Our lovely state has a rich and lasting tradition of electing politicians who make us cringe and duck for cover because of the stupid, silly and ignorant words that spew out of their mouths. Congressman John Lewis (D-Atlanta), a proud and respected figure of the Civil Rights movement, provided one of the more memorable flaps of the 2008 campaign when he compared John McCain to 1960s segregationist and presidential candidate George Wallace. (more…)
With 96 percent of precincts reporting, John McCain has received 52.4 percent of the vote to Barack Obama’s 46.8 percent, according to the secretary of state’s latest tallies. Some 3.9 million Georgia voters cast their ballot for president this year compared with just 3.3 million in 2004. But while more individuals voted this year, a slightly smaller percentage of eligible voters did so (74 percent compared with 77 percent in 2004). Some 4.8 million Georgians were registered. (more…)
The day many of us have been waiting on to pass has finally come. No more electioneering. No more smearing. No more time to decide. The country is moving on, for better or worse. (more…)
Presidential politics is dominated by the two-party system. In fact, so is all national politics, and even state and local politics, too, though to a lesser degree. But this has not always been the case. History is replete with third, fourth and fifth parties gaining widespread national acceptance, only to later crumble amid internal conflicts and outside pressure. In recent years, legitimate third party candidates in presidential elections have been slim and non-existent. Ross Perot, in 1992, recieved nearly 19 percent of the popular vote nationally, but failed to win even one electoral college vote. In 2000, Ralph Nader is believed by many to have played a spoiler role, which ultimately landed George W. Bush in the White House. Still, the phenomenon that was the 2000 election cannot be neatly explained by Nader’s appearance on the ballot. Any attempt to do so fails to consider the myriad events that took place then, including the Supreme Court’s decision regarding the Florida recount. (more…)
Early voting in Georgia is paying off for Barack Obama, with African American voters representing approximately 35 percent of all ballots cast thus far. The latest poll has McCain with a slight lead, but the race is now close enough to consider Georgia a “toss-up” state.
Federal judges have ruled that the state of Georgia must allow voters whose eligibility is suspect to cast a ballot on Nov. 4. Voting rights groups had filed suit against Secretary of State Karen Handel and her office’s efforts to verify the citizenship status of nearly 5,000 Georgians. An additional 50,000 Georgians have been flagged for discrepancies between their voter registration forms and other government databases. (more…)
We conclude an analysis of Georgia’s proposed constitutional amendments today with a look at Amendment III. It’s up to you, the voter, to take it from here and help decide on Nov. 4 whether each amendment should be passed.
Amendment III
To authorize the creation of special Infrastructure Development Districts providing infrastructure to underserved areas.
“Shall the Constitution of Georgia be amended so as to authorize the General Assembly to provide by general law for the creation and comprehensive regulation of infrastructure development districts for the provision of infrastructure as authorized by local governments?” (more…)
We continue today with an analysis of the second of three amendments Georgia voters will decide come Nov. 4.
Amendment II
To authorize local school districts to use tax funds for community redevelopment purposes.
“Shall the Constitution of Georgia be amended so as to authorize community redevelopment and authorize counties, municipalities, and local boards of education to use tax funds for redevelopment purposes and programs?” (more…)
Unbeknownst to many voters, particularly the 12 percent of registered voters who have already cast their ballot here in the Peach State, the fate of three constitutional amendments will be decided in the polling booth come Nov. 4. The proposed amendments have been approved by at least two-thirds of the General Assembly. We will present and provide analysis of each amendment over the next three days.
So without further adieu, let us take a look at Amendment I. (more…)
Georgia officials have apparently asked the U.S. Justice Department to review two million Social Security numbers of newly registered voters. The Justice Department has said the request may represent a substantial change in Georgia’s voting laws, which, because of the state’s history of discriminating against minority voters, are more stringent than other states.
The strange thing about the request is that the two million figure is substantially higher than the state’s tally of newly registered voters, which totals approximately 400,000 in the last year.
Could this be another example of potential voter purging? Questions about the legitimacy of registered voters have intensified all week. You can read more in other blog posts below.
