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5 things to watch for in Georgia politics this year

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5 things to watch for in Georgia politics this year


Politically Georgia

Your daily jolt of news and analysis from the AJC politics team.

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp is his second and final term of office. (Hyosub Shin/AJC)

Today’s newsletter highlights:

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  • Marjorie Taylor Greene stokes feud with Donald Trump as she exits Congress.
  • Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens will be sworn in today for a second term.
  • Dana Barrett is expected to run for secretary of state as a Democrat.

Looking ahead

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Things to know

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  • A yearslong challenge to Georgia’s anti-abortion law and a case blaming Snapchat for a teenager’s reckless driving are among the cases to watch in state courts this year, the AJC’s Rosie Manins reports.
  • Garland Favorito believes the U.S. government covered up the truth about the assassinations of President John F. Kennedy and the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. Now, he’s become a leader among conservatives who say Georgia’s 2020 presidential election was rife with fraud, the AJC’s David Wickert reports.
  • A shadowy group has paid roughly $8 million for ads criticizing Lt. Gov. Burt Jones’ campaign for governor. Now, Jones is urging the Federal Communications Commission to step in, Greg Bluestein reports.

Last day

U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Rome, is stepping down from Congress today.

U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Rome, is stepping down from Congress today.

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Dickens’ second term

Andre Dickens was first sworn in as mayor of Atlanta during an inauguration ceremony at Georgia Tech in 2022.

Andre Dickens was first sworn in as mayor of Atlanta during an inauguration ceremony at Georgia Tech in 2022.

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Ossoff’s strategy

U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff held a rally in Savannah last July.

U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff held a rally in Savannah last July.

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Campaign watch

Democrat Dana Barrett is a Fulton County commissioner.

Democrat Dana Barrett is a Fulton County commissioner.

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Listen up

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Today in Washington

President Donald Trump waved after arriving at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland. He was returning from a holiday break in Florida.

President Donald Trump waved after arriving at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland. He was returning from a holiday break in Florida.

:sgnineppaH

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  • President Donald Trump participates in a policy meeting at the White House.
  • The full House is out for one more day.
  • The House Ethics Committee is expected to announce an update on a complaint involving U.S. Rep. Mike Collins, R-Jackson, and his top aide, Brandon Phillips. The committee disclosed in November that the complaint had been referred to its members on Oct. 7 and set a deadline for today to announce its course of action. The complaint wasn’t made public, and Collins’ office has called it a “desperate and baseless attack” by the U.S. Senate candidate’s political opponents.
  • The Senate return for evening votes.

Shoutouts

yadhtrib detaleB

  • Rebecca Yardley, executive director of America First Georgia (was Tuesday).

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Before you go

Georgia author Allen Levi tells the story of a man named Theo who transforms lives with small acts of kindness.

Georgia author Allen Levi tells the story of a man named Theo who transforms lives with small acts of kindness.

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Greg Bluestein

Greg Bluestein is the Atlanta Journal Constitution’s chief political reporter. He is also an author, TV analyst and co-host of the Politically Georgia podcast.

Tia Mitchell

Tia Mitchell is the AJC’s Washington Bureau Chief and a co-host of the “Politically Georgia” podcast. She writes about Georgia’s congressional delegation, campaigns, elections and the impact that decisions made in D.C. have on residents of the Peach State.

Patricia  Murphy

Patricia Murphy is the AJC’s senior political columnist. She was previously a nationally syndicated columnist for CQ Roll Call, national political reporter for the Daily Beast and Politics Daily, and wrote for The Washington Post and Garden & Gun. She graduated from Vanderbilt and holds a master’s degree in journalism from Columbia University.

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Adam Beam

Adam Beam helps write and edit the Politically Georgia morning newsletter.



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A fast-growing Georgia wildfire tops 31 square miles, with evacuations possible

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A fast-growing Georgia wildfire tops 31 square miles, with evacuations possible


NAHUNTA, Ga. (AP) — One of two large wildfires in southeastern Georgia continues to grow and now exceeds 31 square miles (80 square kilometers), officials reported Sunday.

The Highway 82 Fire has been burning since April 20 and as of Saturday had destroyed at least 87 homes. On Sunday morning, officials said it was only 7% contained.

Highway 82 in Brantley County is about 35 miles (56.3 kilometers) north of the state line with Florida.

“The fire basically doubled last night in size,” Brantley County Manager Joey Cason said Sunday in a Facebook post. “It is a dynamic fire event that will be impacted by the wind.”

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Wind gusts of about 15 mph (24.1 kph) were expected Sunday.

Cason also said evacuation notices could be issued Sunday and that residents should heed them.

“We had folks that did not evacuate and they almost got caught by that fire,” he added. “It’s going to be another potential bad fire day as the winds pick up later in the day.”

A second fire about 70 miles (110 kilometers) to the southwest in Clinch and Echols counties, near the Florida state line, had burned more than 46 square miles (121 square kilometers), destroyed at least 35 homes and only was about 10% contained as of Saturday. That blaze was started by sparks from a welding operation.

The Highway 82 fire was started by a foil balloon hitting live power lines. That created an electrical arc that ignited combustible material on the ground.

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More crews were expected to arrive Sunday and Monday to help battle it, Cason said.

“There’s a ton of assets that are being poured into this fire to, hopefully, get it under control or get it out,” he said. “This whole situation is heartbreaking.”

Updated figures on homes damaged or destroyed by the blaze were not immediately available Sunday afternoon, said Susie Heisey, spokeswoman with the Southern Area Incident Management Team.

“Our firefighters worked so hard and had so much success in protecting structures and private homes, but there also were losses,” Heisey said.

Due to the ongoing fire, investigators can’t be sent in yet to assess damages, she added.

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Firefighters have been battling more than 150 other wildfires in Georgia and Florida that have sent smoky haze into places far from the flames, triggering air quality warnings for some cities.

An unusually large number of wildfires are burning this spring across the Southeast. Scientists say the threat of fire has been amplified by a combination of extreme drought, gusty winds, climate change and dead trees still littering some forests after being toppled by Hurricane Helene in 2024.

In northern Florida, Nassau County Sheriff’s Office volunteer firefighter James “Kevin” Crews died Thursday evening after he suffered an unspecified medical emergency while suppressing a brush fire. No fire deaths or injuries have been reported in Georgia.





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Carolina Panthers, Georgia Tech QB Haynes King agree to free-agent contract: Source

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Carolina Panthers, Georgia Tech QB Haynes King agree to free-agent contract: Source


The Athletic has live coverage of the 2026 NFL Draft.

The Carolina Panthers and Georgia Tech quarterback Haynes King agreed to an undrafted free-agent contract at the conclusion of the 2026 NFL Draft. The deal includes $250,000 in guaranteed money, according to a league source.

King was known for being a human wrecking ball of a quarterback, putting his body at risk for the team’s sake, with the endorsement of his coaches. It worked great in college, turning Georgia Tech from a losing program to a Top-25 team. He passed for 2,951 yards and ran for 953 in his final season, finishing second among power-conference quarterbacks in rushing touchdowns with 15.

But it would be a very hard style to replicate in the NFL. King, at 6-foot-2 and 212 pounds, does have good throwing abilities, averaging 9.9 yards per attempt over his three seasons as Georgia Tech’s starter. So his overall passing numbers may have been higher if he didn’t run it so much (520 carries over those three years.)

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King is also 25, after six years in college (three at Georgia Tech, three at Texas A&M), so he’s not much of a developmental guy. But his skill set is so unique, and his intangibles so good, that he offers intrigue on the pro level.

‘The Beast’ breakdown

King ranked No. 231 overall, and as the No. 9 quarterback, on Dane Brugler’s top 300 big board. Here’s what Brugler had to say about him in his annual NFL Draft guide:

“King needs to see things much clearer and faster to make it at the NFL level, but his competitive toughness, dual-threat skill set and diligence as a worker give him a chance to become an NFL backup.”

How he fits

Dan Morgan started the offseason by saying the Panthers would be open to bringing in backup quarterbacks who could make plays with their arms and their feet. Enter King, who in 2024 became the first player to finish with at least 2,000 passing yards and 10 or more TD passes, with a 70 completion percentage and two or fewer interceptions. King then topped it by winning the ACC Player of the Year in 2025, finishing as the only Power 4 quarterback with five games of 100-plus yards both passing and rushing.

Depth chart impact

King will start at the bottom of what is suddenly a crowded quarterback depth chart after the Panthers traded Andy Dalton and brought in Kenny Pickett, Will Grier and King. Pickett is the clear No. 2, while King will compete for the third spot with Grier, a third-round pick of the Panthers in 2019 who returned to his hometown team this week. Starting with the Hall of Fame Game in Canton, King will be fun to watch in preseason games, which often feature younger quarterbacks scrambling for big plays.

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Fast evaluation

Because of King’s skill set and what Morgan said in January, I had him coming to Carolina in the sixth round in my last Panthers mock. Canales doesn’t like to use Young on quarterback sneaks. That could be a role for the 6-2, 211-pound King in a Taysom Hill-type package. The Panthers value versatile players across their roster. Now they have one at quarterback.



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Bengals “really comfortable” with background on Georgia WR Colbie Young

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Bengals “really comfortable” with background on Georgia WR Colbie Young


The Bengals used the final pick of the fourth round on Georgia wide receiver Colbie Young, who might have gone higher than No. 140 overall if not for an off-the-field red flag.

“I think Colbie is just an outstanding complement [to the receivers the Bengals have],” coach Zac Taylor said, via a livestream from the team. “Fortunate to get him in the fourth round. We obviously had a higher value on him than where we actually got him. I just think he’s a great target for Joe [Burrow], great catch radius. Can use him in a lot of different ways.”

Young missed nine games to end the 2024 season after his arrest on misdemeanor charges of battery and assault on an unborn child. He pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor charge of disorderly conduct in January 2025 after his accuser recanted her statement, and the initial charges were dropped.

Young served 12 months’ probation, paid a $500 fine and attended a family violence intervention program.

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Taylor said the team did its “due diligence” and that “if we didn’t feel comfortable, we wouldn’t have done it.”

“Just talking to all the humans we talked to that really stood on the table for him, and Georgia returned him to play,” Taylor said. “So Georgia went through the whole process, returned him to play. So just felt really comfortable with the person we’re adding to our locker room, the person we’re adding to our community. Just all of us getting to know the kid. Just feel really, really comfortable with bringing Colbie in here.”

Young fractured his left fibula and tore a ligament, which required surgery and sidelined him for six games last season. He finished his final college season with 26 receptions for 358 yards and a touchdown.





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