Morning, y’all. Metro Atlanta can expect temperatures in the mid-70s and some rain this afternoon, though not as much as parts of south and east Georgia.
But you didn’t come here for the forecast, did you?
- Shortly before 1 a.m., it became clear: former President Donald Trump won Georgia. With most ballots counted, he led Democrat Kamala Harris by more than 100,000 votes.
- The Peach State marked Trump’s second battleground win, following North Carolina. Next came Pennsylvania, which put him three electoral votes shy of winning the presidency.
- Trump then delivered what amounted to a victory speech from his watch party in Florida. And around 5:40 a.m., the Associated Press joined a chorus of news outlets calling the race.
More presidential coverage (including a Mike Luckovich cartoon) momentarily. First, though, let’s take a look at other races on the ballot, from transit and property taxes to the General Assembly.
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MAKING IT COUNT
Credit: Hyosub Shin/AJC
Credit: Hyosub Shin/AJC
Let’s jump right into it, but remember: results are not final or official until certified at a later date. Even those on the AJC vote tracker.
Statewide ballot questions: Constitutional Amendment 1, which effectively caps year-over-year property tax increases, passed comfortably.
- So did another measure increasing tax exemptions for small business owners, while a third involving the creation of a state tax court appeared to pass by a slimmer margin.
U.S. House: No surprises here. Republican Brian Jack, a former Trump aide, took the 3rd Congressional District in west Georgia. Incumbents won reelection in every other contested seat.
State legislature: Every seat in the General Assembly was up for grabs. Interesting results include …
- Republican Sen. Shawn Still, a co-defendant in Donald Trump’s Fulton County election interference case, earning reelection in the 48th District.
- Rep. Mesha Mainor losing her Atlanta-based seat after switching to the Republican Party.
- Republican Rep. Ken Vance losing his Middle Georgia seat to Democrat Floyd Griffin.
Credit: Jenni Girtman for the AJC
Credit: Jenni Girtman for the AJC
Transit expansion: Voters in both Cobb and Gwinnett counties appeared to shoot down their respective referendums involving 1% sales taxes to pay for projects like bus rapid transit.
More local races: Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis (whose office is leading the aforementioned Trump prosecution, which may now be put on hold) easily won another term. Elsewhere …
- Fellow Democratic DA Deborah Gonzalez lost her reelection bid in Athens.
- Republicans led contested school board races in Cobb and Forsyth, counties at the center of classroom culture wars.
- Incumbents throughout the metro led the way in their races for sheriff and county commission.
In Atlanta, Eshe Collins and Nicole Evans Jones appeared headed for a runoff in their bid for a citywide council seat.
Stay tuned to Politically Georgia and AJC.com for updates, analysis and reaction throughout the day. And keep reading for more!
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VICTORY CRIES
Credit: Jason Getz/AJC
Credit: Jason Getz/AJC
So how did Donald Trump retake Georgia four years after his historic loss here?
Among other things, AJC reporter Greg Bluestein writes, he focused on the GOP’s mostly white base and “drove up vote totals in Republican strongholds across the state, overwhelming Harris’ base of support in metro Atlanta and other urban and suburban pockets.”
- Harris, for instance, easily took deep blue Clayton County. But she fell shy of President Joe Biden’s 2020 numbers.
Similar situations played out across the country.
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EMPTY THREATS
Voter turnout in Georgia hit a record high of more than 5.2 million and, generally speaking, things went smoothly. Except for, you know, the bomb threats.
At least 15 total voting precincts in DeKalb, Fulton and Gwinnett counties — all heavily Black and Democratic-leaning areas — stayed open late after the non-credible threats forced temporary evacuations.
- The FBI and Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger say the hoaxes likely originated in Russia. Fake videos urging voters to avoid polling places due to a “high terror threat” also emerged online.
“Georgia is not going to be intimidated,” Raffensperger said.
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THE OPINION SECTION
Credit: Mike Luckovich/AJC
Credit: Mike Luckovich/AJC
As votes continued pouring in, AJC political cartoonist Mike Luckovich had a little fun at the expense of the Electoral College (and battleground states like Georgia).
Visit AJC.com later today for his take on the results — and in the meantime, check out what AJC opinion contributors had to say Tuesday night.
- A sampling, from Democratic U.S. Rep. Carolyn Bourdeaux: “Please know, regardless of the outcome, our task now will be to find a way into the future together, with strength, integrity and faith.”
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THEN THERE’S THIS
Former Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani may have been driving around Florida in a Mercedes convertible he’s supposed to surrender to the former Fulton County election workers he’s convicted of defaming.
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NONELECTION NEWS
Credit: AJC file photo/Brant Sanderlin
Credit: AJC file photo/Brant Sanderlin
Bernie Marcus — billionaire cofounder of Home Depot and a major GOP donor — died Monday night. He was 95 years old.
His many philanthropic endeavors in Atlanta included the Georgia Aquarium, the Marcus Autism Center and other medical treatment and research facilities. Local business and civic leaders, including fellow Home Depot founder Arthur Blank, remembered him fondly.
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ON THIS DATE
Nov. 6, 2002
As Sonny Perdue became Georgia’s first Republican governor in more than a century (capping Southern Democrats’ lengthy transition to the GOP), voters came away impressed by the state’s first widespread attempt at electronic voting.
“You have to remember to touch the screen,” one voter told the AJC. “It’s a lot better than with the poke-it, stick-it thing.”
Credit: File photo
Credit: File photo
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PHOTO OF THE DAY
Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
AJC photographer Arvin Temkar caught a distraught patron watching election returns at Manuel’s Tavern in Atlanta. More watch party photos here.
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ONE MORE THING
I offered similar advice yesterday, but seriously: take care of yourself. This election is a lot.
As the pros told reporter Helena Oliviero, you should take breaks from the news, stick to your routine and focus on friends and family.
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Thanks for reading to the very bottom of A.M. ATL. Questions, comments, ideas? Contact me at tyler.estep@ajc.com.
Until next time.
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