Kevin Abel

Georgia runoff election Tuesday to decide GOP governor, 6th Congress Democratic nominees

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Georgia runoff election
Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle (L) and Secretary of State Brian Kemp have received endorsements from Gov. Nathan Deal and President Donald Trump, respectively.

Voters will pick nominees in several key statewide and Congressional races in the Georgia runoff election on Tuesday.

At the top of the ticket, Republican voters will select a gubernatorial nominee in what’s become a tumultuous runoff battle, as well as GOP nominees for lieutenant governor and secretary of state.

Democratic voters in the 6th Congressional District, which includes East Cobb, also will choose a nominee for the November general election.

Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. The Cobb Elections website has sample ballots, precinct addresses and information on how you can find your polling station.

In the GOP governor’s race, Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle was enjoying a lead in most polls and received an endorsement last week from outgoing Gov. Nathan Deal. But then President Donald Trump endorsed Cagle’s opponent, Georgia Secretary of State Brian Kemp.

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Polls now have Kemp in the lead, although one of them indicates that nearly a quarter of likely voters remains undecided.

Trump’s endorsement of Kemp has generated national media attention.

Cobb is considered a battleground county, and Cagle and Kemp have campaigned here frequently. Two East Cobb lawmakers have come down on either side of the runoff. Cagle has the support of State Sen. Kay Kirkpatrick, while State. Rep. Sharon Cooper is backing Kemp.

The winner faces Democratic nominee Stacey Abrams, the former Georgia House Minority Leader, in November.

In the lieutenant governor Republican runoff, state senator David Shafer is facing Geoff Duncan, a former member of the state house.

In the 6th Congressional District Democratic runoff, gun-control advocate Lucy McBath, an East Cobb resident, is facing technology entrepreneur Kevin Abel of Sandy Springs.

The winner will face Republican U.S. Rep. Karen Handel in November.

One of the two seats on the Cobb Board of Commissioners that’s contested this year will be decided Tuesday. Incumbent Bob Weatherford is facing Keli Gambrill in the GOP runoff for District 1 in North Cobb.

Incumbent commissioner JoAnn Birrell of District 3 in Northeast Cobb won the Republican primary and is being challenged in November by Democrat Caroline Holko.

 

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Congressional Black Caucus endorses Georgia 6th Congressional candidate Lucy McBath

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Georgia 6th Congressional candidate Lucy McBath has been endorsed by the Congressional Black Caucus Political Action Committee before her July 24 Democratic runoff against Kevin Abel.

McBath, an East Cobb resident, also has been endorsed by Emily’s list, which supports Democratic female Congressional candidates.

Here’s the endorsement message that McBath’s campaign is sending out today:Georgia 6th Congressional District candidate Lucy McBath

Congressman Gregory Meeks (NY-5), Chairman of the CBCPAC stated, “Lucy McBath’s story is an inspiration that resonates throughout this country. After tragically losing her son to gun violence in 2012, Lucy stood up and worked hard to protect other children from suffering the same fate, understanding firsthand how important it is that we enact sensible gun safety legislation.”

“Furthermore, as a two-time breast cancer survivor, Lucy understands the importance of having quality and affordable healthcare.” Meeks continued, “Lucy is a fighter, and now more than ever we need more fighters like her in Washington.”

 “The Congressional Black Caucus PAC is on the frontlines of the battle to protect the values we hold dear as Americans,” said Lucy McBath. “As the daughter of a former regional NAACP branch president, I understand the stakes could not be higher right now as many in Washington seek to turn back the clock and limit the rights that we have fought so hard for as Americans. I look forward to working with the CBCPAC and other representatives in Washington to fight for a more inclusive and prosperous future for all Americans.”

Abel, a Sandy Springs technology entrepreneur, has been endorsed by a number of Atlanta-area business and public officials and religious leaders.

He also has been critical of McBath for accepting what he calls “outside dark money” in campaign spending, in particular financial support from an organization called End Citizens United.

 

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6th Congressional District Democratic runoff pits gun-control advocate against entrepreneur

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Lucy McBath, 6th Congressional District Democratic runoff
Lucy McBath

In two months, the 6th Congressional District Democratic runoff will summon East Cobb voters to go back to the polls.

If Tuesday’s primary vote is any indication, gun-control advocate Lucy McBath should have an advantage on her home turf.

McBath got 36 percent of the vote across the district, which includes North Fulton and North and Central DeKalb.

She will be going up against businessman Kevin Abel, who got 30 percent of the vote. The winner of the July 24 runoff will face current U.S. Rep. Karen Handel, a Roswell Republican, in the November general election.

Neither McBath nor Abel have run for public office before.

The total vote tallies were close following the four-candidate primary, which included former CBS46 news anchor Bobby Kaple (26 percent of the vote) and Lassiter High School graduate Steven Knight Griffin (7 percent).

Here’s a link to the full results.

Kevin Abel, 6th Congressional District Democratic runoff
Kevin Abel

In the 49 precincts that are in the East Cobb area, McBath won all but 10 of them. She received 4,220 votes in East Cobb, or 39 percent of the vote. Abel got 3,014 votes, or 28 percent.

Abel also won some of the more crucial precincts in the heart of the community, including near Eastside Elementary School and Dickerson Middle School, two Mt. Bethel polling stations, Timber Ridge and Hightower Trail Middle School.

McBath, a former airline flight attendant, got 37 percent of the vote in North Fulton, to 28 percent for Abel, who lives in Alpharetta and is the founder of Abel Solutions, a technology consulting company.

In DeKalb, the margins were virtually a toss-up, with McBath getting 33 percent and Abel 32 percent.

Candidates’ websites: Abel | McBath

6th Congressional District East Cobb primary map
Lucy Bath won the East Cobb precincts in purple, and Kevin Abel in green. (Georgia Secretary of State Office map)

Before her candidacy, McBath earned national attention for her gun-control advocacy after her son was shot and killed by a motorist at a Florida gas station. She had filed to run for Georgia House District 37, which includes some of the Northeast Cobb area, and switched after the Parkland, Fla., school shootings in February.

Abel, who emigrated from South Africa as a teenager, has run on reforming immigration and healthcare policy, as well as Social Security and climate change issues. He’s been especially critical of President Donald Trump over his decision to end DACA, which would allow the children of undocumented immigrants a route to legal U.S. citizenship.

The 6th Congressional District Democratic runoff will come just about a year after last year’s special election, in which Handel held off Democrat Jon Ossoff in a high-profile race that earned national attention and was rated the most expensive U.S. House race ever.

Republicans have held the seat since 1978, when Newt Gingrich was first elected to Congress, and East Cobb turned out strongly in favor of Handel in the runoff.

Last year’s close vote has encouraged Democrats to try again, even after Ossoff declined to run.

In East Cobb, where all state and local office holders are Republicans, Democrats have been especially energized.

There are Democrats running for every one of those offices up for election this year, including Cobb Commission District 3, State Senate District 32, all five State House seats in East Cobb and two Cobb Board of Education seats.

All of those Democrats are also women, with four of the legislative candidates being from minority groups.

 

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