There’s more than a year to go until the 2026 midterm election. But in battleground Georgia, the races for U.S. Senate, governor and a host of other contests are already heating up. Georgia has played a critical role in recent elections, and it’s expected to again prove a bellwether.
At the state Capitol, there’s a wide-open race to replace Republican Gov. Brian Kemp, who is prevented by term limits from running for reelection.
In Washington, U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff, a Democrat, is seeking a second term and trying to prove that Georgia is still a swing state, despite backing Donald Trump for president in November.
Then there are a host of down-ballot races — from statewide constitutional officers to members of Congress to state legislators.
State Rep. Tanya Miller, a Democrat from Atlanta, said Wednesday she will not seek the Democratic nomination for attorney general.
"No, I do not plan to run at this time," Miller, the chair of the House Democratic caucus, told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Miller, a trial attorney, is an emerging leader in statewide Democratic politics. She was a prominent voice opposing Gov. Brian Kemp's civil litigation legislation that narrowly passed the Legislature earlier this year.
Miller's decision not to run further narrows the Democratic field for the state's top lawyer. Former Democratic House leader Bob Trammell formally announced his campaign for attorney general Wednesday morning, saying "the fight for a stronger and safer Georgia begins now."
DeKalb District Attorney Sherry Boston also said she is not planning to run for the statewide office.
Meanwhile, two Republicans — state Sens. Bill Cowsert and Brian Strickland — are vying for their party's nomination for the job.
Members of a special study committee in the Georgia House of Representatives met for the first time this week to brainstorm new laws governing medical and recreational marijuana and hemp products.
Earlier this year, state lawmakers debated banning THC-infused drinks and gummies and ways to make medical marijuana more accessible and effective.
Read more about the committee's work here.
Gov. Brian Kemp asking donors to rally behind former college football coach Derek Dooley’s impending U.S. Senate campaign has already taken a bite out of other Republican candidates' fundraising efforts.
But U.S. Rep. Mike Collins’ campaign is proving that not everyone is falling in line.
Several prominent Republicans are openly bucking Kemp to support Collins, including state Senate Majority Leader Jason Anavitarte, state House Majority Whip James Burchett and former U.S. Rep. Max Burns, now a member of the Georgia Senate.
More big names joined the list on Wednesday, including state Rep. Matthew Gambill — one of Kemp’s floor leaders in the state House — and former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich.
Read more here.
Mike Collins bid for the U.S. Senate has set off a scramble for his U.S. House seat.
The district stretches from Atlanta’s eastern suburbs to the South Carolina line and is solidly Republican.
The most prominent GOP candidate expected to run so far is state Rep. Houston Gaines of Athens, an ally of Gov. Brian Kemp and a rising Republican with roughly $900,000 banked in his account.
But other familiar names could jump in. Former U.S. Rep. Paul Broun, who lost a Senate race in 2014 and finished fourth in the 2022 primary that Collins won, said he’s “consulting with his wife and friends” before making a decision.
Democrat Lexy Doherty, an educational consultant who lost to Collins last year, is running again.
Read more here.
Ride-sharing company Lyft was reprimanded Tuesday by the Georgia State Election Board for offering discounted rides to the polls on Election Day.
The board voted 3-1 to send a letter reprimanding the company but did not recommend a fine or criminal sanction. Board member Janice Johnston said the discounted rides were unfair to voters in rural locations where rides were harder to come by.
Read more here.
U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene announced Tuesday on social media she would not run for governor of Georgia in 2026, ending speculation about her plans.
“One day, I might just run purely out of the blessing of the wonderful people of Georgia, my family and friends,” she wrote in a lengthy social media post, “but it won’t be in 2026.”
In the same post, Greene criticized Republicans' "lukewarm platforms that never address the real issues plaguing our state.”
Read more here.
U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene condemned the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Gaza calling it a "genocide."
“It’s the most truthful and easiest thing to say that Oct 7th in Israel was horrific and all hostages must be returned, but so is the genocide, humanitarian crisis, and starvation happening in Gaza,” Greene said in a social media post on Monday.
The New York Times said Greene was the first congressional Republican to use the word to describe the unfolding Middle East conflict. The Georgia Republican is a strong supporter of President Donald Trump's MAGA agenda.
Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger is moving ahead with the latest phase of Georgia’s voter roll audit, announcing this morning that his office completed a mailing to more than 218,000 voters.
The postcards were sent to registrants listed as active but who haven’t voted or updated their information in at least five years.
Voters who don’t respond will be shifted to inactive status — and if they remain inactive through the 2026 and 2028 elections, they’ll be eligible for removal ahead of 2029. Raffensperger called the outreach a routine part of list maintenance required by state and federal law, although voting rights activists say it risks disenfranchising eligible voters.
Related: Georgia begins one of the largest voter registration cancellations in history
U.S. Rep. Mike Collins says his Senate campaign raised $220,000 in the first 12 hours after making his candidacy official Monday.
That number can't be verified until Collins, R-Jackson, submits his first quarterly campaign finance report in mid-October. But he is hoping to have the type of haul that scares off the competition, which is currently fellow Congressman Buddy Carter and in the coming days could also include former football coach Derek Dooley.
"It's been a fast-paced 12 hrs," Collins wrote on X. "Wouldn't have it any other way."
Read more here.
Congressman Mike Collins' announcement that he will seek the Republican nomination for the seat currently held by U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff has shaken up the race and drawn national headlines.
But on X, people are also talking about an unfortunate typo in a video posted on an account used to amplify Collins' campaign. In the teaser video, which Collins' team said was created by a fan, his home state is misspelled "Georiga" at the very end.
A spokesman for Collins said his campaign is aware of the typo but won't be taking the video down.
"They meant well, and it’s a nice video," the spokesman said. "It’s not the first and won’t be the last.”