By Elliott Brack
Editor and Publisher, GwinnettForum
MAY 28, 2021 | Though we are a year away, the 2022 political season saw its practical start when Gov. Brian Kemp put forth recently he would seek an endorsement term as the state’s chief executive officer. So for the next 12 months, watch out: political blowhards will be busy positioning themselves to look as good as they can at all times to the voters. Just remember: what you see in them may not be what you’ll get.
Already others in the Republican Party have said they would be a candidate for governor. These include the fallen-from-grace Democrat, now cuddling up to Republicans, Vernon Jones; and the Baxley educator who ran for the U.S. Senate in 2020, Kandiss Taylor.
Then there’s the Libertarian Party. They will probably put up a gubernatorial candidate (Shane Hazel?), and may draw enough votes to send this election into a runoff.
Governor Kemp could even draw serious primary candidates from the Trumpist wing of the party. If this should happen, and it might come to pass, this could really deal a significant blow to the Grand Old Party, essentially splitting the party into two weaker wings, fighting among themselves. With the Republicans coming off the heels of losing not one, but two Senate races in 2020 to upstart and revived Democrats, this split could signal big trouble, and even reach into the bowels of the Legislature and could change its line-up.
While we don’t see the General Assembly turning entirely blue in 2022, the Democrats could make some significant gains. The 2022 elections might be the last year that the Republicans could expect to virtually automatically retain control of the legislature. The Republican’s best arsenal is the upcoming ten-year reapportionment, since they will be in control of how all statewide district lines are drawn. They might carve the state into such districts that even the Democrats might lose some ground in the number of seats they hold. That’s terrifying, that is, since it destroys any possibility for bipartisanship, when one party is in such an over-controlling position.
Though Democrat Stacey Abrams has said little about the 2022 nomination of her party for governor, she stands waiting-in-the-wings to take on Governor Kemp, perhaps without other potential candidates willing to challenge her in her own party. After all, why challenge the obvious leader?
The big question for the state may be whether the candidacy of Ms. Abrams will be strong enough to pull along other Democratic hopefuls to victory, from Congressional districts, statewide offices and for the Legislature. If so, her vitality could bring about significant change in the political outcome of our state for years to come.
Another statewide race that could be a barnburner will be that of Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger. Again, some Republicans are particularly upset that he did not go the extra mile for President Trump, and question Raffensperger doing a good job at running the election. (Can you believe he might be punished for doing his job correctly?) So here comes the tub-thumping Trumpist, Congressman Jody Hice, saying: “I’ll take him on.” The best part of that, with Hice seeking this office, is that Georgia will get rid of a bad Congressman in Washington. The worst part is that Hice likely will be replaced by the voters with another close-minded, far-right person. Or could possibly Stacey Abrams’ strong positioning in the state find a Democrat attractive enough to win voters in that new district?
We’ll see. Politics is already gathering speed for the 2022 voting. Hang on!
- Have a comment? Send to: elliott@brack.net
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