Georgia Candidates Spar on Elections, Data Centers and Surveillance Cameras as Early Voting Opens Tuesday

Georgia’s candidates for six statewide offices took the debate stage in Atlanta on Monday, clashing over election rules, data centers and police surveillance cameras — but the night’s headliner, the governor’s race, played out with only one candidate on stage.

Republican gubernatorial nominee Rick Jackson declined to attend the Atlanta Press Club’s Loudermilk-Young debate against Democrat Keisha Lance Bottoms, the first time in 32 years the press club has not hosted a head-to-head governor’s debate, according to USA Today. Bottoms answered journalists’ questions alone during the 8-9 p.m. session. Jackson’s campaign has said it prefers voter town halls; Jackson took questions from undecided voters in an Atlanta News First town hall last week instead, according to USA Today.

Lieutenant governor and attorney general races

In the afternoon’s lieutenant governor debate, Democrat Josh McLaurin opened by calling Republican Greg Dolezal “the Mike Collins of this race,” a reference to the GOP’s U.S. Senate nominee. The two state senators found common ground on pausing new data centers and limiting corporate tax breaks, then diverged sharply: McLaurin backed nonpartisan judges and a possible moratorium on Flock surveillance cameras, while Dolezal — who, according to USA Today, has removed references to President Donald Trump from his campaign website — blamed decades of Washington decisions for the economic crisis and called for a pause on new data centers. When Dolezal accused McLaurin of deleting an old social media account, McLaurin said he had done so to “preserve my peace,” and afterward said he hoped to “make politics boring again.”

The attorney general debate centered on Flock Safety, the Atlanta company whose license-plate-reader camera network is now used nationwide. Democrat Tanya Miller said the current trend is “not what this technology is supposed to be used for,” arguing the cameras should be used for solving crimes and that private companies should not control the data. Republican Brian Strickland said that if the company fails to put safeguards in place against misuse, “I’ll act as Attorney General” to intervene. According to USA Today, more than two dozen sworn and civilian Georgia law enforcement officials have been accused of misusing the technology, in some cases to stalk or harass people in their communities.

Secretary of state candidates split on voting rules

Republican Tim Fleming and Democrat Penny Brown Reynolds offered sharply different visions for the office that oversees Georgia’s elections. Fleming said he wants to work with the legislature to tighten absentee-ballot rules and said he supports the SAVE Act, while urging Georgians to make voting in person a priority. Brown Reynolds said Georgia’s elections are already free and fair — citing repeated reports from current Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger — and accused opponents of trying to limit ballot access, saying she would meet with election officials in all 159 counties before the 2028 election.

Monday’s lineup also included debates for two Public Service Commission seats; Republican Fitz Johnson had not confirmed attendance for the District 3 debate against Democrat Peter Hubbard, while District 5 candidates Josh Tolbert and Shelia Edwards were both scheduled to appear. Tuesday’s sessions cover school superintendent, agriculture commissioner, insurance commissioner, labor commissioner and the U.S. Senate race between Republican Mike Collins and Democratic incumbent Jon Ossoff.

Early voting in Georgia begins Tuesday and runs through Oct. 30. Election Day is Nov. 3, with a runoff scheduled for Dec. 1 if any race is too close to call.

Reporting based on coverage by USA Today and the Savannah Morning News.