Sunday Solutions — May 19, 2024
Good morning! We’re counting down to Tuesday’s Georgia nonpartisan election and partisan primary and leaning in hard with info to help you feel confident as you make choices. If you’ve got process questions, we’ve got answers. If you need to learn more about candidates, we’ve got that, too. And yes, there’s more going on — from big EV trucks to a look at a pivotal moment in American history. Stay inside out of the May showers, and we’ll provide the reading material.
NEWS: ELECTIONS
Battle of the brands
Georgia Senate District 1 is usually a docile elections ground, but not this year. From social media to postcards to candidate meet & greets, Republican incumbent Ben Watson and challenger Beth Majeroni are battling for a legislative seat and to define the conservative spectrum in Coastal Georgia. Majeroni believes Watson is complacent and too caught up in what she sees is a “uniparty” ruling the legislature. Watson counters that his work has been influential and represents well the conservative district that spans parts of Bryan, Liberty and Chatham counties. The Current’s Craig Nelson does a deep dive into the politics, the rhetoric and actions of the candidates who have no opposition after Tuesday’s vote. Read his story here.
Do your homework. Get a sticker.
So here we are, a couple days from the nonpartisan election and partisan primary for local races: If you haven’t voted yet, there’s still time to do some homework on candidates, Rain’s in the forecast today, so why not check out your sample ballot and candidates before Tuesday. There’s a candidate forum Monday for multiple races in Glynn County and a school board forum in Chatham today. Here’s a link to the details. We’ve posted a few new stories this week on the Brunswick Circuit and Chatham County district attorney races from reporter Jake Shore. Liberty County reporter Robin Kemp has three new stories from there: tax commissioner, sheriff campaign donations and magistrate judge.
Why should you vote in this election? If you want a say in local government, casting a ballot is the best way to do it. Local elections are crucial to your everyday life, and many, many offices will be decided with this vote. Others will decide who’s on the ballot in November. If you’re confused about what the open primary means or just want to know what’s on your ballot before you go, here’s a link to our elections guide — designed using your specific questions to us over the past few months.
Other election-related stories from the week:
- Georgia’s legal leadership rips partisan politics, ignores their own donation histories: The Current’s Craig Nelson reports on the rift in the legal community after more than a dozen judges took issue with former state Rep. John Barrow’s campaign for Georgia Supreme Court but didn’t disclose they donated to his opponent’s effort.
- Inside Chatham County’s pivotal judge race: If you think there’s an unusual number of signs for judgeship candidates, you’d be right. Jake Shore reports on the one Superior Court race that’s drawing attention.
NEWS
First Amendment Clinic ordered to stop open government work
A few weeks ago, we learned that one of the best tools for citizens — and journalists — to help nudge government officials to follow the Georgia Open Records Law had been silenced. The University of Georgia School of Law’s First Amendment Clinic professors and students had been told to stop honoring requests for help getting public records. In other words, they were told to stop working to hold officials accountable by asking them to follow the law and show their work. That’s what the open records and open meetings law does: It requires your elected representatives to make their work visible to you so you know what they are doing. That way, when you vote, you can line up your priorities with your candidates.
Nearly every story we do requires documents at some point, either for verification of what we’ve been told or to show how money is spent. And sometimes, we have to get lawyers involved to get them. So yes, The Current holds a bias here in favor of government transparency. We’ve used the clinic’s excellent services for prepublication reads for fairness, legal questions and for help with meetings and records closed to the public. But it’s not all about us — the clinic is open to all Georgia citizens, those who can afford a lawyer and those who can’t. The clinic’s work wouldn’t be necessary if all public officials followed state law. But they don’t, and that’s a fact.
Here’s a story from Appen Media, which serves communities in north Atlanta, that describes what’s happened with the clinic and how it’s affecting journalism across the state.
Puzzled?
Welcome to The Current‘s weekly News Quiz! Here’s your opportunity to test your news knowledge with a few short questions related to stories we published in recent weeks.
Leaderboard May 12, 2024: First Place (10/10): Peaches; Second Place (8/10): EMF33; Third Place (7/10): JaLouise, SG Mark
Overall Leaderboard: First Place – Peaches; Second Place – SG Mark; Third Place – Sandy B, BBC, Laurie, EMF33
Want your chance to be featured in next week’s leaderboard? Leave a first name or nickname on your quiz form so we can keep track of your score. We’ll be honoring winners from the first half of 2024 in July, so start your climb up the leaderboard now.
NEWS
And there’s more
While the polls will be forefront, there are other things going on:
- Postal service agrees to pause restructuring mail processing system: We hesitate to say “postal service” and “pause” in the same sentence, but this may be useful as absentee ballots are headed to deadline this week.
- Georgia Supreme Court justices appear skeptical of Athens DA’s claim of open records exemption: Arguments center on whether a citizen has standing to force a public official to provide requested documents.
- University System of Georgia restores test-score admission requirements in 2026: The pandemic break is over: The ACT and SAT scores will be mandatory for some colleges and optional at others in the state university system.
- Federal panel prescribes new mental health strategy to curb maternal deaths: This story has particular resonance in Georgia, a state well-known for its abysmal, low rankings for maternal mortality and mental health access. From KFF Health News.
- An EV semi flexes its muscle in Port Wentworth: A new electric charging center has opened, and it’s now hosting semi trucks coming to and from the Savannah port. It’s a glimpse of what could be the future in and around Coastal Georgia. In the meantime, environment reporter Mary Landers writes that Garden City has put off one company looking to place a $7.8 million spot to charge more than 100 EV trucks.
NEWS
☕ Your second cup: Does the promise hold?
As we pass athe 70th anniversary of Brown v. Board of Education, it’s a good moment to look at where we are since the momentous ruling that ended legal separation of children by race in public schools throughout the country. It’s good to look around and think about where we are on that Constitution’s promise in its Preamble of promoting the “general welfare” with equal opportunities for all. Here’s a story from ProPublica out of Alabama that joins history with education now and the effects of legislative changes and culture over time. It will ring familiar in many locations. Not everyone is affected the same way — and we all need to remember that as we work for the future. Be sure to vote on Tuesday.
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Georgia Senate District 1: Watson, Majeroni battle over brand
By Craig Nelson
The stark differences between the two candidates over who is more authentically conservative and Republican have made the District 1 Senate race a bellwether election in Coastal Georgia, a battle-of-the-brands test of how deep into local Republican ranks the appeal of Majeroni’s far-right conservatism does — or doesn’t — go.
Reform, staffing issues take center stage in Chatham DA election
By Jake Shore
DA Shalena Cook Jones says she will continue efforts to reform criminal justice system if reelected. Challenger Jenny Parker says office is failing at prosecuting violent crime.
Brunswick DA race: Prosecutors with different answers to history
By Jake Shore
Elections for Brunswick Judicial Circuit District Attorney complicated by questions of ethics and integrity after predecessor Jackie Johnson’s indictment.
Follow the money: Liberty County sheriff campaign donations
By Robin Kemp
The Current combed through all candidates filings in the Liberty County Sheriff’s race to find out how much each has received in donations, who gave them that money, and how those candidates reported spending it.
UGA pulls plug on government transparency work
By Amber Perry/Appen Media
First Amendment Clinic was integral to helping journalists, citizens gain access to open records, meetings under Georgia law.
An EV semi flexes its muscle in Port Wentworth
By Mary Landers
Fuel center invests in chargers for semi trucks working between port and distribution centers.
Postal service agrees to pause restructuring mail processing system
By Dave Williams/Capitol Beat
Hearing revealed that only 36% of inbound mail handled by the Atlanta Regional Processing and Distribution Center in Palmetto was being delivered on time as of the end of February.
Georgia Supreme Court justices appear skeptical of Athens DA’s claim of open records exemption
By Stanley Dunlap/Georgia Recorder
Miller claims that the Supreme Court of Georgia has never held that the open records act does not apply to judicial branch members or offices.
University System of Georgia restores test-score admission requirements in 2026
By Dave Williams/Capitol Beat
The university system began waiving test requirements for 23 of the system’s 26 institutions in 2020 with the onset of the coronavirus pandemic.
Federal panel prescribes new mental health strategy to curb maternal deaths
By Cheryl Platzman Weinstock/KFF Health News
Experts say the lack of screening has driven higher rates of mental illness, suicide, and drug overdoses that are now the leading causes of death in the first year after a woman gives birth.
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