'Things were good when he was president.' Georgia voters rally for Trump in Atlanta

Caption

Former President Donald Trump drew a large crowd for his rally in Atlanta on Saturday.

Credit: Sarah Kallis/GPB News

Thousands of Trump supporters flocked to the Georgia State Convocation Center on Saturday to hear former President Donald Trump speak at the same venue where Vice President Kamala Harris held a rally earlier in the week.

Cobb County voter Georgia Williams arrived at the venue several hours early. She said Trump best represents her priorities.

“I love my freedoms, and I have seen a lot of them go by the wayside the past four years," she said. "I have always been a conservative person, but it has been incredible how quickly those went away."

Frank Harris from Marietta says he is a "proud patriot" and wore an American flag printed suit to see Trump's speech.

"Things were good when he was president, and I want to get back to that," he said, citing a lower cost of living and foreign policy as reasons he supports Trump. 

Cody Travis from Dahlonega attended the rally said he identifies as "Ultra-MAGA," referring to Trump's campaign slogan 'Make America Great Again.'

He explained, "We embrace MAGA to the fullest. What MAGA is, we embrace it all the way. Close the borders, get inflation under control."

Like Harris's rally, Trump's supporters filled up the venue with only a few scattered seats left empty as the former president took the stage. But, by the end of Trump's speech, the crowd had noticeably thinned. 

Trump spoke for well over an hour and took time to accuse Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp and Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger of wanting to keep Republicans out office.

"But your Gov. Kemp and Raffensperger are doing everything possible to make 2024 difficult for Republicans to win," Trump said. "That what are they doing? I don't know. They got something in mind. You know, they got a little something in mind. Kemp is very bad for the Republican Party.” 

Kemp released a social media statement before the rally responding to earlier attacks by Trump, saying he is committed to making sure Republicans win in November and encouraged Trump to quote stop dwelling on the past.

Trump emphasized that Georgia is a key state for him. 

"If we lose Georgia, we lose our whole thing," he said.

Polls show that Trump has a slight edge over Harris in Georgia, but his lead seems to have narrowed once Harris replaced Biden in the race. 

Sen. JD Vance also spoke ahead of Trump on this, his first visit to the Peach State as a vice presidential candidate.