It’s hard to imagine Georgia GOP activists Ginger Howard and Jason Thompson painted as moderates.
Howard was one of former President Donald Trump’s most prominent supporters in the last election and a longtime GOP activist. Thompson is a co-founder of the far-right Georgia Republican Assembly.
But each faces ultraconservative challengers in their quest for another term as an official member of the Republican National Committee.
Howard is in a race against Amy Kremer, a co-founder of the Tea Party Patriots who organized a bus tour to rev up Trump supporters after his 2020 defeat. She obtained the permit for the massive rally outside the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, that preceded the mob.
She wears that background as a badge of honor while pointing out that she didn’t encourage the thousands of rally participants to descend on the Capitol. She told a recent conservative gathering that the federal government has since been “weaponized” against Republicans.
“It’s not enough to just espouse conservative values anymore,” Kremer said. “We have to stand up and fight — and the RNC hasn’t done it.”
Credit: Hyosub Shin/AJC
Credit: Hyosub Shin/AJC
Thompson, meanwhile, is in a three-way race with David Cross, a far-right election conspiracist who recently won a Georgia GOP leadership post; and Jason Frazier, who has challenged nearly 10,000 voter registrations under Georgia’s 2021 election law.
They’re fighting over a vaunted job in the activist world. There are only three RNC committee members from Georgia — GOP chair Josh McKoon is the third — and they help orchestrate the party’s convention and set its platform.
Committee members also can command attention. In Arizona, a GOP elector facing criminal charges made national headlines this weekend when he was elected to the committee post.
Both Howard and Thompson are emphasizing their experience as they seek another four-year term. Howard pledged at a GOP gathering to “keep our platform as conservative as possible.”
And Thompson was cheered as he recounted raising concerns about former RNC chair Ronna McDaniel before she was ousted from her leadership post in March.
“I have a lifetime of conservative activism,” he told the friendly crowd. “You know me.”
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Credit: Miguel Martinez/AJC
Credit: Miguel Martinez/AJC
SHIFTING ELECTORATE. Georgia has gained 13,500 more Democratic voters than Republican since 2020, according to analysis of voter registration data by the AJC’s Phoebe Quinton.
Based on records from L2, a political data vendor, Quinton found that 140,000 registered voters moved to Georgia in the past four years. After accounting for those who moved away, the state had a net gain of about 30,000 voters.
About 19,500 of those new voters are likely Democrats and about 6,000 are likely Republicans. The remainder were not registered with a political party in their prior state or belonged to third parties.
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Credit: AJC
Credit: AJC
VOTER GUIDE. Now that early in-person voting is underway, many voters are researching the names they will see on their ballots.
If you are looking for information about the candidates, we have you covered. Check out the Georgia Decides voter guide, a joint project from The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and The Atlanta Civic Circle.
Early in-person voting ends May 17.
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Credit: Nathan Posner for the AJC
Credit: Nathan Posner for the AJC
YOLO. Maybe it’s the stress. Maybe it’s an exhausted caucus looking to get away from it all.
Whatever the reason, a group of House Republicans is throwing caution to the wind and giving their leadership high anxiety with a series of daredevil pursuits, from off-road motorcycle racing to skateboarding and, in one famous Georgian’s case, doing pullups high above the Capitol rotunda.
Georgia’s own U.S. Rep. Rich McCormick is one of the adrenaline junkies profiled in a Wall Street Journal piece Monday explaining House leaders’ concerns, not so much for their colleagues’ safety as for their slim House majority. One wrong move and they’re down a vote.
McCormick, a Marine veteran, is also among a group planning to skydive from a vintage World War II aircraft onto the beaches of Normandy this June to mark D-Day.
“This is who I am,” McCormick told the Journal. “You can’t change who you are because of the job you have.”
At least the group knows who to turn to if anything goes awry. The Suwanee Republican is also an emergency room doctor.
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Credit: Fletcher Page/AJC
Credit: Fletcher Page/AJC
LISTEN UP. Today’s episode of the “Politically Georgia” radio show features AJC journalist Fletcher Page, who shares his reporting from Monday’s pro-Palestinian protests at the University of Georgia.
The show also recaps Vice President Kamala Harris’ visit to Atlanta and political analysis from Republican strategist Brian Robinson.
The show airs at 10 a.m. on 90.1 FM, at AJC.com and at WABE.org.
In case you missed it, Monday’s episode featured Morehouse Provost Kendrick Brown, who explained why the school is not second-guessing its decision to have President Joe Biden serve as the graduation ceremony keynote speaker.
Former Ambassador Carlos Trujillo talked about why he is supporting former President Donald Trump’s efforts to return to the White House and why he believes Republicans have a winning message on the economy and immigration in 2024.
Listen at Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.
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Credit: Natrice Miller/AJC
Credit: Natrice Miller/AJC
VP AROUND TOWN. Vice President Kamala Harris made multiple stops during her Atlanta visit Monday as she kicked off a nationwide tour meant to tout President Joe Biden’s economic successes in the run-up to his reelection bid this November.
Insider Greg Bluestein shadowed Harris as she stopped at the Atlanta University Center, an innovation center for Black startups, traversed a busy Atlanta highway that has symbolized economic disparity in the city and took part in a roundtable discussion about inequality.
Each stop of Harris' visit to kick off a nationwide economic tour was carefully orchestrated to bring new attention to the Democrat's efforts to mobilize Black voters, her party's most loyal constituency.
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SAVING AM RADIO. U.S. Rep. Buddy Carter speaks today at a hearing of the House Energy and Commerce Committee where discussion centers on whether automakers should be allowed to stop equipping new cars with AM radio capabilities.
Carter, R-St. Simon Island, said he is concerned that without access to AM radio stations, residents in rural Georgia could miss crucial emergency messages during hurricanes or other natural disasters.
Carter said he hopes the hearing helps convince automobile companies that AM radio remains a crucial feature.
Credit: Nathan Posner for The AJC
Credit: Nathan Posner for The AJC
“Our hope is that the manufacturers will realize just how important this is and just how big of a loss this would be for our constituents, for the people in America,” Carter said.
The committee is expected to soon release its draft legislation that could tie the hands of manufacturers that want to drop AM radio.
Some electric vehicle companies have said that the electromagnetic interference from EV motors affect AM frequencies, creating static that makes the stations hard to listen to. Ford initially said it would drop AM radio from electric and gas-powered vehicles starting with 2024 models but later backed away from that plan, citing the desire to ensure access to emergency communications.
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TODAY IN WASHINGTON:
- President Joe Biden holds a campaign event in Wilmington, Delaware.
- The House has votes scheduled on bills related to science and the environment. Lawmakers could also vote on whether to advance a measure to the floor intended to rein in antisemitism.
- The Senate has confirmation votes lined up.
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Credit: Katelyn Myrick/AJC
Credit: Katelyn Myrick/AJC
CAMPUS PROTESTS. The AJC deployed journalists to college campuses across the state Monday as student protests grew in scope. A demonstration at the University of Georgia led to arrests with participants charged with trespassing and the ongoing protest at Emory University entered its fifth day.
While the UGA and Emory protests centered on the Palestinians caught up in the Israel-Hamas war, a demonstration at Georgia Southern University focused on recent changes by the school that affect LGBTQ students.
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Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
REACTOR ONLINE. Seven years later and tens of billions of dollars over budget, Plant Vogtle’s new nuclear reactors are finally producing electricity for the grid. The second of the new units recently entered operation, Georgia Power announced Monday, joining the first new unit, which entered service last July.
The AJC’s Drew Kann unpacks what the new power generators mean for Georgians, including for our monthly electric bills. With the startups of the two reactors, Georgia Power and other electricity providers involved in the project can begin to reclaim construction costs under an agreement approved by the Georgia Public Service Commission, an elected body.
The average residential customer using 1,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity a month will see a cumulative increase of $14.38 in their monthly bills compared to June 2023.
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Credit: Courtesy photo
Credit: Courtesy photo
DOG OF THE DAY. Warm weather has arrived in the South and not a minute too soon for Arwen Chezmar.
The three-year-old mini Aussiedoodle is seen here in her best spring dress. Arwen calls fashion her top hobby — and Judy Chezmar of Atlanta her person.
If your pooch is ready for his or her 15 minutes of newsletter notice, send them our way! Pups of any political persuasion considered, as are cats on a cat-by-cat basis. Horizontal photos are especially welcome. Send to patricia.murphy@ajc.com.
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AS ALWAYS, Politically Georgia readers are some of our favorite tipsters. Send your best scoop, gossip and insider info to greg.bluestein@ajc.com, tia.mitchell@ajc.com, patricia.murphy@ajc.com and adam.vanbrimmer@ajc.com.
