George Washington departed Waynesboro, Georgia on May 18, 1791, headed to Augusta. On May 19-20, 1791, George Washington spent his second and third days in Augusta, where he visited Richmond Academy. Washington left Georgia on May 21, 1791 to go to Columbia, South Carolina.
Abraham Lincoln was nominated for President by the Republican National Convention on May 18, 1860.
The United States Supreme Court handed down its decision in Plessy v. Ferguson on May 18, 1896.
The U.S. Supreme Court rule[d] seven to one that a Louisiana law providing for “equal but separate accommodations for the white and colored races” on its railroad cars is constitutional. The high court held that as long as equal accommodations were provided, segregation was not discrimination and thus did not deprive African Americans of equal protection under the law as guaranteed by the 14th Amendment.
The Georgia Department of Natural Resources announced a new grant program to preserve historic battlefields, according to WTOC.
The Vince Dooley Battlefield Trust Fund Program will provide matching grants to eligible nonprofit organizations and state agencies for the acquisition and permanent protection of qualifying battlefield properties throughout the state.
According to DNR, eligible sites include battlefields identified in historic preservation reports from the National Park Service and the Civil War Sites Advisory Commission.
The state-funded program will offer annual funding cycles on a first-come, first-served basis, depending on available funding. Grants may cover up to 50% of the appraised value of eligible land acquisitions or conservation easements.
Applicants must provide a dollar-for-dollar funding match through cash contributions, donated land value or other approved sources.
Eligible applicants include nonprofit organizations focused on historic land preservation and state agencies dedicated to protecting historical, cultural or natural resources.
Georgia Politics, Campaigns, and Elections
Cohutta Town Council called a special meeting after Mayor Ron Shinnick resigned, according to the Dalton Daily Citizen.
According to a notice provided by Town Attorney Bryan Rayburn and the Town of Cohutta government Saturday morning, Shinnick had provided a written “formal letter of resignation” on May 15, just days after the council’s regularly scheduled May public meeting.
“The town of Cohutta announces that it has received and accepted the written resignation of Mayor Ron Shinnick, effective immediately,” the notice states. “In accordance with applicable town charter provisions and state law, the resignation has been officially acknowledged.”
On Saturday, Rayburn said the town council is set to “proceed with the process to fill the vacancy in accordance with the town charter, including the appointment of an interim mayor,” at an “emergency” public town council meeting on Wednesday, May 20, at 6 p.m. inside Cohutta Town Hall.
Rayburn said, while a decision on who will fill the interim mayorship position will likely take place at the Wednesday meeting, council member Shane Kornberg – who also serves as Cohutta’s vice mayor – will fulfill the required duties “for the time being.”
“Pursuant to the charter, (Kornberg) will essentially assume all of the mayor’s duties until the council appoints a mayor to fulfill the term,” he said. “I don’t like to say ‘effective immediately,’ because we really need to have a council session where they can put it into effect through the meeting. But, essentially they can make a motion that the vice mayor will assume the roles and duties of the mayor until they appoint one.”
According to the town charter, Rayburn said a special election for Cohutta’s next mayor is possible, but not probable.
“In the charter, there is a provision for a special election but it hasn’t been triggered, and we don’t anticipate it being triggered,” he said. “There have been a couple of similar instances in the past 10 or so years where council members were appointed to their positions because a member stepped down or had recently died. So, the authority is there in the charter for the council to just go ahead and appoint someone for the remainder of (Shinnick’s) term. Based on my reading of the charter, we do not have to have a special election.”
Shinnick, who began his first term as mayor in 2014, began his most recent term in January. Rayburn said whomever is appointed as Shinnick’s successor will fulfill his unexpired term of three years and six months before the next election.
According to the town charter, Rayburn said a resignation is treated the same way as if a death were to occur in office or if an extended absence were anticipated.
“It’s all covered under the vacancy portion of the town charter,” he said. “Essentially, what that states is that the council is now tasked with appointing a qualified person to become mayor and fulfill the unexpired portion of Mayor Shinnick’s term. So, I think the council is not going to jump the gun on that. They’re going to do their due diligence in getting someone in there who is not just qualified, but is highly qualified for the position. I think there will be more details that come out regarding that process specifically on Wednesday during the meeting.”
Earlier in the month, a separate emergency meeting was held to reinstate the Cohutta Police Department after Shinnick dismissed the agency and all CPD employees on May 6. During that emergency meeting on May 8, Shinnick voluntarily left the building while in executive session.
Early voting totaled 1,025,623 ballots cast for tomorrow’s Primary Election, according to the Secretary of State’s website.
Democratic – 581,925 (56.74%)
Republican – 428,153 (41.75%)
Nonpartisan – 15,545 (1.52%)
Turnout for early voting ended Friday in Glynn County with only 13.1% of registered voters showing up to the polls.
In all, 8,081 votes were cast out of the total 61,579 votes available in Glynn County as of 4 p.m. Friday.
From the Dalton Daily Citizen:
According to the Whitfield County Elections Office, a total of 3,386 voters cast ballots during the early voting period. Elections officials also reported that 270 absentee ballots were issued for the election, with 193 returned as of Friday afternoon.
Election Day voting will take place Tuesday, May 19, with polls open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Voters must cast ballots at their assigned precinct location on Election Day.
More than 60% of early voters in Richmond and Columbia counties have cast ballots for Democrats, according to early voting numbers available as of May 14.
Separately, and traditionally, the counties favor different political parties. Through Thursday, 79.1% of submitted Richmond County ballots were Democratic.
Also through Thursday, Columbia County’s 11,535 early voters leaned 61.8% Republican.
When combined, the two counties recorded 25,060 partisan ballots – 61% of them Democratic.
Many of the election’s closely watched races locally include Augusta Mayor Garnett Johnson running to keep his seat against three challengers.
Three seats on the Columbia County Board of Commissioners face Democratic challengers in a county where Republican candidates for office seldom face Democrats.
Republican U.S. Rep. Rick Allen, representing House District 12 in Congress, is running against GOP challenger Tori Branum in a primary opposite five Democrats.
Compared to the 2022 primary, the number of Democratic ballots increased by 53% while Republican ballots decreased by 13%. And Democrats cast more in-person ballots on every day but one in the early voting period that ran April 27 through Friday.
Georgia voters rushed to the polls on the first day of early voting, shattering in-person primary turnout records. That momentum carried through the first week of advance voting, where about 214,000 ballots were cast. Before Election Day, more than 1 million ballots were cast — a 19% increase over the 2022 primary’s pre-Election Day period.
But while interest is high, fewer voters are sending ballots in by mail. Voting by mail collapsed for both parties at similar rates. Democratic voters cast 59% fewer ballots by mail. The Republican mail ballot count dropped by 66%. However, in-person early voting increased by 67% for Democrats compared to 2022. Republican ballots cast early in-person dropped by 9%.
Ballots from Black voters, the largest group of Democratic primary voters, increased by 46% — more than 113,000 more votes than the same period in 2022. Ballots from white Democratic voters increased by 65% and ballots from Hispanic voters nearly tripled.
On the Republican side, Black voters made up just a fraction of voters, but the number of ballots increased by about 300 from 2022. Republican ballots cast by white voters fell by 56,000 — about 13%. The share of Republican voters who are Hispanic was even smaller but increased by 3% from the 2022 primary.
The Judicial Qualifications Commissions says that Supreme Court candidates Jen Jordan and Miracle Rankin violated rules governing judicial elections, according to the AJC.
Jen Jordan and Miracle Rankin, backed by former President Barack Obama and other Democrats, have been warned that their public endorsement of one another and promise to restore abortion rights is in violation of the Georgia Code of Judicial Conduct.
Judicial elections in Georgia are nonpartisan but races for the state Supreme Court have become highly politicized in recent years.
In statements that became publicly available Monday, the JQC committee said it “reasonably believes” that Jordan and Rankin violated the judicial code by publicly endorsing one another and promising to restore abortion rights. The code applies to judges as well as those vying for a seat on the bench. The committee said a full JQC investigation could result.
Jordan and Rankin said the JQC’s attempt to silence them and other judicial candidates violates their free speech rights. Jordan called it “a purely political move to keep voters in the dark.”
“Georgians have made it loud and clear that they care deeply about abortion rights and women’s health,” Jordan said Monday. “It is both my responsibility and my First Amendment right to keep talking about these serious issues that affect every person in our state, because voters deserve the truth.”
Jordan is challenging Justice Sarah Hawkins Warren, Georgia’s former solicitor general. Rankin is challenging Justice Charlie Bethel, a former Republican state senator. Both Warren and Bethel were appointed in 2018 by then-Gov. Nathan Deal and defeated challenges in 2020.
Under the state’s judicial conduct rules, judges and judicial candidates are supposed to be impartial.
Georgia’s anti-abortion law is still being litigated and the case is likely to return to the state Supreme Court.
Governor Brian Kemp issued Executive Order #05.15.26.01, extending the initial 30 day suspension of Hall County Sheriff Gerald Couch for an additional 30 days. From 11Alive:
Gerald Couch, the Hall County sheriff suspended in March following a DUI arrest, has been suspended an additional 30 days by order of Governor Brian Kemp.
The order was issued Friday. It does not give a reason for extending the suspension, citing code that states “in any case where a sheriff has been suspended for 60 days, the Governor may extend the period of suspension for an additional 30 days.”
The 60-day period was to end tomorrow, Saturday May 16.
It comes 10 days after Couch was arrested a second time for a traffic stop for failure to maintain lane, with the 63-year-old found “to be operating the vehicle on a limited driving permit outside the allowed conditions.”
Couch’s attorney released a statement saying the suspended sheriff was sober while blaming the Georgia Department of Driver Services for a “systemic failure” resulting in “incomprehensible” instructions for Couch to follow.
DDS, in a lengthy rebuttal, disputed that and said his license instructions were clear.
According to the Dawson County authorities, Couch was arrested and cited then booked into the county detention center, posting bond the same evening.
His attorney Blake A. Poole framed it as Couch getting caught in a “system that produces contradictory instructions and unreliable records.”
“To be clear, the Sheriff was sober last night and has remained sober since his February arrest. He has complied fully with every condition imposed by the court system, including the random testing required as a condition of his bond, and has passed every test administered to him,” Poole said. “He has continued to obey every regulation he has been clearly instructed to follow. The limited-permit charge is a different matter. It is the direct product of a systemic failure within the Georgia Department of Driver Services.”
Poole said DDS told Couch his license would first remain valid until May 27, then said he would need a limited permit to drive and then a week ago was told he was not in fact required to have a limited permit.
“These contradictions appear to confuse the local DDS personnel as much as anyone else, which is precisely the problem,” the attorney said. “Sheriff Couch does in fact hold a limited permit. But the conflicting DDS correspondence did not indicate that there were any limitations on where he could lawfully travel. He cannot be expected to comply with conditions DDS has never clearly communicated.”
Governor Kemp also issued Executive Order #05.15.26.02, extending the initial 60 day suspension of the state gas tax for an additional 14 days, through Tuesday, June 2, 2026 at 11:59 PM. From WSAV:
Georgia drivers won’t get hit by a jump in gas prices when fueling up for Memorial Day travel after Gov. Brian Kemp signed an executive order extending the gas tax suspension.
The current gas tax suspension runs through May 19 as part of HB 1199. The extension will go into effect May 20 and run until June 3, providing Georgians two additional weeks of no taxes at the pump.
The suspension is saving Georgia drivers around 33.3 cents per gallon for gasoline and 37.3 cents per gallon for diesel, according to state officials.
Officials said the current average cost of gas is $4.02 per gallon in Georgia, which is 50 cents less than the national average.
“As Georgia families prepare for the Memorial Day travel weekend, they should not feel blindsided by prices at the gas pump,” Kemp said in a press release.
Georgia was the first state to pass a gas tax in response to rising cost in late March. The Peach State is one of two states that have suspended their gas tax.
Republican Lieutenant Governor Burt Jones (R-Jackson) campaigned for Governor, according to WTVM.
Republican Lt. Gov. Burt Jones is running for Georgia governor, saying his four years presiding over the state Senate and business background make him the most prepared candidate.
Jones said he is the only candidate with both legislative and business experience.
“I’ve been the lieutenant governor for the last four years… and I’m the only one that actually has a business background and the legislative background that will be ready, day one, to serve as governor,” Jones said.
Jones pointed to Georgia’s economy under Republican leadership, citing low unemployment, a budget surplus and tax rebates.
“We’ve got record low unemployment at two percent… a fourteen billion dollar surplus… we’ve given about three billion dollars back in tax rebates to the citizens of Georgia,” Jones said.
Jones said the biggest issue for voters is affordability, from groceries and gas to the cost of raising a family.
“It’s always about your pocketbooks or your wallets… the cost of living has gone up in the last five, six years. As a father of two teenagers, I can tell you firsthand how expensive it is to try to raise children,” Jones said.
If elected, Jones said he will continue pushing tax cuts and target rising insurance costs while expanding access to health care across Georgia.
“We’re going to continue to look at ways to cut taxes, both income and property… we’re going to continue to look at ways to cut insurance and have better access to health care facilities all around this state,” Jones said.
An ad by Jones’s campaign includes UGA Quarterback Gunner Stockton, according to the Athens Banner Herald.
[The ad] finishes with Georgia quarterback Gunner Stockton , wearing a “DGD” cap, standing in the background between Jones and Trump as they shake hands on an airport tarmac.
The video clip is from Trump’s Feb. 19 visit to the state in Rome. Former Georgia star Herschel Walker also is standing in the background.
His image in a campaign ad may be unprecedented for a Georgia football athlete, according to Charles Bullock, a University of Georgia political scientist for more than a half a century.
“I think it’s fairly unusual for any high-profile college athlete,” Bullock said. “I can’t think of incidents where it’s been in Georgia. I don’t know if it happens at Alabama or any place else.”
The Jones campaign did not respond to a request for comment about having Stockton appear in the ad and if the campaign reached out to Stockton before airing it.
“It was crazy when I got the chance to greet him, one of the guys to greet him,” Stockton said. “It was just a chance to meet the president. I think, me personally, I don’t know anybody’s stance, I’d meet any president when I got the chance to. That was definitely a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. It was pretty neat.”
Bullock said he didn’t know if Stockton standing where he was may have been staged but that the image could be seen as useful by the campaign.
“What campaigns are trying to do is connect with voters,” Bullock said. “One way is on policy. Here are my policy stands and if you agree with me, vote with me. OK, great, fine. But not all voters by a long shot are digging that deeply into position papers taken by candidates and connecting with policy. So what else is there? Well, candidates point out where they went to college, what church they go to, activities they’re involved with.”
“Well, there are hundreds of thousands of UGA fans in Georgia,” Bullock said. “So, for a strong Bulldog who has no other reason to connect with any other candidates, this might be it. This might put them into the Jones camp.”
There has been $122.3 million in spending in this race for Georgia governor, making it the third most-expensive, according to AdImpact.
Jones has spent $28.9 million, but his opponent, businessman Rick Jackson, has spent $62.2 million.
Fran Tarkenton, the former Georgia quarterback and Pro Football Hall of Famer, threw his support behind Jackson in a video endorsement.
“Rick is the quarterback Georgia needs to clean up government, enforce the law, protect kids and lead our state into the future,” Tarkenton said.
Stockton didn’t make a similar endorsement for Jones, a Bulldog 2002 team captain, except he is wearing a “Burt Jones Governor” cap in a photo posted on Burt Jones Facebook account on Feb. 20 with the message: “Gunner Stockton and I are on the same team ready to win for Georgia, are you in? www.BurtJonesForGA.com”
Republican Attorney General Chris Carr (Cobb County) campaigned in Moultrie last Wednesday, according to the Moultrie Observer.
Gubernatorial candidate and Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr had a meet and greet in Moultrie Wednesday, May 13. It was part of his South Georgia campaign tour.
“If you liked the leadership that this state has had under Brian Kemp and Nathan Deal and Sonny Perdue and Saxby Chambliss and Johnny Isakson, then I am the best and only choice for governor,” Carr told the group that gathered to see him.
Sheriff Rod Howell introduced Carr to the group that gathered at Castellow and Strickland LLP, and said, “I just want to say real quick, he has my full endorsement.”
Howell then recounted that back when he was a lieutenant in the jail, he had called Carr with some questions on legality.
“He’s always answered my phone call,” Howell said and added that Carr had stopped by the sherif’s office many times over the years to see if there was anything that he could do for them.
“That’s the person we need as the governor. Not who calls who the worst names or who has whatever they want. I like what he does,” Howell said.
Carr started out by saying that he appreciated law enforcement.
“I knew what I was and I knew what I wasn’t when I got into this job. I’ve said it before,” he said to Howell. “But you guys are chiefs helping me understand better what y’all need and what we need from a law enforcement perspective. And, now, we’re ten years down the road.”
Then, Carr thanked the group for their support and said he loved his time with Johnny Isakson working with Saxby Chambliss.
“And I will never forget that this state is built on agriculture, manufacturing, trade, the military — men and women in uniform — hospitality, construction, small business. It’s the backbone of what we do,” he said. “I’m trying to get back into all of that.”
Then, he asked his wife, Joan, to talk about the issue that she would focus on if she became the first lady and she said, she would take on foster care.
“I started life in foster care, along with a twin sister. We were born to a really young, single mom, who could not raise us,” she said.
“I’d love to get up every day and work on how can we make adoption a little easier and quicker. How can we make improvements to the DFACS system so it is serving these children a little better? And, then, for those who age out at age 18 with no family, let’s get to them a little sooner at teaching them to work, to have a bank account, and a GED and a job. So, they go on the path to success and not the path to homelessness or addiction or incarceration,” she said.
“We have never seen an environment and a cycle like this,” he said. “We are in a $150 million primary. This is the most expensive primary in American history,” Carr said.
“And my close has been this. If you are sick and tired of the advertising and the volume, there is a better choice,” Carr said. “And if you kind of are mad that a rich guy and a guy’s rich daddy are trying to buy your vote, then there’s a better choice for governor.”
On Thursday, Carr campaigned in Tifton, according to the Tifton Gazette.
The Attorney General for Georgia and candidate in the ongoing race for governor made a stop in town the afternoon of May 14, meeting with the local residents to hear their concerns, answer their questions, and potentially earn their support.
Rather than a typical rally, Carr opted for a more casual tone regarding his visit to Tifton, inviting the community to sit down and chat about his campaign over lunch.
His more personable visit to Tifton stems from his view that building a concrete relationship with Georgia voters was more important to earning their trust and support than attempting to do so with endorsements or wealth.
Carr’s campaign and plans for governor center around elevating the state’s workforce and supporting its public safety initiatives, believing that greater investment into education and infrastructure would help Georgia become a leading figure in both industries.
“I think Georgia is the model for the nation as it relates to jobs and safety,” he said. “I think Governor Kemp has done an outstanding job, Governor Deal before him; I want to make sure jobs are at the forefront of everything we do in this state.”
The gubernatorial candidate also expressed interest in improving the state’s literacy rates, reducing income tax and capping property tax, better addressing mental health, and introducing greater affordability in housing, healthcare, and education.
Carr’s visit to Tifton is part of a larger tour around the state to connect and communicate with supporters one last time before the primary that has taken place over this week. Prior to his stop at the Friendly City, he visited communities in Northwest Georgia and Valdosta, while he made appearances in Americus and Perry following his departure from Tifton.
Carr will campaign in Albany today, according to WALB.
According to campaign officials, Carr and his wife, Joan Carr, will travel across several major Georgia cities throughout the day to meet with voters, members of the media and supporters.
The Albany stop is scheduled for 10:30 a.m. at the Albany Jet Center located at 3905 Newton Road.
Other campaign stops are planned in Columbus, Savannah, Macon, Augusta and Atlanta, where Carr is expected to conclude the day at DeKalb-Peachtree Airport.
Carr’s campaign says the tour is focused on sharing his message with voters ahead of Election Day as he continues his run for governor.
U.S. Rep. Buddy Carter (R-SSI), running for U.S. Senate, and Rick Jackson, (R) running for Governor, will visit Augusta today in separate appearances, according to WJBF.
Republican candidate Buddy Carter will be in town as part of his statewide “Fly Around” tour, with supporters and members of the media invited to attend at KAGS, 1501 FBO Way.
Organizers ask attendees to arrive no later than 11:40 a.m.
Rick Jackson will be at Daniel Field at 11 a.m. Monday and will be introduced by Augusta state Rep. Mark Newton.
Democratic Candidate for Governor Keisha Lance Bottoms and other Democrats campaigned in Savannah at separate events, according to the Savannah Morning News.
“Dr. King had a quote for everything, right?” Westbrook said. “The ones on my heart today are, ‘We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, bound and tied in a single garment of destiny.’”
“This recent [U.S. Supreme Court] decision is going to make it harder for Black Georgians when they vote,” Westbrook said, “…to actually have their influence at the ballot box felt, felt in their own lives, their community, felt in Georgia more broadly. It’s going to silence their voices, and it’s going to thwart their ability to shape the democracy they created.”
Georgia Public Service Commission (PSC) member District 2 Alicia Johnson (D) also spoke, as well as Rev. Thurmond Neill Tillman, Campaign Manager for Georgia Conservation Voters Chassidy Malloy and more.
Separately, Democratic Candidate for Governor Keisha Lance Bottoms held an event at Front Porch Comedy, as part of the tour she launched Wednesday to roll out her plan for a new Voting Rights Act in Georgia. Bottoms is the front-runner in the Democratic primary race for governor.
“There are a number ot things that we can do to address what we can,” Bottoms said. “But the reality is, we’ve got to flip the house, and at some point, flip the Senate. We don’t know what’s going to happen during that special session, but I think we are all wise and brace ourselves for the very worst.”
Bottoms added that if elected, she would veto any map that is presented before her that would dilute the representation of minorities in the state. If a map is redrawn and approved before she’s sworn into office, “we’re going to have to fight it out in the courts,” she said.
“We want to extend IDs that can be accepted, legitimate IDs that can be accepted to register to vote,” Bottoms said. “Same day voter registration, but we’re going to try and continue to flip these down ballot seats and races, so that we can finally get control back of the legislature.”
The primary elections are on Tuesday, May 19.
Democratic gubernatorial candidate Keisha Lance Bottoms stopped in Savannah on Saturday as part of her statewide tour with three days remaining until Georgia’s primary election.
Bottoms spent the afternoon at Front Porch Improv speaking directly with voters. The event was part of her “Our Rights, Our Future” tour stopping across the state as the clock to election day ticks down.
The former Atlanta mayor is one of six Democrats vying for the governor’s mansion. Bottoms has received former President Joe Biden’s endorsement for the seat.
She met voters to share her plans to lower the cost of living, protect voting rights and expand health care access. With just a few days left until voters enter the ballot box, Bottoms said she is focused on earning votes across the state.
“I’m going to always run like I’m forty points down, that’s why I’m still on the road right now running through the tape,” Bottoms said. “I’m not going to take anybody for granted, I’m not going to take any community for granted.”
Bottoms has a strong hold over the polls with just under 50% of the vote. Behind her is Mike Thurmond with 13% of Democratic support. Thurmond is the former Georgia labor commissioner, serving in the role for a decade.
Bottoms urged voters to show up to the polls on Tuesday.
“Now it’s time for all of us to show up and do our part and continue to believe that although this country and this democracy may not be perfect, it’s still the best that we have and it’s worth fighting for and we do that every time we show up to vote,” Bottoms said.
If Bottoms does not win the majority of votes on Tuesday, the election will head to a runoff on June 16.
Ms. Bottoms also campaigned in Albany, according to the Albany Herald.
Keisha Lance Bottoms used a campaign stop in Albany on Friday to frame her emerging gubernatorial campaign around voting rights, rural investment and healthcare access, while also wading into growing political tensions surrounding Georgia’s upcoming special legislative session and the future of congressional representation in southwest Georgia.
“We know how important Albany was to the civil rights movement,” Bottoms told attendees. “We know how important the state of Georgia has been to the civil rights movement, and I would venture to say this is our movement, this is our moment.”
Bottoms tied those comments directly to voting rights, which she described as a defining issue of the election cycle.
“This week we rolled out a voting rights plan specific to Georgia,” she said. “Doing what we can in this moment to make sure that we are protecting our right to vote.”
“When my mother was 18, they were fighting for their right to vote,” she said. “Now that my son is 18, the thought that we are fighting to continue to protect his right to vote really speaks to the magnitude of this moment.”
Bottoms also addressed the special legislative session recently called in Georgia, where lawmakers are expected to revisit congressional and potentially legislative district boundaries following ongoing legal and political disputes over redistricting maps.
The special session has drawn heightened attention in southwest Georgia because of concerns surrounding Georgia’s 2nd Congressional District, currently represented by long-time Democratic Congressman Sanford Bishop Jr.. The district, which stretches across much of rural southwest Georgia, has historically served as one of the few majority-black congressional districts in the Deep South.
“You all know the No. 1 seat they’re targeting is Sanford Bishop’s seat,” Bottoms said. “There’s not a lot that we can do right now with this special session other than show up and vote, and that’s a lot.”
She continued: “I believe they’re going to do everything that they possibly can do to make it difficult for Democrats to get anything done.”
The issue of economic development in rural Georgia produced one of the event’s most pointed exchanges during a lengthy question from Early County Commissioner Jeff Haynes, who challenged Bottoms over her comments supporting a “pause” on data center expansion in Georgia.
Haynes argued that southwest Georgia communities often feel ignored by state leaders and said large-scale projects such as data centers could provide desperately needed economic stability for struggling rural counties.
Democratic State Rep. Ruwa Romman (R-Gwinnett) was endorsed for State Senate District 7 by Bernie Sanders and U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), according to AccessWDUN.
State Rep. Ruwa Romman (D-Duluth) is running in State Senate District 7 and announced the endorsement from Sanders on Friday.
“In this pivotal and dangerous moment in our country’s history, we need leaders at every level of government who are prepared to take on the billionaire class and fight for working families,” Sanders said in a statement. “We need bold solutions to the crises we face, not tinkering around the edges.”
Ocasio-Cortez showed up in person with Romman.
“We’re down here, we’re taking a look at what’s happening with the data centers … I’m team Ruwa,” Ocasio-Cortez said in a video posted to Facebook. “Let’s make sure we get out the vote and send her to the state legislature.”
“Today I am proud to endorse progressives [like Ruwa] who are running for state and local office across America,” Sanders continued. “They will fight for the kind of changes our country desperately needs.”
13WMAZ reviews contested elections in Macon-Bibb County and across Middle Georgia.
A backlog of evidence processing at the Georgia Bureau of Investigation led to a backlog in Chatham County courts, according to the Savannah Morning News.
Defense attorneys and prosecutors say they are seeing delays of weeks or months for forensic testing on evidence ranging from guns to blood samples and suspected narcotics — material that can determine whether a case moves forward to trial.
According to GBI data, the number of unworked reports more than 30 days old rose sharply, reaching a peak of 48,780 pieces of evidence in January 2026. That figure declined in GBI’s most recent report, falling to 45,621 pieces of evidence in March. By comparison, March 2025 recorded roughly 4,000 fewer pieces of unworked evidence.
But the impact is already being felt in local courts. In a hearing for the six suspects in the July 2025 Oglethorpe Mall shooting, prosecution attorneys said the GBI has asked for up to 10 weeks to complete forensic testing on firearms. Such testing can include DNA analysis and ballistics comparisons used to determine whether a weapon was involved in other crimes.
While gun testing has drawn attention recently, [Savannah defense attorney Jonah] Pine said much of the demand placed on the GBI’s labs comes from other types of cases. One example is DUI investigations.
Over time, many agencies shifted from breath tests to blood testing in DUI cases, which requires laboratory analysis, Pine said. When those blood samples are sent to the GBI, prosecutors often wait for the results before making decisions about how to handle the case, something, Pine said, can slow down the process.
Another growing source of testing is drug investigations, particularly with the spread of fentanyl and other synthetic substances. Field drug tests used by officers can lead to evidence being sent to the GBI for confirmation testing.
“The field testing that they’re using for fentanyl is so crappy that I would not be surprised if a communion wafer tested positive,” Pine said.
Each suspected substance that tests positive in the field, other than marijuana, will need confirmation at the state lab, increasing the workload.
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