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President Trump's preferred candidate for governor of Georgia won the Republican nomination on Tuesday, paving the way for a sharp showdown in November that sums up the divisions that have erupted during his presidency.
Secretary of State Brian Kemp, gained Trump's support less than a week before the vote, beat Lieutenant Governor Casey Cagle in a flow that resonated loudly beyond the borders of the United States. # 39; state. The Associated Press called the race with 36% of the vote and Kemp led Cagle over 2 to 1.
Kemp advance to a showdown against Democratic Party candidate Stacey Abrams, who, if she wins, will the first African female governor of any state. Kemp's victory instantly turned the general election race into a stark contrast to the cultural, racial and political divisions that gripped the country during the Trump era – all in a state of rapid diversification.
Trump's domination of the Republican Party. His membership has proven to be a valuable commodity in the Southeast to Northeast primaries in recent months.
In Georgia, however, the Republicans had to wonder if Trump was strengthening the party's hand before the November elections or weakening it. . Kemp ran as a Trump-style conservative in a state where the president just narrowly overshot the 50% mark in 2016. The president's movement has disagreed with many elected Republicans, including the governor outgoing Nathan Deal, who was supporting Cagle. "I gave him my full support," said Cagle, who conceded the race in Kemp just 90 minutes after polls closed.
As voters went to the polls Tuesday morning, Trump reiterated his choice tweeting: is the day to vote for Brian Kemp. It will be great for Georgia, complete endorsement! "
The president first gave his political blessing to Kemp last Wednesday, formally supporting the candidate who claims to be a" politically incorrect conservative. "On the weekend, Vice President Penc The state flew to campaign for Kemp, saying it would "bring the kind of leadership to the state that President Donald Trump brought to the White House."
The White House's imprimatur was a blow to Cagle, the long-time favorite for the nomination. He finished first at the May 22nd primary, but his advantage faded into a contest formed by embarrassing audio recordings, accusations of false news and Trump's involvement. Cagle took steps to placate the right, including a fight against punishing Atlanta-based Delta Air Lines for his criticism of the National Rifle Association, as well as support for tax relief for private schools [19659009] This became a real controversy in June, when Clay Tippins, Conservative governorship candidate, issued a Cagle record admitting that he had supported the measure specifically to hurt a third candidate, Hunter Hill. 19659012] "It's not a public policy, it's a political one, and there's a group that is preparing to put $ 3 million behind Hunter Hill," Cagle said. l & # 39; recording. "Is it a bad public policy? Between you and me, that is."
Cagle began to dive into the polls after the recording was broadcast; Hill would continue to support Kemp as a candidate who "will not sell public policy to the highest bidder." And Tippins was not finished, wounding Cagle again with the front-end audio saying Kemp was running to be "It looks like Casey Cagle got like Hillary Clinton," Kemp told reporters this month. "I would ask all those crazy to vote Brian Kemp for the governorship in the Republican second round."
Kemp ardently skated in the culture wars in his campaign, broadcasting commercials boasting of the national anthem. In his most famous place, released before the first round of voting, Kemp boasted of having a big truck – "just in case I should gather the illegal criminals and take them home myself." [19659017] Cagle fought back by posing as the real conservative of the race. In his latest publicity attack, he accuses Kemp, secretary of state for eight years, of "20 years of failure." In another ad, Cagle sees himself rallying a host of conservatives – some wearing "Make America Great Again" hats – against negative stories.
"The dirty stuff and the fake news are what we expected," Cagle said. "I will never excuse prohibiting sanctuary cities or preventing liberals from taking the values that make our country great."
The Republicans of Georgia have held the governor's residence since 2003, with legislative majorities. But the wild nature of the contest has encouraged the Democrats, who think the GOP race on the right will alienate the suburban voters who are moving away from the party at the time of Trump.
Abrams raised $ 6 million for the race – nearly $ 3 million since the primary victory. Trump's 50.44 percent share in the 2016 elections was the lowest for a Republican presidential candidate in two decades. Democrats have increased their share of the vote since then in local elections.
Abrams, the former minority leader of the Georgia House, won the Democratic primary while surrounding herself with leaders representing women, work, the LGBT community – predicting at the time. a rally that a rising coalition of white minorities and whites "would restore the state of Georgia, and the nation, again blue".
The Hispanic population of Georgia has reached nearly 10% of the state, according to a recent report. Census Bureau estimates. Americans of African descent make up nearly a third of the state's population.
Later in the day, Democrats selected their candidates in two suburban districts of Atlanta Congress, which were elected to elect Republicans. The 6th congressional district, where the first Democratic candidate Jon Ossoff lost a tight special election last year, gun safety activist Lucy McBath confronted Kevin 's businessman. Abel. In the somewhat conservative 7th Congressional District, former Congressional Assistant Carolyn Bourdeaux and Education Executive Director David Kim competed for the right to challenge outgoing Republican, MP Rob Woodall.
Until 2016, no district was particularly competitive. While Republican Karen Handel defeated Ossoff in the 6th district last year, Trump won only 48.3% of the vote and only 51.1% in the 7th district – versus 60% that Mitt Romney won in the two districts in 2012.
trailed behind his potential democratic opponents in fundraising; Handel led the two Democrats in the running to challenge her.
Read more at PowerPost
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