Georgia U.S. Senate race is slipping off the GOP radar

Today’s newsletter highlights:

• Test your knowledge with our Friday news quiz.
• Keisha Lance Bottoms launches a new ad portraying Rick Jackson as a product of a “rigged system.”
• Republicans get some good news on the economy.

Fading focus

U.S. Rep. Mike Collins speaks to reporters after touring the Piedmont University Nursing Facility with Medicare & Medicaid Services Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz on Sunday in Athens. (Miguel Martinez/AJC)

Political insiders had long circled Labor Day as a pivotal moment for U.S. Rep. Mike Collins. The holiday has come and gone, and the GOP Senate nominee is facing mounting warning signs.

National Republican groups pledged nearly $60 million to help Collins unseat Democratic U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff, but only a fraction of that spending has materialized so far. And now concerns Georgia Republicans have long voiced are getting national play.

Several outlets reported that Senate GOP leaders didn’t even bother mentioning Georgia in private donor meetings at the GOP midterm convention this month.

The New York Times followed with another awkward detail: Collins was sitting in the room when a presentation touted four “quality” Senate recruits. He wasn’t one of them.

Then there’s U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, the former two-term chair of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, who offered an even starker assessment to Semafor:

“Georgia looks like it’s pretty close to done. And North Carolina seems to be close to that.”

Collins’ allies are desperate to show donors and decision makers the campaign is still viable.

They’re pointing to a new $2.1 million ad buy from Senate Majority Leader John Thune’s Senate Leadership Fund, along with a Sept. 24 Atlanta fundraiser headlined by Thune and Gov. Brian Kemp, who was Thune’s first pick for the seat.

Friday news quiz

Stockbridge Mayor Jayden Williams answers questions as a witness during an investigative hearing on Saturday. (Frankie Cole for the AJC)

Good morning! How closely did you follow the news this week? Find out by taking our quiz. You’ll find the answers at the end of the newsletter:

Stockbridge Mayor Jayden Williams faced allegations of sexual misconduct, unauthorized spending and mistreatment of city employees. How did the City Council respond?

• A) They voted to give him, and themselves, a raise.
• B) They approved a resolution condemning his behavior and urging him to resign.
• C) They voted to remove him from office.
• D) Nothing. Council members have declined to comment and did not discuss the allegations during their latest meeting.

An analysis by AdImpact showed Republican nominee for governor Rick Jackson has reserved nearly $76 million worth of airtime during the general election. How much has Democratic nominee Keisha Lance Bottoms reserved?

• A) $30 million.
• B) $42,000.
• C) $10 million.
• D) $5 million.

The secretary of state’s office sent a memo to county election officials this week. What did it say?

• A) Don’t make any changes to the absentee ballot process, despite an order from President Donald Trump.
• B) It urged them to engage local law enforcement to provide security at polling places for the midterms.
• C) Noted it is illegal for election workers to bet or participate in prediction markets for election-related events.
• D) Announced a new policy of not announcing vote totals until all ballots have been counted.

What Trump administration official traveled to Georgia this week to promote a federal program?

• A) Dr. Mehmet Oz, administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
• B) Veterans Affairs Secretary Doug Collins.
• C) Acting Labor Secretary Keith Sonderling.
• D) Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

Ad watch

A screenshot from a campaign ad featuring Democratic nominee for governor Keisha Lance Bottoms.

“Rigged” has become a loaded political buzzword ever since President Donald Trump started using it to describe U.S. elections. Now, Democrats are reclaiming it for the Georgia governor’s race.

Facing questions about whether she can financially keep pace with billionaire Republican Rick Jackson, Democratic nominee Keisha Lance Bottoms went on offense Thursday with a new ad portraying her rival as a product of a “rigged system.”

In this case, she’s not talking about elections. Instead, it’s a reference to what she calls the “broken healthcare system.”

“He can’t stop us from fighting the rigged system that made him rich,” Bottoms says in the ad.

Jackson owns a healthcare staffing company. Some of his fortune came from government contracts he signed during the pandemic.

“Slick Rick’s got the money. But we’ve got the power,” Jackson says.

Empty chairs

Democratic Congressional candidate Tony Kozycki speaks at the Democratic Party of Georgia convention in Savannah last month. (Arvin Temkar/AJC)

We’re in the thick of debate season. But lately, most of them have been one-sided.

Last night, Bottoms participated in a “Middle Georgia Decides” forum in Macon that Jackson skipped. And Democratic congressional candidate Tony Kozycki says his opponent, Republican U.S. Rep. Rich McCormick, has not committed to a debate tonight in Flowery Branch moderated by AccessNorthGA’s William Daughtry.

“Rich has skipped three debates already, and now Congress is out of session and he’s still ducking a fourth,” Kozycki said.

McCormick said he doesn’t recall being invited to the event. But even he was invited, he isn’t inclined to share the stage with his challenger.

“If it’s Tony, it’s just trying to get me to react because the only thing that can happen with a debate is publicity for him which he badly needs,” the Suwanee Republican told us.

It’s not just in Georgia. In Michigan, Republican U.S. Senate candidate Mike Rogers skipped a televised debate with Democrat Abdul El-Sayed. The Hill reported El-Sayed “spoke for an hour next to an empty podium.” And in Wisconsin, multiple debates for governor have been canceled after the Republican candidate, Tom Tiffany, declined to participate.

In Georgia, both Bottoms and Kozycki have made much about their opponents unwillingness to debate. Jackson has committed to an Oct. 6 town-hall style forum hosted by Atlanta News First.

“My focus is talking to the people that matter the most and that’s the Georgians, and that’s what I’m doing,” Jackson said.

Economy watch

Portraits of Presidents Donald Trump and Theodore Roosevelt hang above the Department of Labor in Washington in July. (J. Scott Applewhite/AP).

Republicans got some good news on the economy this week.

National unemployment claims fell to 196,000 last week, the lowest since mid-July. The Associated Press noted it’s “another sign that layoffs remain rare and most Americans enjoy job security.”

In Georgia, the labor force reached an all-time high in August at more than 5.3 million. The unemployment rate dropped to 3.2%, a two-and-a-half-year low.

“Georgia’s job market is stronger than ever,” Georgia Labor Commissioner Bárbara Rivera Holmes said in a news release.

Democrats have been campaigning hard on affordability issues amid rising inflation. The Federal Reserve this week voted to raise its main interest rate for the first time in three years.

Listen up

There is no “Politically Georgia” podcast today. We’ll be back on Monday.

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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.

Warnock’s AI problem

U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock, D-Ga., speaks at a news conference on the Voting Rights Act, across the street from the Supreme Court, in Washington, D.C., in April. (Nathan Posner for the AJC)

U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock started receiving curious calls from constituents and friends. Did he recently have surgery because of a medical emergency? Did he have twin grandchildren on the way? Had he grown a full head of hair?

None of it was true. The information was spread via a Facebook page full of fake images created with artificial intelligence. The page was taken down after Warnock’s team informed Facebook.

Warnock said AI is making it harder to differentiate fact from fiction and wondered if it could eventually be used by a bad actor to shift public opinion about a candidate or an election. He said the experience reinforced concerns that AI was not just a threat to safety and jobs but democracy itself.

“Social media companies have to move quickly to label this material,” he said. “Congress needs to act. We need guardrails. We need regulations. We need to figure this out. The future is already here.”

Today in Washington

• Trump will meet with the finalists of his administration’s small business competition and make an announcement on healthcare before hosting a fundraiser for his MAGA Inc. super PAC.
• The Senate returns on Tuesday.
• The House is out until after the midterm elections.

CBC week

Georgia House minority leader Carolyn Hugley, seen here at the state Capitol in 2025. (Jason Getz/AJC)

The Congressional Black Caucus’ Annual Legislative Conference is in full swing. And Georgia, which has more CBC members than any other state, is well represented in the slate of official and unofficial events connected to the annual gathering of elected officials, political staffers, consultants and the businesses that hope to influence them.

Here are just some of the events happening today:

• A breakfast hosted by state House Democratic Leader Carolyn Hugley. U.S. Rep. Everton Blair, the delegation’s newest member, is among the lawmakers scheduled to attend.
• Warnock’s second annual CBC brunch.
• U.S. Rep. Lucy McBath, D-Marietta, is hosting an afternoon event celebrating women of the CBC.
• U.S. Rep. Sanford Bishop, D-Albany, is hosting a panel discussion about the contributions and care needs of Black military service members.
• U.S. Rep. Hank Johnson, D-Lithonia, is posting a panel of his own about the federal judiciary in the age of Donald Trump.
• And capping the evening with one of the hottest tickets in town: the annual Sneaker Ball hosted by U.S. Rep. Nikema Williams, D-Atlanta.

On Thursday afternoon, Warnock and Ossoff hosted a reception welcoming Georgians in town for the festivities. They invited the entire Georgia delegation, including Republicans, to attend. McCormick was the only GOP lawmaker who took them up on their offer.

McCormick is thought to be considering a run for U.S. Senate in 2028, which would make him a challenger to Warnock if the incumbent seeks another term.

The Suwanee Republican spoke briefly at the reception, reminding the crowd of his resume and ties to the Morehouse School of Medicine. He said the people in the room, most of them Black, may not agree with him on every issue, but they can find common ground.