Georgia politics are once again in the national spotlight as a local election’s implications to the world stage become more clear.
Can Karen Handel hold onto a district that has historically been a Republican stronghold or will Jon Ossoff send Washington a message of more change to come.
It’s the most talked-about election in the country with coverage from national – and international – outlets. It’s also the most expensive congressional race in U.S. history.
On June 20, a runoff between Ossoff and Handel will decide who represents Georgia’s sixth district, which includes the northern suburbs of Atlanta.
We begin with an exclusive 11Alive poll which shows Ossoff has his biggest lead yet. Chris Hopper breaks down those results. We’ve also assembled a team of political analysts to discuss the poll. Mike Hassinger is a Republican consultant, Ladawn Jones is former Democratic state representative and Andra Gillespie is a political scientist from Emory University.
We’ve seen that this race will likely come down to independents. Per our poll, those independents are breaking hard for Jone Ossoff. Matt Pearl looks behind the numbers. Also, we’ll come back to our political analysts to talk about the national attention this race is getting.
Meanwhile President Donald Trump is weighing in on the 6th District race during his visit to Atlanta in April. He also tweeted about the race. Our team of analysts are delving into what impact his presence could have on the race.
However, there are also some who argue that this race is competitive because of a move Republicans made 6 years ago. That’s when the legislature redrew congressional districts creating a Republican district that could flip to a Democrat in the coming month.
In a race that has both national and local implications, our 11Alive analysts share our final thoughts on what the results will mean and how the final weeks leading up to this runoff could play out. Just what impact will this race have on the people who live in the 6th District?
More coverage:
► Looking at trends in the 6th Congressional District race
► 6th district voters split on Trump effect
► Ossoff leads 51% to Handel's 44% in exclusive poll
► Bad blood, GOP redistricting helped make GA06 competitive
