The 'Atlanta Voice' is heard: Donnell Suggs on Georgia's primary | the optics in Selma concern me

Chidi on Democratic down ballot, the dents in Keisha's armor & more

Atlanta-based journalist George Chidi (The Atlanta Objective [https://theatlantaobjective.substack.com/], The Guardian [https://www.theguardian.com/profile/george-chidi]) penned a thorough Substack piece [https://theatlantaobjective.substack.com/p/a-2026-democratic-primary-guide-for] taking a deep dive into the 2026 Georgia Democratic primary - going way down the ballot to give voters as much information as needed. Plus, hear how he's intrinsically tied to the death of Secoriea Turner and how that still affects him to this day, and what that wrongful death case could mean to the Keisha Lance Bottoms campaign. Now that we know the results, it's kind of fun to listen back to, I suppose. Please do!

The 'Atlanta Voice' is heard: Donnell Suggs on Georgia's primary | the optics in Selma concern me

The Atlanta Voice - celebrating sixty years in publication [https://theatlantavoice.com/black-press-legacy-atlanta/] - is guided by editor-in-chief Donnell Suggs [https://theatlantavoice.com/author/donnell-suggs/], who's made himself available for this show on many occasions, and the Monday before the Georgia primary, it was great to catch up and get a sense where his readership and metro Atlanta's Black voting bloc is leaning on a handful of races. He recently sat down with former Atlanta mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms [https://theatlantavoice.com/keisha-bottoms-campaign-trail/], who is of course running for the Democratic nomination to be Georgia's next governor. Donnell and I discuss that race for second place, too. - - - This AL.com op/ed [https://www.al.com/news/2026/05/archibald-the-moment-i-cant-stop-thinking-about-from-saturday-in-selma.html] concerns me a bit. John Archibald covered protests in Selma and Montgomery, Alabama, and noted the optics of the fleets of black SUVs and limousines swooping into Selma for quick stops and swoops back out, as well as one woman's reponse: “That’s too much,” a lady beside me said. “This should be for the people.”Activists and politicians have to tweak these optics, in my opinion. That said, the likes of Rev. Senator Raphael Warnock, Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Tennessee state Rep. Justin Pearson, Senator Cory Booker, did lend voice and wisdom to the moment. I have highlights to share.

Before hitting the road to Selma, former NAACP GA leader Gerald Griggs sounds off

Gerald Griggs, Atlanta-based attorney [https://www.geraldagriggs.com/about], advocate and activist - and former NAACP Georgia chapter President, joined me Friday morning to weigh in on the landscape in a post-'Callais' U.S. and Georgia. He and I discussed the near-immediate aftermath of fever-pitch GOP redistricting to dilute Black voter power in Congress and even at the state level. Georgia's governor, Brian Kemp, this week announced he, too, is reconvening the state legislature to further gerrymander the state. He and I also previewed what to expect in Selma on Saturday [https://blackpowerwarroom.com/dayofaction/].

Kemp calls to redraw a Georgia already gerrymandered

Also, Democrats need to present an alternative to GOP and their own 'status quo' & is there a pattern of campaign finance ethics issues with Bottoms' campaigns? Not only did Brian Kemp call a special session of the General Assembly back to the Gold Dome [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QldLzqB3IME] to address a mess of its own making (mandating the elimination of QR codes from voter ballots), but the already-and-disproportionately gerrymandered state - in his mind - needs another redraw. So what are Democrats to do? Well, for starters, they need to understand that they, as a party, aren't much more popular than the historically unpopular President they're trying to mitigate by retaking the House the November. My goodness, if they could provide clarity by way of a slate of candidates backing a populist message that's centered on the working class, eschewing 'Third Way' "baby steps pragmatism" for a bold visionary agenda, the places they could ascend to! That agenda starts with fixing the way we govern and elect leaders. They include: * Uncapping the House. New England California Republicans would love this because they'd finally have representation, and a nation whose voice in the House has been diluted by 1/3 since the 1930s gets its clout back. * Eliminate partisan gerrymandering. Racial gerrymandering's supposedly gone, so get rid of partisan gerrymandering to ensure that, and do it before we've drawn ourselves into a civil war. * By doing those two things you've already fixed the electoral college, but because it's broken, you have to also uncap the Supreme Court. Grow it to 13 to match the number of US court circuits. Oh, and * Set term limits on that court. You can't tell me the American people wouldn't be solidly behind that. Call it "Project 2032" if you need to - so they know it can't be done overnight and that they (we) the voter have to stay on task to ensure we do our part to meet that date to see those accomplishments come to fruition. As Democrats, there'll be some self-inflicted pains in some "blue states," but gains to be made in others. So be it. This is how you grow your brand in places you aren't winning in. - - - I spent most of my show going off on that tangent, but closer to home, there are concerns - and now a filed campaign finance ethics complaint - shedding light on the Keisha Lance Bottoms' gubernatorial campaign. I highlighted a lot of those concerns before the complaint was filed, but this information's readily available for anyone to gather and use against her - including Burt Jones and Rick Jackson. Heck, I got it from a Republican campaign finance wonk. Is this "more baggage" to consider when deciding who Democrats in Georgia should back to be their gubernaotiral nominee? It bears mentioning this isn't the first time such allegations have come up. Then councilwoman Bottoms, when pivoting to a mayoral run, was hit with a $37,000 fine for campaign ethics violations [https://www.fox5atlanta.com/news/campaign-finance-commission-fines-mayor-keisha-lance-bottoms-37000].

Kemp's weaponized pen attacks homeless vets | Is Richard the 'Wright' choice for LG?

Governor Brian Kemp's last hurrah with the veto pen (and the 'sign into law' pen, too) is akin to burying landmines on property just before abandoning it for someone else to step all over. Income & property tax relief measures passed by the GOP-led General Assembly [https://www.ajc.com/politics/2026/05/brian-kemp-signs-georgia-income-property-tax-cuts-now-comes-the-hard-part/] will shift tax burden onto consumption taxes everyone will pay - disproportionately impacting the poor and working class - to give the better-and-well-of a break. Meanwhile, those revenue cuts also created a budget shortfall his vetoes don't measure to. So with those 'tough decisions' to make he chose curbing funds to combat veteran homelessness and money earmarked for K-12 student transportation needs [https://www.ajc.com/politics/2026/05/brian-kemp-trims-300-million-from-georgias-budget/]. Wouldn't those buses help get students-of-need to those private schools their vouchers were supposed to bridge the gap for? - -- There's been so much attention paid to who ought to represent each party in the gubernatorial race that Georgia voters have no idea who ought to be lieutenant governor [https://www.ajc.com/politics/2026/05/democrats-republicans-have-no-idea-who-should-be-georgias-lieutenant-governor/], with each party's candidates failing to gather enough support to overcome 'undecided' on either side. One of the three Democratic options - Richard Wright, [https://wrightforgeorgia2026.com/] a certified public account and not a career politician - joined the show today to make his case.