Step aside Florida and Ohio. Georgia is ready to be a political battleground

A poll worker hands off a Georgia Voted sticker to a voter on Election Day, Nov. 8, 2022, in Atlanta. (Brynn Anderson/AP)

Brynn Anderson / Brynn Anderson

Florida, Ohio, Virginia, Colorado: these were once perennial swing states. Now, a new pack of battlegrounds is emerging, including Georgia.

Two years ago, Democratic candidates for president and Senate won Georgia for the first time in years. Then this November, Republicans swept every statewide race except for the Senate, where Democratic Sen. Raphael Warnock prevailed in a runoff last week.

So does this mean Georgia has arrived as a purple state, or at least a competitive one?