Georgia
'Renew Early'; GA ID Delivery Could Take Weeks, DDS Says
GEORGIA — The delivery of driver’s licenses and identification cards may be delayed in getting to residents, the Georgia Department of Driver Services said Tuesday.
Permanent ID deliveries may be late due to consistent issues with the United States Postal Service, 11Alive reported, though the DDS did not specify factors prompting the delays.
“Due to circumstances beyond our control, there is a possibility that customers’ permanent driver’s licenses and/or ID Cards may be delayed in arriving,” DDS Commissioner Spencer R. Moore said in a news release.
Cards could take as long as 2-4 weeks to be delivered, said the DDS, which requested customers’ patience.
The DDS advised residents carry their last issued license or ID and any paper interim licenses or IDs, along with receipts.
“We strongly encourage customers to plan ahead and take advantage of the opportunity to renew early. Most customers can renew their licenses and IDs up to 150 days prior to the expiration date,” the DDS said.
Licenses in Georgia can be renewed for up to eight years. Anyone with Real ID documents can complete their renewals via mail, in-person at a DDS center or via Online Services. Real IDs have a black or gold star in the top right corner.
Renewal applications sent by mail can take about 30 days to process after the application is received, the DDS noted on its website. Mailed applications can be sent at least 60 days prior to the expiration date of licenses.
Information about required documents and payments can be found here.
Georgia
Georgia Deports Citizens of 6 Countries, Including Azerbaijan
Employees of the Migration Department of Georgia’s Ministry of Internal Affairs, as part of recent special operations, have deported 13 citizens from Turkmenistan, Iran, Cuba, Türkiye, Thailand, and Azerbaijan.
According to the information released by the ministry, the Migration Department carried out comprehensive immigration control measures in close coordination with the relevant departments, The Caspian Post reports, citing local media.
It is noted that, under current legislation, deported persons are prohibited from re-entering the country.
According to official statistics, the total number of foreign citizens deported from Georgia last year was 1,311.
Georgia
Georgia attains highest AP Top 25 ranking since 2003, with Florida on deck
No. 18 Bulldogs bring 13-1 record into Tuesday night game against defending national champion Gators in Gainesville.
Georgia coach Mike White (right) talks with guard Jeremiah Wilkinson during the Bulldogs’ win against Cincinnati in a Holiday Hoopsgiving game Saturday, Dec. 13, 2025, at State Farm Arena in Atlanta. Georgia won 84-65. (Jason Getz/AJC)
ATHENS — Georgia basketball is back on the map, ranked in the AP Top 25 for a third consecutive week for the first time in nearly 23 years.
The Bulldogs (13-1, 1-0 SEC) are ranked No. 18 in the AP Top 25, up five spots from last week’s ranking, on the strength of a 104-100 overtime win over Auburn on Saturday.
It’s the highest Georgia has been ranked in the AP Top 25 poll since Jim Harrick coached the program and came in at No. 17 on Feb. 3, 2003 — the most recent season UGA has been ranked in the poll three or more consecutive weeks.
Unbeaten teams Arizona (14-0), Michigan (13-0) and Iowa State (14-0) hold the top three spots in this week’s AP Top 25, with UConn (14-1) and Purdue (13-1) rounding out the top five.
Vanderbilt (14-0, 1-0) is the SEC’s highest-ranked AP Top 25 team, coming in at No. 11, while Alabama (11-3, 1-0) is at No. 13, Arkansas (11-3, 1-0) is No. 15 and then No. 18 Georgia is the league’s fourth-highest-ranked team entering into this week’s games.
“Our guys have been so eager, probably like most teams in our league and throughout other leagues, at the highest level of college basketball,” UGA fourth-year coach Mike White said about the start of SEC play.
“We were playing a bunch of midmajors through the holidays, and you can’t let the moment be too big.”
Georgia’s schedule strength jumped from 298th to 231st with the win over Auburn, and it figures to get another boost when the Bulldogs play at Florida (9-5, 0-1) at 7 p.m. Tuesday.
“Our confidence comes from within, we know what we have in our locker room,” said Georgia guard Jeremiah Wilkinson, a transfer from Cal who scored 31 in the win over Auburn and leads the Bulldogs with 18.3 points per game this season.
“We knew what we were capable of before coming into the (Auburn) game, and we told each other before the game: Let’s act like we’re supposed to win the game. Let’s act like we’re supposed to be here.”
Georgia leads the nation in scoring offense (99.4 points per game), fast-break points (27.0 per game) and blocked shots (8.0 per game).
The Gators, featuring preseason All-SEC players Alex Condon, Thomas Haugh and Boogie Fland, were the media’s preseason pick to win the league.
Georgia — which didn’t have a player picked on the first, second or third team — was picked to finish 14th in the SEC.
White, who coached Florida from 2015-2022, leading the Gators to four NCAA tournaments and an Elite Eight appearance in 2017, said Georgia is looking forward to the opportunity to play the defending national champion.
“We’ll fly around, we’ll play hard, we’ll be prepared,” White said. “This team has a pretty healthy level of intrinsic confidence, and you’ll need that to be competitive down there against a team that’s coming off a national championship.”
Georgia split with Florida last season, losing 89-59 in Gainesville, Florida, on Jan. 25 and then handing the Gators their last loss of the season, 88-83, on Feb. 25 in Athens.
“It’s nothing different than what we’ve just seen tonight (against Auburn),” said UGA guard Marcus “Smurf” Millender, who leads Georgia with 54 assists and a 40% 3-point shooting clip.
“They put their jerseys on like we put our jerseys on. We’re going to give them our best game and hope they bring it too.”
Florida fell out of the AP Top 25 poll this week after losing its SEC-opening game at Missouri 76-74 on Saturday and is among other teams still receiving votes.
Georgia has lost six consecutive games in Gainesville dating back to a 61-55 win on March 2, 2019, in Tom Crean’s first year leading the Bulldogs.
Georgia
5 things to watch for in Georgia politics this year
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:
- 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.
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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.
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Ossoff’s strategy
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.
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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.
:sgnineppaH
- 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
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- 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.
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