Early Voting In 6th Congressional District Race Set To End
Early voting ends Friday in the Georgia 6th District congressional race, with the formal special election taking place Tuesday.
Early voting in the Georgia 6th Congressional District special election ends on Friday in a race that figures to continue generating national attention into the summer.
That’s because 18 candidates are vying to succeed former U.S. Rep Tom Price, and a runoff is expected between the top two finishers after balloting on Tuesday. Runoffs are required in Georgia elections if no candidate receives a majority of the vote.
More than 32,000 voters have cast ballots in the early voting period, the Atlanta Journal Constitution reported Wednesday. The 6th District includes East Cobb, North Fulton and North DeKalb.
Registered voters can cast ballots Friday at selected early voting spots in the district. The Georgia Secretary of State’s Office has a searchable list of locations with addresses and voting hours. On Tuesday, more precincts will be available, and voting hours will be from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. at all Cobb, Fulton and DeKalb polling stations.
Another special election is being held Tuesday in Georgia State Senate District 32, which covers most of East Cobb and some of North Fulton, and early voting also ends Friday in that race. That seat became vacant when State Sen. Judson Hill resigned to run in the Congressional race.
Democrat Jon Ossoff leads in most polls in the 6th District race and his campaign fundraising that’s topped more than $8 million has turned heads around the country. According to The Wall Street Journal, 97 percent of his contributions have come from outside the state of Georgia.
Ossoff, a 30-year-old former aide to Atlanta-area U.S. Rep. Hank Jones, has benefitted from a surge of Democratic and liberal sentiment since Donald Trump was elected president in November.
The 6th District has been heavily Republican for years, but Trump won by only two percentage points last fall. When Price resigned to become Trump’s nominee as U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services, a flood of candidates, both established office holders and newcomers, signed up to run.
Ossoff is one of five Democrats in the race, and he’s been polling around or a bit higher than 40 percent. Trailing behind him are three Republicans, including former Georgia Secretary of State Karen Handel, who have been polling around 10 to 15 percent.
While Republicans have been heavily outspent by Ossoff, they are still spending plenty of money. Conservative and Republican political action groups have been busy countering Ossoff’s aggressive get-out-the-vote drive with a rash of communications of their own, including television ads critical of his connection to news outlet Al Jazeera.
The 6th District race is the second congressional campaign since Trump’s election. Earlier this week, Republicans held on to a seat in Kansas in a narrow result that has encouraged national Democrats.
The runoff in the 6th District race would take place on June 20. If there’s a runoff in the State Senate District 32 race, that is scheduled for May 16.
For more information on the special election, including sample ballots and district maps, please visit the Georgia Secretary of State website.
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