A series of campaign mailers in a race to fill a newly created state House seat are being called racist and misleading by the Democratic and Republican candidates.
The cross claims about the campaign ads that fill mailboxes leading up to Election Day take place around an open seat in the new district in Monroe and Macon-Bibb counties that is drawn to be majority-Black.
A Strong Georgia Inc. — a conservative political action committee — sent a campaign mailer to voters featuring Tangie Herring, who is Black, wearing a crown while calling her a “royal mess with her finances,” according to images reviewed by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. The negative advertisement claims that Herring was unable to manage her money.
“How can we trust Tangie Herring to manage our state’s finances?” the mailer asks.
Herring, the Democratic nominee in House District 145, filed bankruptcy back in 2015. A U.S. trustee filed a motion to dismiss it because it appeared that she had overstated her debt and was making enough income to cover it. However, Herring’s lawyer at the time showed that because she was going through a divorce, her finances appeared to show a different front than the reality of her situation. The trustee subsequently withdrew and her case was discharged in normal fashion a few months later.
“Here’s the truth about what has happened,” she said. “Nearly a decade ago, I made some very difficult choices, including filing bankruptcy in order to take care of myself and my child. I think a lot of women can relate to that, if you’re going through a divorce or something of that sort.”
She said the process to address her finances was done legally. She also criticized Republicans for staying “silent” about their party’s leader, former President Donald Trump, whose companies have filed for bankruptcy multiple times.
“The hypocrisy is stunning to me,” she said.
Herring also said the mailers perpetuate harmful stereotypes about Black women.
“A lot of the times when you see crowns on Black women, it’s like you are a welfare queen who takes advantage of financial opportunities,” she said. “It’s just unfortunate that someone would send out these attacks that are aimed to discredit and belittle me as a Black woman running to represent a majority-Black district. This type of campaign tactic not only disrespects me as a candidate, but it’s also an affront to the entire community.”
“Welfare queen” is a derogatory term that was popularized during Ronald Reagan’s failed 1976 presidential campaign as someone, usually a Black woman, who lives off taxpayer money without contributing to society. There also is a long-standing racist notion that Black people are unable to manage money.
Noah Harbuck, who is white, said the campaign mailers were sent on his behalf but did not come from his campaign. He is aware of the mailers but has not focused on Herring’s finances.
“I don’t know what’s racist about pointing out somebody’s financials, but I think people should know who they’re voting for,” said Harbuck, the Republican nominee.
Republicans, meanwhile, are accusing the Georgia Democratic Party of sending out a mailer that features a photo of a man wearing a “Desert Storm Veteran” hat next to the quote “Noah Harbuck and his pals attack families, freedom, prosperity, and our right to vote … No thanks, and no sir!”
However, the photo appears to be a stock image. Harbuck said the mailer, shared with the AJC, misleads voters to believe a local veteran criticized him and admonished the implication. Mailers using the same stock image have been used to attack Republicans in several other Georgia House races.
Harbuck said his aunt is a Desert Storm veteran, and that both of his brothers were in the military.
“I mean, just to use a veteran in a mailer to attack me, it rubbed me the wrong way,” he said.
Herring also said the mailer didn’t come from her campaign. She condemned the advertisements, saying “half of my family are veterans and public safety officers” and “that is nothing that I would do.”
The Democratic Party of Georgia declined to comment.
The candidates are competing over one of five new majority-Black districts a federal judge created last year after he ruled that the previous maps drawn by Republicans had illegally weakened Black voting power. These districts are likely to be won by Democrats because Black voters overwhelmingly support Democrats. In a recent AJC poll, about 74% of Black likely voters said they were supporting Vice President Kamala Harris in the upcoming election.
Herring said the district has a slight Democratic edge, but it’s still close.
“This district and the strength of my candidacy is supposed to lean mostly for African Americans,” she said. “But even though this seat was drawn to increase more minority representation, there’s still room for a Republican to take the seat.”
Seeing an opportunity, Republicans have pushed for their nominee, Harbuck, with the full force of Gov. Brian Kemp behind him.
“On paper, statistically, I should be an underdog, but I don’t feel like one,” Harbuck said. “I just want to listen to everybody and be a representative for our district here in Middle Georgia.”
Harbuck, a State Farm agent, said that if he is elected, he wants to focus on “how we can lower our insurance premiums, because everybody has to pay insurance.”
“That’s my top priority for battling inflation,” he said.
Herring wants the race to focus on issues such as increasing reproductive rights, improving public safety and expanding Medicaid in Georgia.
She also wants to provide more funding to public schools “so that every child has an opportunity for a world-class education.”
Early voting in Georgia ends Friday.
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