Stacey Abrams distances herself from troubled New Georgia Project

The once-powerful group was hit this month with a $300,000 fine — the largest ever for violating Georgia campaign finance laws — for illegally supporting Abrams’ 2018 bid for governor. And behind the scenes, leaders recently laid off an undisclosed number of staffers.

Abrams, who founded the organization in 2014 while in the state Legislature, had previously declined to comment on the fine and the group’s internal struggles. But in a statement to Politically Georgia on Friday, she made clear that she is not involved.

“The setbacks at New Georgia Project are disappointing and my thoughts are with those laid off. I stepped away from NGP in 2017 to run for governor, and the organization took on new leadership and a new legal entity,” she said.

“Regardless of the structure, I will never stop believing in the mission of ensuring every Georgian can make their voice heard. This is critical work, and I’m glad so many Georgians continue to carry that torch.”

Credit: Christina Matacotta for the AJC

Credit: Christina Matacotta for the AJC

The New Georgia Project has been in turmoil for months. Capital B reported last year that four executives resigned or were dismissed over a six-month span due to internal strife. More layoffs took place after the election, an official confirmed.

A spokesman for the group declined to say how many staffers were let go over the last year. But in a statement, he said that NGP helped register more than 55,000 new voters in 2024, knocked on 840,000 doors and had 80,000 face-to-face conversations.

“The volunteers, members and staff of NGP are family, and reductions in staffing are never easy,” the group said in a statement. “Nevertheless, NGP must meet its obligation to align its staffing plan with available resources to accomplish its mission.”

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Credit: John McDonnell/AP

Credit: John McDonnell/AP

GOOD MORNING! State lawmakers are off today. They’ll pick back up on Monday.

Here are three things to know for today:

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Credit: Carolyn Kaster/AP

Credit: Carolyn Kaster/AP

FLIGHT FIGHTS. Before the deadly collision at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport on Wednesday, lawmakers from Georgia and other states with Delta hubs rallied in support of a thorny measure that increased the number of flights on the nation’s busiest runway.

The most recent fight pitted two of the country’s largest airlines against each other. Atlanta-based Delta Air Lines pushed hard to add flights to Reagan in a strategy to increase its competitive position, the AJC’s Kelly Yamanouchi reported. United Airlines pushed back, arguing that Dulles Airport in northern Virginia — where United has a hub — was built to be the region’s high-volume airspace.

United lost, despite concerns from officials in Maryland and Virginia. President Joe Biden signed a law reauthorizing the Federal Aviation Administration that added five more daily round-trip flights at Reagan, often referred to by its DCA airport code.

U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Rome, was the only lawmaker from Georgia who voted against the measure, saying she opposed the FAA’s green energy and diversity, equity and inclusion programs.

The cause of the collision is under investigation, and it is unclear whether the volume of flights at DCA is a factor at all.

Those new routes were awarded in late 2024, and the one round-trip slot awarded to Delta begins in March. The Wichita flight involved in Wednesday’s crash was not one of the routes added, though nonstop flights from that city to Washington were started only a year ago.

Virginia U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine, who strongly opposed the larger route expansion authorized last year, told NPR on Thursday that the crash only elevates his concerns.

“I mean, four crew members lost their lives last night in addition to the 60 passengers, in addition to the three soldiers,” he said. “So again, the (National Transportation Safety Board) will get to the bottom of this. And they’ll give us an answer. But I just continue to worry about the congestion issue.”

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Credit: Miguel Martinez/AJC

Credit: Miguel Martinez/AJC

PARTY ROLE. It’s a big weekend for U.S. Rep. Nikema Williams — and for the future of the Georgia Democratic Party.

Williams is the chair of the organization and also represents Atlanta in Congress. Now she’s running for vice chair of civic engagement and voter participation for the Democratic National Committee.

The election is Saturday. Should she win, it would give her an easy exit from her role as state party chair — a role that has become fraught in the aftermath of the party’s disappointing showing in the presidential election.

But to win, she’ll have to prevail over seven other candidates, including Georgia Democratic state Rep. Sheikh Rahman, D-Lawrenceville. During a candidate forum on Thursday, moderator Luke Russert asked Williams about Democrats losing support from voters who typically supported the party, including in Georgia.

“Georgia actually increased our voter participation by 74,000 Democratic votes from the 2020 election. But guess what? If you don’t win, it’s still not enough,” Williams said. “That means that we’ve got to meet people where they are. We’ve got to stop delivering a telegram message to a TikTok generation, which means we’ve got to invest in areas that we didn’t invest in before.”

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Credit: Greg Bluestein/AJC

Credit: Greg Bluestein/AJC

SHOW OF FORCE. For all the talk about “tort reform” being a thorny issue, it sure didn’t feel like it on Thursday.

Gov. Brian Kemp unveiled his highly-anticipated proposal aimed at limiting large jury awards in what has to be one of the largest Capitol news conferences in recent memory.

Joining Kemp were what felt like most of the Republican caucuses from the House and Senate, including the two leaders: Lt. Gov. Burt Jones and House Speaker Jon Burns. Hundreds of business groups filled in the steps and gallery behind them in a show of force that has been lacking from previous efforts to change the rules governing civil litigation.

But don’t be fooled. Despite Kemp’s show of strength, the opposition is well-organized and well-funded. It’s likely one reason why Kemp repeated his threat to call the Legislature into a special session later this year if they fail to act on his proposal. He knows it could fail.

Kemp is already turning up the pressure. In a first, his Georgia First Leadership Committee is planning a “seven-figure” media and message operation to push the issue in lawmakers’ districts.

“Everything is more expensive than it used to be — and hard working Georgians are footing the bill,” one social media ad says. After detailing elements of the litigation package, viewers are urged to “contact your state legislator and urge them to support Gov. Kemp’s tort reform package.”

Democrats are already portraying Republicans as acting to protect big business at the expense of the little guy, an argument you’re sure to hear repeated in the coming weeks.

“Georgia Republicans made it clear that their top priority is protecting the big corporate donors,” said House Minority Leader Carolyn Hugley, D-Columbus. “Too many Georgians have been left out and left behind.”

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Credit: Natrice Miller/AJC

Credit: Natrice Miller/AJC

CONTRASTING PRIORITIES. State Sen. Billy Hickman, R-Statesboro, opened his tenure as chair of the Senate Education and Youth Committee on Thursday by declaring two priorities: school safety and literacy.

But the first measure the committee voted on was Senate Bill 1, which would ban transgender athletes from competing against women in high school and college sports.

That apparent discord prompted grumbling from some LGBTQ+ allies in the audience, and some Democrats on the committee. State Sen. RaShaun Kemp, D-Atlanta, opened his comments by saying he had hoped to be talking about school safety and literacy during his first committee meeting as a senator.

“Unfortunately, we’re here discussing this,” he said.

But Republicans don’t view the committee’s vote as out of sync with its priorities. State Sen. Greg Dolezal, a Republican from Cumming, sees the bill foremost as a safety issue.

He pointed to the case of Payton McNabb, a North Carolina high school volleyball player who suffered a concussion and a neck injury after getting hit in the head by a volleyball from a transgender athlete. McNabb told North Carolina lawmakers in 2023 that she still suffered from headaches and partial paralysis on her right side.

“When I weigh those three things, I put safety first, fairness second and inclusion third,” Dolezal said. “I don’t want to have the next Payton McNabb be here in the state of Georgia.”

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LISTEN UP. On today’s “Politically Georgia,” it’s host Bill Nigut’s final show before he retires. He’ll interview legendary Democratic strategist James Carville.

Be sure to download the show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. Have a question for the show? Give us a call at 770-810-5297. Episodes are uploaded by noon each day, just in time to have lunch with us. You can also listen live at 10 a.m. EDT on 90.1 FM WABE.

On Friday’s show, state Sen. Josh McLaurin, D-Sandy Springs, discussed the major fight ahead over Georgia’s litigation rules.

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Credit: J. Scott Applewhite/AP

Credit: J. Scott Applewhite/AP

READY FOR CONFIRMATION. By a vote of 83-13, the U.S. Senate agreed to move forward with a vote to make former Georgia U.S. Rep. Doug Collins the next Veterans Affairs secretary.

Collins is expected to be confirmed on Monday, although the Senate is still finalizing its schedule.

U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock, D-Ga., voted “yes” on the procedural vote to advance Collins’ nomination. His counterpart, Sen. Jon Ossoff, D-Ga., has been out all week because of an undisclosed illness.

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Credit: TNS

Credit: TNS

TODAY IN WASHINGTON:

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Credit: Courtesy photo

Credit: Courtesy photo

SHOUTOUTS. Today’s birthday:

Want a birthday shoutout in the Politically Georgia newsletter? There’s a form for that! Click here to submit the shoutouts. It’s not just birthdays. We’re also interested in new jobs, engagements, birth announcements, etc.

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Credit: Greg Bluestein/AJC

Credit: Greg Bluestein/AJC

HAPPY TRAILS. If you are enjoying this newsletter or, really, any of the political coverage from the AJC, you can thank our longtime boss and political editor Susan Potter.

Susan has shepherded our team during some of the most tumultuous years in politics and the news media industry. With her at the helm, we’ve been able to launch a podcast, a radio show, this newsletter and anything else we could think of to make politics and policy more dynamic and accessible for our readers.

After 27 years with the AJC, Susan is retiring today. She’ll finally get to trade political conventions and late-night deadlines for fly fishing and more time with her husband, Leigh Potter. She leaves the AJC’s political coverage stronger for all she’s done.

Thank you, Susan, for everything.

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AS ALWAYS, send your best scoops, gossip and insider info to greg.bluestein@ajc.com, tia.mitchell@ajc.com, patricia.murphy@ajc.com and adam.beam@ajc.com.