GA-6 Special election discussion thread

[GeorgiaModerate]

Why isn't anyone here thinking this could've been a strategic move on Sanders part? I live in Georgia near the district so I get to see all the ads (despite living outside of it) and most of the attack ads on Ossoff are already calling him too liberal and a rubber-stamp Democrat as it is--a Sanders endorsement will just add fuel to the attacks. This isn't a national race but a local one and the voting habits need to be taken into consideration.

I agree with you on this.  A Sanders endorsement wouldn't gain Ossoff many more D votes than he's already going to get, but it sure would have turned off a bunch of the crossover R's that he needs.

[Holmes]

A week after complaining that Democrats didn't do enough for Thompson, he's all "Ossoff who?"

[Attorney General, LGC Speaker, and Former PPT Dwarven Dragon]

Why isn't anyone here thinking this could've been a strategic move on Sanders part? I live in Georgia near the district so I get to see all the ads (despite living outside of it) and most of the attack ads on Ossoff are already calling him too liberal and a rubber-stamp Democrat as it is--a Sanders endorsement will just add fuel to the attacks. This isn't a national race but a local one and the voting habits need to be taken into consideration.

I agree with you on this.  A Sanders endorsement wouldn't gain Ossoff many more D votes than he's already going to get, but it sure would have turned off a bunch of the crossover R's that he needs.

[Attorney General, LGC Speaker, and Former PPT Dwarven Dragon]

A week after complaining that Democrats didn't do enough for Thompson, he's all "Ossoff who?"

Well he's not a democrat so he's not exactly obligated to support each and every dem.

[Adam Griffin]

[Adam Griffin]

If I had to make a wild guess about why the areas that are darker red are in fact darker red, then I'd surmise that the Ossoff campaign and the reality of Trump were more successful at galvanizing Latinos to vote in a special election than the Clinton campaign and the threat of Trump were in a regular election.

There's a good deal of overlap with those darker areas and Latino neighborhoods in both Fulton and Dekalb.

[libertpaulian]

What were the 2016 Presidential results in that district again ?

Did Hillary win it, considering she won virtually all of Atlanta ?

Trump won by a point. So Ossoff didn't exactly run better than Hillary.

And that's the deciding point which simply proves me right (whether Holmes likes it or not): The GOP did better in a special election (in which the opposition always overperformes) than Trump did. There's nothing like an anti-Trump wave. Only in your dreams.

This, ladies and germs, is the prime example of Pollyanna Syndrome.

[Gass3268]

Ossoff raised $500K today

[Dr. Arch]

Ossoff raised $500K today

The guy is a monster. I'll give him that.

[DrScholl]

Why does Sanders' opinion even matter? He needs to retire, because his holy roller act is old.

...because he's undeniably the most popular and influential political figure in the United States right now?

My point is that his opinion in this race isn't exactly that relevant, because the district isn't the sort of area where he would play well. Ossoff hardly needs his blessing or approval and the same can be said of other candidates.

[Adam Griffin]

Why does Sanders' opinion even matter? He needs to retire, because his holy roller act is old.

...because he's undeniably the most popular and influential political figure in the United States right now?

My point is that his opinion in this race isn't exactly that relevant, because the district isn't the sort of area where he would play well. Ossoff hardly needs his blessing or approval and the same can be said of other candidates.

And for all we know, he may know this and it may be why he responded in the ambivalent way in which he did. It's not as if he sought out a reporter and began to scream "I DON'T KNOW ABOUT THAT GUY". Obviously if he said "he's not a true progressive" or "he's my kind of guy", it could blow up either way - especially with the margin where it is.

[GeorgiaModerate]

It's possible Bernie may have said that for strategic reasons; I don't really know or care.  Another possibility is that he may just be speaking out of honest conviction.  I'd rather see a politician (of any stripe) who acts out of personal integrity rather than in automatic lockstep with their party.  This has sadly become much less common over the years.

[Nyvin]

It would've helped if Ossoff had moved back into the district as soon as he started running.   It probably made a lot of people uncomfortable that he doesn't live there.

[GeorgiaModerate]

It would've helped if Ossoff had moved back into the district as soon as he started running.   It probably made a lot of people uncomfortable that he doesn't live there.

It probably would have helped a little, but I doubt whether it made the difference between 48% and 50%.  He grew up in the district and his current location is just a stone's throw away.  Still, it wouldn't hurt him to move now to remove it as a potential issue in the runoff.

[OSR stands with Israel]

Calling for a move to the center after a series of losses is trolling now? I'm old enough to remember a time when it was common sense. The days of Tony Blair and Bill Clinton -- long gone now.

Clinton lost in November and Blair have sub-20 approvals, now.

Bill Clinton and Hillary ran totally different campaigns though. If it was Bill Clinton vs Trump Bill landslides Trump .

Also Hillary is significantly more to the left than Bill. 

[Chief Justice Keef]

LMAO, are we back to the whole "Bernie is ruining the Democrats" thing again? I can't wait for that sweet déjà vu to kick in.

[Holmes]

Ossoff raised $500K today

The guy is a monster. I'll give him that.

If he wins here, he could be a threat in an open Senate seat down the line.

[Roronoa D. Law]

Ossoff raised $500K today

The guy is a monster. I'll give him that.

If he wins here, he could be a threat in an open Senate seat down the line.

I was just thinking that. If Republicans really are malicious enough to try to gerrymander him out in either 2018 or 2020, that Perdue's Senate seat is always up for grabs.

Pretty sure the next open seat in GA would be tilt D. I expect GA pull a CO transition in the next decade.

[Dr. Arch]

Ossoff raised $500K today

The guy is a monster. I'll give him that.

If he wins here, he could be a threat in an open Senate seat down the line.

I was just thinking that. If Republicans really are malicious enough to try to gerrymander him out in either 2018 or 2020, that Perdue's Senate seat is always up for grabs.

Pretty sure the next open seat in GA would be tilt D. I expect GA pull a CO transition in the next decade.

I might consider moving to GA after my PhD studies conclude then. I have several friends and family members there. We'll see how things go.

[BaldEagle1991]

What you are seeing here, ladies and gentlemen, is Georgia beginning the transition to becoming a blue (Atlas red) state.

This bodes well for the rest of the South.

[Holmes]

What you are seeing here, ladies and gentlemen, is Georgia beginning the transition to becoming a blue (Atlas red) state.

This bodes well for the rest of the South.

Just North Carolina and Florida, and Texas marginally. Virginia is already "there".

[Heisenberg]

What you are seeing here, ladies and gentlemen, is Georgia beginning the transition to becoming a blue (Atlas red) state.

This bodes well for the rest of the South.

Just North Carolina and Florida, and Texas marginally. Virginia is already "there".

North Carolina and Florida are probably going to remain tossup states in 20 years. But yes, I do concede that Georgia is not a matter of "if," but a matter of "when" with regards to becoming Safe D.

[Holmes]

What you are seeing here, ladies and gentlemen, is Georgia beginning the transition to becoming a blue (Atlas red) state.

This bodes well for the rest of the South.

Just North Carolina and Florida, and Texas marginally. Virginia is already "there".

North Carolina and Florida are probably going to remain tossup states in 20 years. But yes, I do concede that Georgia is not a matter of "if," but a matter of "when" with regards to becoming Safe D.

You think Metro Atlanta will have the same kind of pull in Georgia that NoVA has on Virginia?

[Adam Griffin]

MS is another Southern state all too many people forget about. Assuming the Clinton implosion isn't the new maximum % among rural and black voters, Mississippi's rapid demographic turnover is going to eat away at the GOP over time. Romney only won MS by like 4 among those under the age of 65.

[Roronoa D. Law]

What you are seeing here, ladies and gentlemen, is Georgia beginning the transition to becoming a blue (Atlas red) state.

This bodes well for the rest of the South.

Just North Carolina and Florida, and Texas marginally. Virginia is already "there".

North Carolina and Florida are probably going to remain tossup states in 20 years. But yes, I do concede that Georgia is not a matter of "if," but a matter of "when" with regards to becoming Safe D.

I think FL will remain tossup but NC will start leaning D in the mid 2020s. Once the urban areas are Democratic enough to offset the drop of turnout among African Americans. Specifically the I-95 corridor then it will stop being a tossup and more like VA.