ATLANTA - Chuck Todd, moderator of NBC's 'Meet The Press,' sat down with 11Alive's Jeff Hullinger on Friday to take a closer look at Georgia's gubernatorial race.
Hullinger pointed out that the race had more of a feel that you would get from a senate race than a governor's race.
"If this had been a senate race and it had turned into a proxy fight between national Democrats, the leader of the national Republicans, you'd say, 'that makes sense, it's a seat to represent Georgia in Washington,'" Todd said. "But this is a governor's race, where the issues are normally about transportation, education, you know -- very parochial issues, very local issues. She got a lot of national money, and as she got it, so did Mr. Kemp and because of the role the White House ended up playing in his primary victory and runoff, it just sort of snowballed from there."
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In Georgia, there is an old adage, Hullinger said, that Atlanta never elects governors.
"As tight as this race is, that still may be true, but Oprah Winfrey trying to appeal to white suburban women -- who are somewhat of a wild card in all of this, is certainly something to pay attention to," Hullinger said.
"The Oprah Winfrey event, if you're Stacey Abrams, you couldn't have scripted it better," Todd said. "She didn't speak as a Democrat -- she spoke as an Independent. It was clear to me, that was her audience, certainly to talk to women, both black and white; women of all colors, not just African American women."
"I think that if Stacey Abrams wins by a point or two, you can't sit here and say that wasn't a big part of it," Todd continued. "I also think though, that her extra push on the rural hospital issue on expanding Medicaid -- you know, she could overperform in some parts of rural Georgia, just on this issue, alone. When you're talking about a race that's only being decided by a point or two, we'll be able to point to a thousand examples like that and say, 'Oh, that made the difference, or oh, that made the difference,' but it may be that all of it made the difference."
Todd points to the percentage of the African American vote in Georgia statewide as the potential difference in the race.
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"That's how I'm watching this race. What is the portion of the electorate that's African American in the exit poll," Todd said. "If it's under 30, that's better news for Kemp -- if it's over 30, it's better news for Abrams."
