Political Rewind: Voting access; U.S. Senate race could determine control; New Trump emails released

Caption

Over two million Georgians have already voted in the midterm elections. Our panel discusses SB 202, often held up as a measure which disenfranchises voters.

The panel

Kevin Riley, @ajceditor, editor-in-chief, Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Leo Smith, @leosmithtweets, Republican consultant and CEO, Engaged Futures

Sen. Sonya Halpern, @sonya4ga, Democratic state senator, Georgia General Assembly

Stephen Fowler, @stphnfwlr, politics reporter, Georgia Public Broadcasting

The breakdown

1. As voters reach record midterm turnout figures, Democrats continue to allege Senate Bill 202 suppresses voters.

• The legislature passed SB 202, or the "Election Integrity Act," in May 2021. That bill changed certain practices, such as allowing Georgians to challenge voters' registrations en masse. Thousands of voters have been challenged.
• If your vote is challenged at the polls, you can still fill out an absentee ballot at the poll, which will be admitted if your challenge is thrown out.

2. Georgia's U.S. Senate race could determine who controls the Senate majority.

• Polls suggest that the race between Sen. Raphael Warnock and Herschel Walker could end with neither candidate reaching 50%, which would then trigger a runoff.
• Walker has managed to gain ground in polling amidst personal controversy.
• While Democrats had hoped abortion access would galvanize voters, inflation increasingly dominates concerns.

3. America First Legal, an organization led by Stephen Miller, is running an ad accusing Democrats of "anti-white bigotry."

• The ad doesn't advocate for an individual candidate or outwardly support Republicans, but it accuses President Biden and Vice President Harris of discriminating against white Americans.

Friday on Political Rewind: Georgia election official Gabriel Sterling joins the panel.