Plugged In: A WABE Politics Podcast

A Georgia politics roundup from the WABE newsroom. From under the Gold Dome or across the state, reporters Sam Gringlas and Rahul Bali talk to politicians and experts to break down each week’s biggest headlines in Georgia. Combining Sam and Rahul’s seasonal podcasts Gold Dome Scramble and Georgia Votes, Plugged In brings context to Georgia’s politics news each week.

Plugged In premieres on Friday, April 26 in the former Georgia Votes podcast feed. Episodes will also publish each week as a part of Political Breakfast.

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About the Hosts

About the hosts

Sam Gringlas

I cover elections, voting, public policy, the state legislature, demographics and law. I also host a WABE politics podcast and my reporting is often heard nationally on NPR. My title is “politics reporter,” but I think “democracy reporter” might be the best way to sum up my beat. I love sound and scene-rich stories that illuminate how policy, elections and the law affect people and communities.

Before WABE, I was a producer based in Washington, D.C. for NPR’s “All Things Considered” where I covered elections, immigration, impeachments, the pandemic and all kinds of breaking news from across the country and around the world. I also helped cover the 2020 election as a hybrid reporter-producer with NPR’s politics desk. I have also worked with NBC News in Washington and WDET, Detroit’s public radio station. I am a native Michigander and earned a degree in public policy from the University of Michigan where I served as Managing News Editor of the Michigan Daily.

Rahul Bali

I mainly cover state politics, including the Georgia General Assembly, the governor and other state leaders and offices. From time to time, I also cover city and county politics.

My family moved to Augusta, Georgia in the late 1980s. I came to Atlanta in 1994 to be a student at Georgia Tech. Eventually, I realized I did not want to be an engineer. My long and winding journey included working in radio and TV in Huntsville, Alabama, Augusta, Georgia and Washington, D.C. Here in Atlanta, I have worked for WSB Radio, CNN Radio, Oconee Radio, Z93 and Newsradio 106.7 (Three of those don’t even exist anymore.) Part of my journey also includes being a military spouse and moving for her career.