PG A.M.: Redrawn GOP House redistricting map targets rising Democrats
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Macon schoolteacher Tangie Herring has spent her time outside the classroom since August with one goal in mind: To defeat fellow Democrat James Beverly, the state House minority leader.
She has attended community events, campaigned throughout the middle Georgia district, sought out endorsements from local leaders and raised thousands of dollars. But on Tuesday her political outlook changed dramatically when the proposed GOP House map drew her out of Beverly’s district — and into an open neighboring one.
“It’s amazing how fast things can change,” said Herring, who sounded undaunted. “I’m still excited to serve the people of Georgia — even if the district has changed.”
A mix of shock, confusion and frustration was a common reaction after House Republicans unveiled the map to meet a federal judge’s order to create five new majority-Black districts. While Georgia Senate incumbents emerged mostly unscathed in a redistricting proposal unveiled Monday, the House seems headed toward an election year of intra-party fighting. Most of the political damage could be inflicted on Democrats.
Overall, Republicans in both chambers are pursuing a strategy to minimize their losses while adhering to the judge’s ruling as they prepare for a special session that begins today. It remains to be seen, however, whether the maps — which seem likely to net Democrats two or three House seats — will meet the court’s standards.
House Speaker Jon Burns of Newington, the chamber’s top Republican, expressed confidence the new map will pass the court’s scrutiny, while Democrats are taking stock of the potential fallout.
“I’m used to reapportionment being a very mean process that eliminates a lot of good people,” said state Rep. Mary Margaret Oliver, D-Decatur.
“Once again we see districts that geographically make little sense — except that they serve some political interest and could, in some areas, increase Black voting strength.”
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DEEPER DIVE. Among the other takeaways of the new House map:
- Eight lawmakers were drawn into the same districts with colleagues from their own party under the proposed map — six of them Democrats and two Republicans.
- Two new majority-Black districts would be created in south metro Atlanta, another in Douglas County and another in Macon. A fifth would encompass an area from Macon to Milledgeville, and it’s the only of the five new districts held by an incumbent: Republican Ken Vance of Milledgeville.
- Among the rising Democrats targeted are Rep. Sam Park, a party leader from Lawrenceville who would be paired against Rep. Greg Kennard, also a Lawrenceville resident and one of the few white Democrats in the chamber. Rep. Saira Draper, a voting rights expert who holds Stacey Abrams’ former seat in Atlanta, was lumped in with Rep. Becky Evans, also of Atlanta. And Rep. Teri Anulewicz of Smyrna could face Rep. Doug Stoner, also of Smyrna, in a Cobb-based seat.
- The two Republicans drawn together — state Reps. Beth Camp of Concord and David Knight of Griffin — say they’ll begrudgingly agree to the map. Speculation is one of them will retire rather than run for another term.
- Insiders say a newly drawn Milledgeville-based district could set the stage for a run by Democrat Quentin Howell, a plaintiff in the lawsuit that challenged Georgia’s political maps and led to the court-ordered redo. Howell lost a 2020 bid for a House seat. He would challenge Vance, who lives in a redrawn district that would have a narrow Black majority.
The proposed U.S. House map is expected to be released later this week, and we are told lawmakers plan to comply with the judge’s order to create a new majority-Black district in west metro Atlanta.
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UNDER THE GOLD DOME:
- 10 a.m.: The House gavels into session.
- 10 a.m.: The Senate convenes.
- 1 p.m.: The House and Senate Reapportionment and Redistricting Committees meet separately to review newly drawn maps, including for public comment.
- Additional committees meet throughout the day.
The floor sessions and both hearings will be livestreamed at legis.ga.gov.
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LISTEN UP. Former U.S. Rep. John Barrow knows the perils of redistricting better than just about anyone.
Past rounds of redistricting led Barrow to move from Athens to Savannah to Augusta over his five-term tenure.
He shared his experiences on the Tuesday edition of the “Politically Georgia” radio show and podcast. He calls himself the “most gerrymandered member of Congress in the history of the Republic” and warns that the redrawing process, now underway again in Georgia, encourages a shift to the political extremes.
“Politically Georgia” is available at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts or wherever you listen to podcasts.
On today’s edition, which airs live at 10 a.m. on WABE 90.1 FM and livestreams at AJC.com and WABE.org, our political insiders explain former President Donald Trump’s strategy to defend himself in the Fulton County election interference case by arguing his false voting fraud claims were “core political speech” and thereby protected by the First Amendment.
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MONEY BATTLE. The GOP race for president kicks off in Iowa in less than 50 days, but the money-raising contest is already well underway.
A major development came Tuesday when the deep-pocketed Koch Network announced support for former United Nations ambassador and South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley. That pleased Atlanta’s Eric Tanenblatt, who is the Haley campaign’s national finance co-chair.
But the race’s front-runner, former President Donald Trump, likely won’t be hurting for cash either. Along with his small-dollar donor juggernaut, Trump has the support of Home Depot co-founder and Atlanta-based megadonor Bernie Marcus. He told Reuters on Tuesday he’s likely to bankroll Trump’s run even if the former president is convicted of a felony because “I think it’s all trumped up.”
More from the report:
Marcus, 94, who supported Trump's White House runs in 2016 and 2020, said he had spoken to the former president recently. “I never discussed his legal fees or his legal problems," Marcus said, adding that Trump was “very happy" about his support.
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GREENE ON TOUR. U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene’s tour to promote her new book “MTG” begins this weekend.
She has announced an event in Naples, Florida, on Saturday where tickets are $150 or $200. A copy of the book and sushi buffet is included. Greene, R-Rome, will travel on Sunday to The Villages, a retirement community in central Florida. The $60 VIP tickets for that event are sold out, but supporters can still purchase general admission seats that include a signed copy of the book for $40 plus fees.
Newsweek reports the book, which was released Nov. 21, isn’t charting as well as others written by members of Congress. And late night TV show host Jimmy Kimmel declined her request to be invited on his show to promote “MTG.”
But count former President Donald Trump among the book’s fans. “I know you will LOVE her new book,” he wrote in a post on Truth Social.
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TODAY IN WASHINGTON:
- President Joe Biden visits CS Wind in Pueblo, Colorado, the world’s largest wind turbine tower manufacturer, to highlight his clean energy initiatives.
- The U.S. Senate has confirmation votes lined up.
- The U.S. House begins debate on a bill to prohibit the federal government from housing undocumented immigrants on federal land. Also, the families of hostages captured by Hamas testify before the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee.
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REMEMBERING ROSALYNN: After two days of public events in Americus and Atlanta to honor the life of former first lady Rosalynn Carter, the final day of services returns to Plains today.
After a private funeral at the Carters’ beloved Maranatha Baptist Church, Rosalynn Carter’s remains will be interred at the home and garden she and Jimmy Carter shared for more than 60 years.
The front row at the formal memorial service Tuesday at Atlanta’s Glenn Memorial United Methodist Church included former President Jimmy Carter, President Joe Biden and all four living first ladies. Vice President Kamala Harris and second gentleman Doug Emhoff sat behind them.
Along with personal remembrances by Chip Carter and Amy Carter, two of the Carters’ four children, grandson Jason Carter also spoke.
“My grandmother doesn’t need a eulogy,” he said. “Her life was a sermon.”
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DOG OF THE DAY. After a lengthy delay, it’s time to meet Roscoe Mullinax-Binns, a beagle-coonhound mix as unique as his name.
Roscoe has called MARTA Chief of Staff Melissa Mullinax his person since she rescued him from the Atlanta Humane Society’s 10th Street shelter right around his first birthday.
After a lifetime with the cool kids in Midtown, a reliable source tells us Roscoe is no longer the houndiest hound around. He walks right by squirrels, ignores possums in the St. Charles alley, and won’t even chase a stick. But we have no doubt he knows his way around a food hall.
Roscoe, for being an intown hound, you’re our Dog of the Day.
Send us your dogs of any political persuasion and location, and cats on a cat-by-cat basis, to patricia.murphy@ajc.com, or DM us at @MurphyAJC.
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AS ALWAYS, “Politically Georgia” readers are some of our favorite tipsters. Send your best scoop, gossip and insider info to greg.bluestein@ajc.com, tia.mitchell@ajc.com, patricia.murphy@ajc.com, and adam.vanbrimmer@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.
Adam Van Brimmer is a journalist who covers politics and Coastal Georgia news for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
