The midterms are right around the corner, and with early voting starting Tuesday in Georgia, candidates for statewide races are getting ready to take the debate stage.
Candidates for 11 positions will debate in the Loudermilk-Young Debates hosted by the Atlanta Press Club in the state's capital over the next two days.
For some, it will be the chance to take on their opponent face-to-face for the first time. For others, it's a chance to ask follow-up questions of their opponents from previous debates.
Senate candidates Democrat Jon Ossoff and Republican Mike Collins will be facing off for the second time in a week after slinging accusations at one another during the Atlanta News First debate Thursday night. The race for the national seat has remained
tense as Collins faces accusations of connections to white nationalists and Ossoff maintains a strong lead in recent polling.
The one debate that will be missing, however, is a governor debate. Republican Rick Jackson and Democrat Keisha Lance Bottoms faced off on the ANF stage last week in what Jackson said would be his only debate appearance before the midterm. On Monday night, Bottoms is expected to take the Press Club debate stage alone.
Here's what to know.
Atlanta Press Club debate schedule
The Atlanta Press Club is hosting midterm debates over two days for statewide races.
Here is the full schedule, and you can watch the debates on the APC YouTube page:
Monday, October 12 —
- Lieutenant Governor: Greg Dolezal (R) and Josh McLaurin (D) — 1:30-2:30 p.m., GPB broadcast Oct. 12 at 7 p.m.
- Attorney General: Brian Strickland (R) and Tanya Miller (D) — 2:45-3:15 p.m., GPB broadcast Oct. 12 at 7:30 p.m.
- Secretary of State: Tim Fleming (R) and Penny Brown Reynolds (D) — 3:45-4:15 p.m., GPB broadcast Oct. 13 at 7:30 p.m.
- Public Service Commission, District 3: Fitz Johnson (R) and Peter Hubbard (D) — 5:30-6 p.m., GPB broadcast Oct. 13 at 4 p.m. — Johnson has not confirmed attendance.
- Public Service Commission, District 5: Josh Tolbert (R) and Shelia Edwards (D) — 6:30-7 p.m., GPB broadcast Oct. 13 at 4:30 p.m.
- Governor: Rick Jackson (R) and Keisha Lance Bottoms (D) — 8-9 p.m., GPB broadcast Oct. 12 at 8 p.m. — Jackson will not attend.
Tuesday, October 13 —
- School Superintendent: Richards Woods (R) and Lydia Powell (D) — 2:30-3 p.m., GPB broadcast Oct. 14 at 3 p.m.
- Agriculture Commissioner: Tyler Harper (R) and Katherine Juhan-Arnold (D) — 3:45-4:15 p.m., GPB broadcast Oct. 14 at 3:30 p.m.
- Insurance Commissioner: John King (R) and Keisha Waites (D) — 4:45-5:15 p.m., GPB broadcast Oct. 14 at 4 p.m.
- Labor Commissioner: Bárbara Rivera Holmes (R) and Nikki Porcher (D) — 6-6:30 p.m., GPB broadcast Oct. 14 at 4:30 p.m.
- U.S. Senate: Mike Collins (R) and Jon Ossoff (D) — 8-9 p.m., GPB broadcast Oct. 13 at 8 p.m.
Why isn't Rick Jackson going to be at the debate?
Jackson announced his plans for debates months ago, and reaffirmed his stance at the beginning of September.
Jackson agreed to a single town hall-style debate format with Atlanta News First on Tuesday, Oct. 6, and he fielded questions from undecided voters along with Bottoms on stage.
"Rick is running to fight for everyday Georgians — not the media, not the political class, and not the special interests," campaign spokesperson Garrison Douglas said in a statement in July. "This format allows voters to ask their own questions, hear direct answers, and decide for themselves who they trust to move Georgia forward."
The Jackson campaign confirmed again to USA TODAY on Sept. 1 Jackson would not be attending the Atlanta Press Club debate, and that he was instead focused on his more than 150 events across the state and speaking to real voters. Douglas told USA TODAY the ANF town hall would "be the debate for (this) election."
Lauri Strauss, executive producer of the debate series, told Capitol Beat on Sept. 22 the Jackson campaign had again formally declined the invitation.
Bottoms, on the other hand, agreed to six debates over the course of the general election season, only one of which was with ANF.
On Sept. 17, Bottoms took the debate stage alone in Macon after Jackson declined to attend, and addressed voters directly instead of debating.
"There's an opportunity to directly address voters during debates and allow voters to see the comparison in real time," Bottoms said at the event. "So this debate will be streamed, it will be televised, and people will hear from us directly and compare our vision for the state. And again, Rick Jackson is not attending."
Bottoms' team also told USA TODAY the former mayor of Atlanta will still attend the Atlanta Press Club debate during the scheduled debate time, likely standing next to an empty podium just as Lt. Gov. Burt Jones did against Jackson in the Republican primary runoff.
When does early voting start? Key dates
- Oct. 13 - Early voting begins
- Oct. 30 - Early voting ends
- Nov. 3 - Election Day
- Dec. 1 - Runoff Election Day (if needed)
Irene Wright covers midterm races in Georgia as the Atlanta Connect reporter with USA Today’s Deep South Connect team. Find her on X @IreneEWright or email her at ismith@usatodayco.com.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Marathon of midterm debates starts today in Atlanta. Here's schedule
