The last empty political space left by the July death of U.S. Rep. John Lewis was filled last night. Former Atlanta city councilman Kwanza Hall will fill the remaining 30 days or so left in Lewis’ 2018-2020 term:
The Associated Press called the race for Hall shortly after midnight. He had defeated former Morehouse College president Robert Franklin in the Fifth District congressional runoff.
Once the state certifies the election, Hall will be eligible to be sworn into Congress and participate in any voting in Washington. His term will end Jan. 3 when Nikema Williams will take over the seat. Williams was selected to replace Lewis on the general ballot and will serve a full two-year term.
According to this morning’s tally on the secretary of state’s website, Hall won 54% of 22,394 ballots cast. Tuesday was the third time in four months that Fifth District voters have gone to the poll – once in September to shape Tuesday’s runoff, then again in November of the full term won by Williams. And a fourth, statewide election will be held on Jan. 5.
It has been a voting-palooza in the district of a man who made preservation of the right to vote his life’s work. “Congressman Lewis would be proud to know that the Fifth District turned out,” Michael Collins told us this morning.
Collins served for 21 years as Lewis’ floor assistant and chief of staff. Depending on when he’s sworn in, and what legislation moves during a lame-duck session of Congress, Hall won’t be able to cast many votes.
“He might be able to vote on the budget – the stimulus package, if that gets before us. It’s going to go by pretty fast. Christmas break is upon us,” Collins said. “Whatever it is, the vote will be important. Representation is key. So it’s important.”
But Hall will have to do it without Collins or the dozen or so other staffers who considered working for Lewis more a calling than a job. “Yesterday was their last day. They were in office until a member is elected. Yesterday, a member was elected,” Collins said. “I’m officially unemployed. The entire staff is unemployed.”
We asked Collins what he might do next. “I had the most unique experience of a lifetime, to work with Congressman Lewis. And you have to find something that mirrors that,” he said. “Congressman Lewis walked and worked along side Dr. King. It’s a direct line. So we all have this responsibility and opportunity to make sure this legacy continues.”
Coming back to Atlanta, Collins said, is a distinct possibility.
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Also decided in Tuesday voting:
-- Sonya Halpern won the state Senate District 39 seat given up by Nikema Williams, the state Democratic party chair who will replace John Lewis in Congress come January.’ old state Senate District 39 seat.
-- Deborah Gonzalez will be the new district attorney for Athens-Clarke and Oconee counties. It was the sixth top prosecutor seat that Democrats flipped statewide, and Gonzalez is the first Puerto Rican woman to hold that title in Georgia.
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The most important news you probably haven’t heard about yet: On Tuesday, U.S. Rep. David Scott, D-Atlanta, won his bid to become chairman of the House Agriculture Committee, receiving the support from a majority of steering committee members. Scott was the most senior member of the committee after its leader lost re-election in November, but a colleague of California had challenged him for the chairmanship.
Scott will oversee policy related to farming, nutrition programs and even forestry. Given Georgia’s economic reliance on agriculture, Scott’s newly acquired clout is no small thing -- especially when you consider former governor Sonny Perdue’s pending departure as secretary of agriculture under the Trump administration.
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One journalist described Gabriel Sterling’s Tuesday outburst as “cold hard fury.” The New York Times called it “one of the most striking rebukes to President Trump since he launched his baseless attacks on the American electoral process.”
Needless to say, Sterling’s now-viral condemnation of threats of violence triggered by phoney claims of a rigged election have made an impression.
Sterling specifically called out two Georgia politicians in his speech: U.S. Sens. Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue, the two GOP incumbents facing Jan. 5 runoffs. Both called for his boss, Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, to resign in a move to appease Trump.
“I’m talking about Sen. David Perdue and Sen. Kelly Loeffler, two people whom I still support. But they need to step up.”
Shortly after his remarks, both the campaigns issued statements condemning the threats that have made necessary a security detail outside Raffensperger’s house, which is routinely targeted by pro-Trump caravans demanding that he overturn the election results. So did a few other Republican officials, including Attorney General Chris Carr.
But it wasn’t lost upon Georgia’s chattering class that those same politicians were tightlipped for the last three weeks as Raffensperger and his wife faced death threats; as Sterling required extra security; as low-level elections staffers were bombarded with promises of violence.
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Already posted: More than a dozen former state GOP leaders penned a letter Wednesday urging current elected officials and Republican voters to shift their focus to the Jan. 5 runoffs for control of the U.S. Senate – and, more implicitly, away from the divisive infighting over President Donald Trump’s defeat. Among those putting their names to the letter: Former Gov. Nathan Deal; ex-U.S. Sens. Saxby Chambliss, Johnny Isakson and Mack Mattingly; former congressmen Bob Barr and Jack Kingston; and three former chairs of the state GOP.
Former lieutenant governor Casey Cagle, who has kept a low profile since is defeat in the 2018 gubernatorial primary chimed in on Twitter:
There are understandably strong emotions in the aftermath of an election that didn't end in victory, but those threatening civil servants should be held accountable. Let's refocus on defeating the pandemic & on bringing back the economy for families struggling during the holidays
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The TV spending on Georgia’s U.S. Senate runoffs crossed a staggering threshold this week, topping the $300 million mark.
That makes the Jan. 5 twin contests by far the most expensive political races in Georgia history. And there’s still a month or so to go.
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Vice President-elect Kamala Harris’ sister and niece have teamed up with a slate of South Asian actors in a video with liberal media platform NowThis to spur members of that community to register and vote in the Jan. 5 U.S. Senate runoff elections in Georgia, our AJC colleague Maya T. Prabhu tells us.
Harris is of Indian and Jamaican descent.
The video features Nik Dodani, from Netflix’s “Atypical,” dreaming about a Diwali celebration at the White House when fellow actors Kal Penn and Sendhil Ramamurthy remind him that they can’t rest until Democrats Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock are elected to the Senate. Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights, is an annual celebration that is considered the start of the new year.
Also appearing in the video are actors Manish Dayal and Punam Patel as well as Harris’ sister Maya Harris and niece Meena Harris. The campaign, which launched today, is aimed at the estimated 100,000 South Asian voters who live in Georgia.
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Jenny Beth Martin, co-founder of the conservative group Tea Party Patriots, has joined President Trump’s legal team in Georgia. Her representatives tell us that Martin is the only non-attorney on the team.
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Stacey Abrams’ Fair Fight political organization is hosting a virtual concert Thursday night that will double as a fundraiser.
The “Rock the Runoff” concert will be hosted by actress Kerry Washington and feature Abrams along with performances from John Legend, Ludacris Justin Timberlake and the Indigo Girls. Proceeds will be spent on turning out Democratic voters in the Jan. 5 runoffs for U.S. Senate. Tickets for the concert start at $5.
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MTV, the cable channel with a youthful viewership, is donating a collective $160,000 to 16 Georgia-based, youth-focused organizations that will be used to mobilize voters ahead of the runoffs.
The organizations receiving funds include Fair Count, the New Georgia Project, CivicGeorgia, Black Voters Matter Capacity Building Institute, Students for Justice, Joy to the Polls, Poder Latinx Collective Fund, Georgia Muslim Voter Project, Athens Anti-Discrimination Movement and Georgia Youth Poll Worker Project.
