Early Voting has Started and I am still Undecided on Several Races

Early voting is underway and the constant barrage of unsolicited text messages are flooding phones across Georgia. I have heard multiple times from various campaigns with their closing pleas to not necessarily vote for them, but vote against the other guy. I am not influenced by messages like that, preferring to have reasons to vote for someone instead of against another.

I normally partake in early voting, choosing to head up to the elections office in Canton. It gives me an excuse to have lunch at the R&M Hoagie Shoppe as well as perform my civic duty. But I have hesitated this time around as several of the races are still question marks in my mind.

I live in the 11th Congressional District so there is no doubt I am voting for Barry Loudermilk. I have been vocal in my justifications for supporting Brian Kemp. I do not live in an area that has a school board race, although the culture war is raging here in Cherokee County and the BOE races up for grabs are an interesting canary in the coal mine. I know who I am voting for for Attorney General, Insurance Commissioner, Labor Commissioner, State House, and State Senate. The other races… not so much.

When it comes to the Lieutenant Governor’s race, I see the positives of both Burt Jones and Butch Miller. Both long time Republicans, both with considerable time in the chamber (which is not a deciding factor for me), and both talking about issues that I find compelling beyond who is endorsed by who. While we have had Miller on the podcast, we have Jeanne Seaver booked and an invitation out to Senator Jones. I will likely wait until after I hear from both of them on the podcast before I decide.

I cannot tell you how frustrated I am with Herschel Walker’s refusal to debate other Republican candidates in the U.S. Senate Race. I can tell you that I will not be voting for him in the primary because of that reason. I served on the House Agriculture Committee and got to know Gary Black while I was there. However I am truly impressed with Latham Saddler and I love Kelvin King’s story about taking advantage of the American Dream and overcoming adversity. This race, more than the others, is holding me up. I am waiting for one of these three to show me why they are best to serve as a Senator.

And I really do not want to talk about the Secretary of State’s race.

And so I will be waiting a while longer, a couple of weeks at least, before I go get that hoagie. Until then, I want to see reasons to vote for candidates in each of these races.