Brian Kemp signs law making many metro Atlanta races nonpartisan

Gov. Brian Kemp signed a law Tuesday that makes most local races in five heavily Democratic metro Atlanta counties nonpartisan, embracing a Republican-backed effort that could boost the party’s chances in deep-blue areas while weakening one of its chief targets: Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis.

The law applies to district attorneys, county commissioners and other elected officials in Clayton, Cobb, DeKalb, Fulton and Gwinnett counties beginning in 2028. The law exempts sheriffs. It’s unclear if it applies to the DeKalb County Commission.

The measure’s Republican supporters crafted it to make it harder for Democrats to retain power in the state’s most populous region, though they framed it as a path to depoliticize local government offices.

Still, they did little to distance the overhaul from their disdain of Willis, the Fulton County district attorney who led the unsuccessful election-interference case against President Donald Trump and his allies. Several co-sponsors referred to her during debate over the measure.

The measure, House Bill 369, was one of hundreds Kemp signed ahead of a Tuesday deadline to act on legislation that the Republican-controlled General Assembly sent to his desk this year.

Kemp has spent the last few days holding signing ceremonies with smiling lawmakers over popular proposals that cut income taxes and limited the growth in property tax assessments.

He also signed a slate of measures with more concrete effects for Georgians.

One would allow pharmacists to prescribe oral and injectable contraceptives. Another lets businesses round up or down when giving change to account for the U.S. Mint’s decision to stop making new pennies.

He also signed a bill to publicly disclose sexual harassment settlements involving lawmakers, an issue that has been an undercurrent in the heated GOP race for lieutenant governor.

State Sen. Blake Tillery, one of five current or former sitting legislators vying for the party’s nomination, challenged his rivals during a debate to sign a waiver saying they would comply with the legislation even if Kemp didn’t sign it. All did so.

But much of the attention on Tuesday was what Kemp blocked. He blocked $300 million in spending from the state budget to help offset what he said is a $1.3 billion deficit created by signing the tax cuts.

And he nixed 12 bills, including several tax incentive measures. One measure he vetoed would have boosted the percentage of sales tax revenue from outdoor recreation equipment to a conservation trust fund, but Kemp said he vetoed it because lawmakers failed to offset the cost in the budget.

The decision to sign the law targeting nonpartisan elections in some metro Atlanta counties could prove costly. Democratic district attorneys have promised to sue the state to block the law, which opponents say disproportionately affects Black elected leaders. All five counties covered by the law have Black Democratic women serving as district attorney.

Willis said it was “racist, sexist and clearly unconstitutional.” DeKalb District Attorney Sherry Boston called it a “blatant attempt to steal power” from elected metro Atlanta leaders, since it didn’t apply to all counties in Georgia.

“It is shameful that during the current affordability crisis, Republicans at the Capitol would choose to advance partisan legislation that degrades voting rights and will cost taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal fees to defend,” she said.

The stakes were especially high because the legislation is deeply intertwined with the political fallout from Willis’ failed prosecution of Trump and his allies.