Mandi Ballinger, who died in October after a battle with cancer.
Lead concerns
About seven years ago, a doctoral student at Emory University discovered dangerously high levels of lead in West Atlanta. The federal government added the site to its list of U.S. polluted locations requiring long term cleanup. It also gave Emory a grant to study ways to measure and mitigate children’s exposure to lead.
But the Trump administration canceled that grant in May. Now U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff is pushing to have the funding reinstated.
“This research was critical, as childhood exposure to heavy metals like lead can cause neurocognitive disorders, behavioral disorders, respiratory problems, cancer, and cardiovascular diseases,” Ossoff wrote in a letter to Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin last week.
Georgia colleges and universities have lost lots of federal funding this year as the Trump administration has slashed spending.
Listen up
Today on the “Politically Georgia” podcast we examine how President Donald Trump’s influence is shaping Georgia politics.
You can listen and subscribe to Politically Georgia for free an Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.
Have a question or comment for the show? Email us at politicallygeorgia@ajc.com or give us a call at 770-810-5297 and you could be featured on a future episode.
Collins at Turning Point
The deep divisions among MAGA Republicans were on display over the weekend during Turning Point USA’s first national conference since the assassination of founder Charlie Kirk.
But that didn’t seem to faze U.S. Rep. Mike Collins, R-Jackson, who delivered a speech on Saturday dripping with praise for President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance.
Collins, who is a candidate for U.S. Senate and hoping for the president’s endorsement, said that Trump “will go down as one of the best presidents in the history of this country,” according to snippets he posted on social media.
Vance delivered a keynote speech. His 2028 presidential ambitions were endorsed by CEO Erika Kirk, the widow of Charlie Kirk. Collins said Vance is an example of the American dream and an ideal conservative.
“Man, you talk about a vice president that gets it,” Collins said. “We shut down that border that Joe Biden left wide open. We’re making America energy dominant. That’s right. Drill, baby, drill.”
Today in Washington
- President Donald Trump is at his Mar-a-Lago home in Florida for the holidays but will make a foreign policy announcement this afternoon.
- The House and Senate are out for the holiday break.
Shoutouts
Today’s birthday:
- U.S. Rep. Barry Loudermilk, R-Cassville.
Belated birthday:
- Jeremy Berry, election law attorney and political mover-and-shaker (was Saturday).
Noteworthy:
- U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan, the chair of the House Judiciary Committee, has endorsed state Rep. Houston Gaines’ bid for Georgia’s 10th Congressional District. The Republican is the early front-runner in the race to succeed U.S. Rep. Mike Collins, who is running for U.S. Senate.
Want a birthday shoutout in the Politically Georgia newsletter? There’s a form for that. Click here to submit the shoutouts. It’s not just birthdays. We’re also interested in new jobs, engagements, birth announcements, etc.
Before you go
President Donald Trump has appointed Louisiana Republican Gov. Jeff Landry as the U.S. special envoy to Greenland, the vast territory that the president has said he wants to take over.
That’ll do it for us today. As always, you can send your best scoops, gossip and insider info to greg.bluestein@ajc.com, tia.mitchell@ajc.com, patricia.murphy@ajc.com and adam.beam@ajc.com.
About the Authors
Greg Bluestein is the Atlanta Journal Constitution's chief political reporter. He is also an author, TV analyst and co-host of the Politically Georgia podcast.
Tia Mitchell is the AJC’s Washington Bureau Chief and a co-host of the "Politically Georgia" podcast. She writes about Georgia’s congressional delegation, campaigns, elections and the impact that decisions made in D.C. have on residents of the Peach State.
Patricia Murphy is the AJC's senior political columnist. She was previously a nationally syndicated columnist for CQ Roll Call, national political reporter for the Daily Beast and Politics Daily, and wrote for The Washington Post and Garden & Gun. She graduated from Vanderbilt and holds a master’s degree in journalism from Columbia University.
