GOP urges Kemp to call a special session to redraw maps after court ruling

Gov. Brian Kemp was already weighing whether to summon lawmakers back to Atlanta this summer to finish an election overhaul they failed to complete.

Now, he has a far trickier question on his hands.

Many of Georgia’s leading Republican candidates are pressuring the governor to call a special session after the U.S. Supreme Court weakened a key pillar of the Voting Rights Act. They want the GOP to redraw congressional and legislative lines to help conservative candidates.

Republican gubernatorial contenders Rick Jackson and Lt. Gov. Burt Jones, along with Georgia GOP chair Josh McKoon and several candidates for statewide offices, are among those urging Kemp to call lawmakers back to the Gold Dome.

“The last thing that Republicans need to do is be weak-kneed at this moment,” said state Sen. Greg Dolezal, a Republican contender for lieutenant governor. “This is a time to be bold. This is a time to be aggressive.”

Republicans know it would be nearly impossible to reconfigure the boundaries before this year’s midterm elections. But their other focus is 2028, a high-turnout presidential election when Democrats hope to threaten GOP control of the Legislature and make more gains in Congress.

Conservatives want to lock in new maps this year while they can be sure a Republican governor is still in office to sign them. There is a chance a Democrat wins the governor’s race in the general election later this year.

In one sense, the maneuver wouldn’t be surprising.

Ahead of the 2018 midterms, then-Republican Gov. Nathan Deal set up postelection special session that could have been used to curb executive powers if a Democrat won the governor’s race. Few Republicans would be shocked to see a lame-duck redistricting session at the end of this year, just in case.

For now, Kemp is saying little. A spokesperson said his office is reviewing the ruling, while Kemp’s political focus is on stumping for U.S. Senate candidate Derek Dooley. The two are on a multistop tour through southwest Georgia this week.

Democrats are already framing the threat in stark terms. House Minority Leader Carolyn Hugley warned of a GOP effort to “lock in one-party control.” Attorney General candidate Bob Trammell is using the moment to call for a new voting rights division in the state government. Others are trying to turn the ruling into a rallying cry for November.

State Senate Minority Leader Harold Jones II said Democrats now have even more reason to flip the Governor’s Mansion this year.

“That’s how we stop the GOP from locking themselves in power for generations against our will,” he said.

Things to know

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Credit: AP

Good morning! Here are three things to know for today:

Endorsement watch

Credit: Miguel Martinez/AJC

Credit: Miguel Martinez/AJC

The new AJC poll out this morning shows Chris Carr languishing with 3% of support from likely Republican primary voters. But the week hasn’t been all bad news for the outgoing attorney general.

Deal endorsed Carr’s campaign for governor at a stop in Gainesville, giving Carr the backing of the Republican who helped launch him into statewide politics.

“Chris Carr is competent, he is capable of being a very good governor and, most importantly of all, he’s a good man. A good person,” Deal said. “Good people make good decisions.”

Carr and Deal go way back. The former two-term governor tapped Carr to be his economic development chief in 2013, then appointed him to the open attorney general seat in 2016. Carr often says he would govern in the mold of Deal, Kemp and his other former boss, the late U.S. Sen. Johnny Isakson.

Whether Deal’s endorsement can move the needle is another question. Carr was the first major Republican to enter the race, launching his campaign in November 2024. But he’s struggled to gain traction in a field dominated by the slugfest between Jackson and Jones.

Like father

Credit: Jenni Girtman

Credit: Jenni Girtman

The daughter of the late U.S. Rep. David Scott plans to run in the special election to fill his unexpired term.

Marcye Scott said she was already considering a run for the seat this cycle before her father announced he would seek a 13th term. Now the local activist says she sees the campaign as a way to carry on his legacy.

“I would love to be able to fill in the gaps for him,” she said. “I’ve got the experience — I can tell you that I know everything about the 13th District, just like him.”

She added: “I think my father would come back to life and kick my butt if I didn’t.”

Kemp still hasn’t set a date for the special election, and some Democrats worry he could slow-walk the timing.

State Sen. Emanuel Jones, one of the top contenders for the seat, is running for the full term and said he’s also likely to seek the unexpired term. State Rep. Jasmine Clark and former Gwinnett School Board chair Everton Blair, both contenders for the full term, haven’t yet said whether they’ll run in the special election.

Because it was too late to change ballots, David Scott is still listed among those seeking a full two-year term in the primary election now underway. Votes for him will not count. Qualifying for that race was in March.

Ballot watch

Credit: Miguel Martinez/AJC

Credit: Miguel Martinez/AJC

We love to keep track of how many people vote early in Georgia’s elections. Now, we can see which political party has the most votes, too.

Although Georgia does not register voters by political party, the secretary of state’s office rolled out a new tool this week that keeps track of how many people have voted in each political party’s primary. (Voters can only vote in one.)

Here’s the tally as of last night:

It’s not surprising Democrats have an edge. President Donald Trump has criticized early voting, and many Republicans follow his lead. Last year, Georgia Republican Party officials backed a proposal to shorten early voting and end no-excuse absentee voting.

One term or two?

Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC

Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC

Former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms shocked Atlantans and Democrats alike in 2021 when she announced she would not seek reelection after a single term in office.

But in an interview this week with Atlanta News First political reporter Doug Reardon, Bottoms did not commit to serving two terms as Georgia governor if she’s elected in November. She has been leading the Democratic field for governor by wide margins since she entered the race.

“My plan is to serve the people of this state,” Bottoms told Reardon. “And if it means serving two terms, then that’s what I will do if that’s what’s best for the state, if that’s best for my family, at that time.”

Bottoms then listed what she considered her biggest achievements as mayor, but said she made the decision not to run again in 2021, “based on what was best for my family at that time.”

Listen up

Credit: Miguel Martinez/AJC

Credit: Miguel Martinez/AJC

Today on the “Politically Georgia” podcast state Supreme Court Presiding Justice Sarah Warren joins the show to discuss her reelection campaign and her recent breast cancer diagnosis. Then, U.S. Rep. Clay Fuller, R-Lookout Mountain, talks about his first days in Washington and his recent viral video he says was meant as satire.

You can listen and subscribe to “Politically Georgia” for free on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.

Have a question or comment for the show? Email us at politicallygeorgia@ajc.com or give us a call at 770-810-5297 and you could be featured on a future episode.

Arms twisted

Credit: AP

Credit: AP

U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson had a tough time pushing through a procedural vote setting up final action on extending surveillance authorizations and taking the first step to end the partial government shutdown impacting the Department of Homeland Security. But after hours of negotiating and pleading, he was able to get both bills over the finish line.

The bill setting up negotiations on how Congress will fund immigration enforcement passed on a party-line vote with all Republicans in favor and all Democrats opposed. One independent from California voted “present.”

Some Republicans had initially resisted supporting the measure because they wanted to expand its scope to cover other issues like tax cuts, election laws and even Trump’s ballroom. But Johnson convinced them to separate those items out in a third reconciliation bill that Republicans will attempt to pass later this year.

Johnson had to make concessions on the bill reauthorizing Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act.

The bill adds in new oversight provisions that some conservatives demanded. But it does not include language requiring a warrant when U.S. citizens are spied upon overseas. Johnson also added language from a separate bill that bans the U.S. central bank from launching its own digital currency.

Forty-two Democrats, including Georgia U.S. Rep. Sanford Bishop, voted with the majority of Republicans in favor of the measure. But 22 Republicans were opposed, none from Georgia. U.S. Rep. Andrew Clyde, R-Athens, was among the conservatives who called for changes to the legislation but ultimately lent their support.

U.S. Rep. Barry Loudermilk, R-Cassville, has missed votes all week, including Wednesday. His staff did not immediately respond to inquiries about his absence.

The FISA renewal bill now goes back to the Senate, which is skeptical of the new oversight provisions and opposed to the digital currency language. It is likely that another short-term extension of the FISA law will be needed since it is set to expire at the end of the month.

Today in Washington

Endorsement watch

Credit: Courtesy photo

Credit: Courtesy photo

The Conservative Political Action Conference, a powerful political committee supporting candidates on the right, endorsed Republican Rob Adkerson in Georgia’s 11th Congressional District. CPAC’s backing gives Loudermilk’s former chief of staff a conservative seal of approval in the crowded race to succeed his old boss.

The endorsement is aimed at reinforcing Adkerson’s MAGA credentials in the deep-red northwest Georgia district.

He’s competing against a field that includes former congressional candidate Dr. John Cowan and Public Service Commissioner Tricia Pridemore.

Shoutouts

Credit: Tharon Johnson

Credit: Tharon Johnson

Today’s birthday:

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Before you go

Credit: AP

Credit: AP

U.S. Rep. Mike Collins’ Senate campaign says both Jackson and Jones will join him, along with many other GOP candidates, at a campaign stop on Saturday in Covington. Is Collins trying to win the Nobel Peace Prize?

That’ll do it for us today. As always, you can send your best scoops, gossip and insider information to greg.bluestein@ajc.com, tia.mitchell@ajc.com, patricia.murphy@ajc.com and adam.beam@ajc.com.