Georgia Today: GA skin cancer rates rise; Primary runoff early voting begins; GA teacher wins Tony

Peter Biello: Welcome to the Georgia Today podcast. Here we bring you the latest reports from the GPB newsroom. On today's episode, early voting starts today for primary runoffs, Georgia ranks high among states in skin cancer prevalence, and a Georgia teacher wins a Tony Award for excellence in theater education. 

Freddie Hendricks: I'm about being in the trenches, in the fields, working with the kids, teaching, loving, showing them who they are. 

Peter Biello: Today is Monday, June 8. I'm Peter Biello, and this is Georgia Today. 

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Peter Biello: Today is the first day of early voting in Georgia's primary election runoff. GPB's Sarah Kallis has more. 

Sarah Kallis: Georgians can start voting in the runoff election today. If you cast a partisan ballot during the first primary election, you may be wondering if you can vote in the other party's primary now. You cannot. That's because the runoff is technically just a continuation of the voting that started in May. But if you haven't cast a primary vote yet, or you selected the nonpartisan ballot back in May, you can vote in either party's runoff. The Republican races for U.S. Senate, governor, lieutenant governor, and secretary of state will all be on the runoff ballot, as will Democratic lieutenant governor and secretary of state races. Early voting ends on Friday. Election day is June 16. Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., and you can vote early at any early voting polling place in your county. For GPB News, I'm Sarah Kallis. 

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Peter Biello: Georgia's temporary suspension of the motor fuel tax cost the state about $197 million in May. Gov. Brian Kemp's office reported the number on Friday in a monthly revenue report. The gas tax suspension began in March after the U.S.-Israel war against Iran spiked prices and ended last week. 

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Peter Biello: Every year, close to 3,000 Georgians are diagnosed with melanoma, making it one of the top states for skin cancer. GPB's Ellen Eldridge has more on how to protect yourself. 

Ellen Eldridge: Melanoma, an aggressive form of skin cancer, claims about 200 lives per year. Risks are particularly high in the summer when people spend more time outdoors. Dr. Tolutope Oyasiji is the medical director of surgical oncology at City of Hope Cancer Center, Atlanta. He says the number of people diagnosed with melanoma is rising every year, and he wants to remind people to apply sunscreen generously and frequently. 

Tolutope Oyasiji: Reapply it every two hours when you are out in that exposure to the sun but also more importantly after swimming or sweating to reapply right after that. 

Ellen Eldridge: He also says long sleeves and wide-brimmed hats protect against the sun's harmful ultraviolet rays. For GPB News, I'm Ellen Eldridge. 

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Peter Biello: A state oversight agency is undertaking a formal probe into allegations of what accusers say was willful financial misconduct by a Southeast Georgia district attorney. GPB media partner The Current reports the prosecuting attorney's qualifications commission voted in April to authorize an investigation into claims against Brunswick Judicial Circuit DA Keith Higgins. A letter the news organization obtained from the agency doesn't detail the allegations, but in a complaint made last year, the district's five counties claimed persistent fiscal mismanagement and the diversion and misuse of public funds, among other charges. Higgins called the allegations politically motivated. 

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Peter Biello: The Georgia NAACP and two Black voters voluntarily have dismissed a lawsuit that alleged Voting Rights Act violations in West Georgia's Meriwether County. Last year, the plaintiffs accused county commissioners of redrawing commission maps to dismantle the only district that had a Black commissioner. The move to end the case comes after a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling that weakened minority voting protections. 

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Peter Biello: Wellstar Health System is buying a 25-bed hospital in Northeast Georgia's Rabun County. The Marietta-based company on Friday said that its agreement to purchase Mountain Lakes Medical Center in Clayton is expected to close on Aug. 1. It's the first new hospital announced since WellStar named a new CEO, Ketul Patel, last year. The company is currently building a new hospital in Columbia County, west of Augusta, and plans to build a new hospital in metro Atlanta's Cobb County. It closed two hospitals in Atlanta in 2022. 

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Peter Biello: A Georgia arts teacher took home one of Broadway's highest honors last night. Freddie Hendrix received the Tony Award for Excellence in Theater Education Sunday night at the Tony Awards. Hendrix teaches at Utopian Academy for the Arts and Ellenwood had founded the Youth Ensemble of Atlanta. Over more than three decades, dozens of his students have gone on to careers on Broadway and beyond. Speaking backstage after accepting the award, Hendrix said the recognition is meaningful, but his focus remains on the students. 

Freddie Hendricks: This is amazing. This is beautiful. This is great. But it's all about the work. I'm about being in the trenches, in the fields, working with the kids, teaching, loving, showing them who they are.

Peter Biello: The award includes a $10,000 prize for his school .The students also will receive a visiting master class taught by Carnegie Mellon drama professors. 

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Peter Biello: In Georgia sports, the University of Georgia has advanced to the NCAA Men's College World Series for the first time since 2008. Third-seeded Georgia defeated No. 14 Mississippi State 11 to 9 in an extra-innings thriller at the Athens Super Regional yesterday. Junior catcher Daniel Jackson, a finalist for the national player of the year and multiple awards, blasted a two-run homer in the top of the 10th inning to put Georgia ahead.  In Major League Baseball, the Atlanta Braves completed a three-game sweep of the Pittsburgh Pirates yesterday with a three to two win. And in basketball, the Atlanta Hawks have extended coach Quin Snyder's contract. Details of the multi-year extension were not disclosed in the team's announcement today. Snyder led the Hawks to a 46-36 regular season record and the franchise's first outright playoff berth since the 2020-2021 season. There was a year of significant turnover for Atlanta, which underwent a midseason roster overhaul that included the departure of four-time NBA star Trae Young. 

Peter Biello: And that's a wrap on Georgia Today. Thanks for tuning in. Remember to check gpb.org/news for updates to any of the stories you heard today and all the new headlines our reporters have written. And remember to subscribe to this podcast as well. It'll help you stay on top of all things Georgia and we'll pop up automatically in your feed when you do subscribe. Your feedback is welcome by email. Send it to georgiatoday@gpb.org. I'm Peter Biello. Thank you again for listening. We will see you tomorrow. 

For more on these stories and more, go to gpb.org/news