Political Rewind: Kemp, Abrams, and Hazel face off on debate stage; Herschel sits down with Hannity

Caption

Three candidates for governor face off in the Atlanta Press Club Debate on Oct. 17, 2022. From left to right: Democratic nominee Stacey Abrams, Libertarian candidate Shane Hazel and Republican incumbent Gov. Brian Kemp (R).

Credit: GPBTV/Screenshot

The panel: 

Andra Gillespie, @AndraGillespie,  professor of political science and director, James Weldon Johnson Institute for the Study of Race and Difference, Emory University

Donna Lowry, @donnalowrynews, host, GPB-TV’s Lawmakers

Emma Hurt, @Emma_Hurt, reporter, Axios Atlanta

Tamar Hallerman, @TamarHallerman, senior reporter, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

The breakdown: 

1. Georgians showed up in droves for the first day of early voting.

• Vote tracking site GeorgiaVotes.com shows more than 135,000 people in the Peach State have already cast their ballot. 
• Around 125,000 people went out to vote Monday on the first day of early voting. 
  • Early voters remain largely older, in the 65+ age range. 
  • They are also majority white. 
  • And the majority of the voters are also women. 
• Early voting remains open through Nov. 4. You can find your polling place here. 

2. Gov. Brian Kemp and Stacey Abrams share the debate stage for the first time since 2018.

• Libertarian candidate Shane Hazel also appeared, holding 2.3% of the vote, according the the latest Georgia News Collaborative poll. 
  • In that same poll, Kemp leads in the race 51% and Abrams trails at 41%. 
• Abrams and Kemp clashed on issues like abortion, public safety, and education. 

3. Kemp and Abrams face off over the state's budget surplus.

• Abrams said Georgia’s record-setting budget surplus should be used to invest even more into education.
• Kemp wants to use the surplus to provide more tax refunds. 

4. Herschel Walker declines invitation to Atlanta Press Club's debate, and instead participates in Sean Hannity town hall. 

• Walker faced off with incumbent Sen. Raphael Warnock on Friday, but he didn't show up to Sunday's debate. 
  • Libertarian candidate, Chase Oliver, attended the Sunday debate.
• Walker did appear on Fox News with prominent Republicans Rick Scott and Tim Scott. 

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