1 big thing: 🌙 The nightlife dilemma

A screenshot of Michael Render, the Atlanta rapper and businessman better known as KIller Mike, speaking at an Atlanta City Council meeting

2. 🚗 A new Kia plant?

Georgia Governor and KIA CEO cut ceremonial ribbon on new plant

3. 💰 A local health company scores investments

Illustration of a charity ribbon made from a hundred dollar bill. 

Now hiring: New job openings


4. 👋 Need new friends?

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5. Five-ish Points: Young Thug arrested

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We're ready for you, Tuesday. Just... nothing crazy until we've had our coffee. 

Situational awareness: Know someone who might like this newsletter? We'd be honored if you'd forward it along. 

And if you're really feeling it, join us as a member!

Today's newsletter is 898 words — a 3.5-minute read.

🤤 Kristal loves the bread — and everything else — from Alon's Bakery.

🎧 Emma is excited that Stephannie Stokes' WABE investigation is now available in her podcast feed! Check out "The Last Year at Forest Cove."

🤧 Thomas is feeling the pollen for the first time in his life and thankful for a little angel named Zyrtec.

Atlanta

A daily look at the most significant and interesting stories affecting Atlanta. Written by Emma Hurt, Kristal Dixon and Thomas Wheatley.

Axios Atlanta

1 big thing: 💬 Talking to Georgia's swing voters

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2. 💰 Atlanta invests $58 million to fight homelessness and evictions

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3. Trail Notes: 👻 Ghosts of campaigns past

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Fresh openings from the job board 


4. 🍹 Three must-try rooftop bars in Atlanta

5. Five points: Oxendine ethics saga finally ends

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🌤 Today's weather: Mostly sunny with a chance of thunderstorms. High of 78.

Situational awareness: According to AP, Hyundai plans to announce a new $7 billion, southeast Georgia electric vehicle plant with 8,500 jobs during President Biden's upcoming trip to South Korea. 

Today's newsletter is 977 words — a 3.5-minute read.

🥳 Kristal is so happy this long week is coming to an end. 

🧿 Emma is trying not to draw the evil eye on this Friday the 13th...

1 big thing: The GOP race for secretary of state

Brad Raffensperger in profile at a podium full of microphones

2. Midtown parents say “no” to school rezoning plan

3. Georgians' health, by county

On the job hunt? 


4. It's a beautiful day to love Atlanta

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5. Five-ish Points: Another "Jeopardy!" winner

🌞 Today's weather: Sunshine to spare. High 76.

🗳 Situational awareness: So far, more than 178,000 Georgians have voted in the primary. Are you one of them? 

If not, our Early Voting 101 guide is ready for you.

Today's newsletter is 897 words — a 3.5-minute read.

🎨 Emma stumbled upon the Decatur Arts Festival on Saturday. 10/10 would recommend!

😂 Kristal may have to start renting a unit to store some furniture so she can have more space for houseplants. 

☺️ Thomas is feeling grateful after spending a weekend in Woodstock, New York, with his girlfriend and buds.

1 big thing: Young Thug's legal troubles

Fulton District Attorney Fani Willis addresses reporters with Sheriff Patrick Labat and Police Chief Rodney Bryant

2. 🏫 Students, parents keep pressure on DeKalb school board

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3. 🏛️ Lisa Cook, your newest Fed board member

Fresh job openings around town


4. 💰 Cost of buying vs. renting in Atlanta

5. Five Points: 🚫 No more standalone apartments

💙 Today's weather: Another one of these glorious days. Soak it in. High of 83. 

☀️ Situational awareness: After months of back and forth, the city of Tucker will close City Hall in observance of Juneteenth.

Today's newsletter is 822 words — a 3-minute read.

🤔 Kristal wonders if social media has made high school reunions a thing of the past. 

✨ Emma hasn't been to the Illuminarium yet. Has anyone else? Should she go?   

🏕 Thomas is on his way to the Suwannee River to enjoy some long overdue canoe camping. 

1 big thing: 🛠️ Building issues haunt another DeKalb school

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2. 💰 Exclusive: Big boost for McBath

side-by-side images of Lucy McBath and Carolyn Bourdeaux, both in mid-sentence

New jobs to check out


3. 📸 Pic du jour: Where in Atlanta are we?

4. 📅 Today in Georgia History 

5. 🚍 Five-ish Points: Bus rapid transit on I-285?

Illustration of a soccer player wearing a striped shirt with an Axios logo for a crest and an advertisement reading 5-ish Points. 

🌅 Today's weather: That sun is waiting. High of 83.

💵 Situational awareness: Gov. Brian Kemp plans to sign the state's $30.2 billion budget today for the fiscal year beginning this summer. 

Today's newsletter is 865 words — a 3-minute read.

🙄 Kristal wishes her calatheas liked tap water. 

🎶 Emma still has this song stuck in her head after the HAIM concert last night. This one also brought the house down.

Georgia swing voters in our latest Axios Engagious/Schlesinger focus groups strongly support abortion rights — but say the issue alone likely won't decide who they support in November midterm elections.

Why it matters: That suggests real limits to Democrats' plans to convert public opposition to the Supreme Court's expected overturning of Roe v. Wade into a strategy to retain their congressional majorities.

Driving the news: This was a key takeaway from Axios' two online focus group panels Tuesday night.

They included 13 Georgians, all from the greater metro region, who voted for former Donald Trump in 2016, then Joe Biden in 2020. Three identified as Democrats, six as Republicans and four as independents.

A focus group isn't a statistically significant sample like a poll. But the responses help show what voters in crucial states think about key issues.

Details: All 13 participants said they supported keeping abortion legal. None said they would vote for Democrats in November as a "protest vote" based on the issue alone — though most said it would be one factor in their decisions.  

Most participants indicated other issues ranked just as high on their priority list, including inflation, the economy, taxes, climate change and guns.

Between the lines: Abortion politics may be more effective in turning out some reliable Democratic base voters for whom abortion rights are a highly motivating factor — including younger voters, college-educated women and people of color —   than in driving swing voters to the polls.

Billy C. of Atlanta said he planned to back Democrats in November before abortion re-emerged. When it comes to abortion, he said, there is "gray area" around what the law should protect and he'd look "negatively toward any candidates who are using this as a political platform just to gain notoriety" regardless of their party affiliation.

Kayla A. of Decatur said she's torn. Abortion rights are important to her, while on other issues, "I want to vote Republican because I agree on most of the other things that they stand for... I may do like I did for this election and vote for the Democrat because certain issues are just very important."

"It's not going to be the only reason, but it will play into my decision. There's never one reason why I vote for anybody," said Tashay K. from Atlanta, who identifies as Republican but plans to vote for Democratic incumbent Sen. Raphael Warnock. 

But, but, but: On the other hand, participants said Republicans cannot solely count on their votes based on their frustration with inflation. While none of the 13 place the entire blame for inflation on President Biden, a majority said he bears some responsibility. 

What they're saying:  “Conventional wisdom has narrowed the midterm debate to abortion vs. inflation, but what we heard from Georgia swing voters upends that construct,” said Rich Thau, president of Engagious, who moderated the focus groups.

"These voters all support Roe, but won’t knee-jerk vote for Democrats in November because of abortion; nor will they automatically vote for Republicans because of inflation.”

The big picture: These voters also were asked to weigh in on high-profile upcoming contests for U.S. Senate and Georgia governor and secretary of state.

Only one participant could recognize any of GOP Senate frontrunner Herschel Walker's primary opponents by image.

Only about half recognized Walker's photo, but when prompted almost all said questions about Walker's past, including allegations of domestic violence, were "concerning" to them, though most wanted to do more research on his background.

Of Walker's hopeful opponent, incumbent Sen. Warnock, most voters had a positive perception, using words like "reliable" and "authentic." 

Opinions of Gov. Brian Kemp had moved in a positive direction for a majority of the focus group participants since he took office, participants said. Several credited his refusal to give in to pressure from former President Trump to overturn Georgia's election results, though some said they found him "wishy-washy" or "trying to play both sides of the fence."

Kemp faces a primary challenge from David Perdue, a former senator who lost his 2021 re-election and falsely claims the 2020 election was stolen.

On the Democratic side, participants described hopeful Stacey Abrams as "a go-getter," "driven" and a "fighter," but also expressed questions about her motives and authenticity.

In the GOP primary for Georgia secretary of state, only four of the 13 could identify incumbent Brad Raffensperger by his photo, but those who could had a positive opinion of his handling of election pressure brought by Trump. 

None of the panelists recognized Raffensperger's Trump-endorsed opponent, Jody Hice. 

Georgia swing voters don't view abortion as a key issue

All 13 focus group participants said they supported keeping abortion legal. None said they would vote for Democrats in November as a "protest vote" based on the issue alone.

Georgia swing voters in our latest Axios <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Engagious/Schlesinger" data-vars-click-url="https://engagious.com/swingvoters/" data-vars-content-id="3aeed1b3-041e-4aec-8200-579dfc2c7ecf" data-vars-headline="Georgia swing voters don&#x27;t view abortion as a key issue" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://engagious.com/swingvoters/" target="_blank">Engagious/Schlesinger</a> focus groups strongly support abortion rights — but say the issue alone likely won&#x27;t decide who they support in November midterm elections.Why it matters: That suggests real limits to Democrats&#x27; plans to convert public opposition to the Supreme Court&#x27;s expected overturning of Roe v. Wade into a strategy to retain their congressional majorities.

Politics

News

National

Former Vice President Mike Pence will campaign for Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp on the eve of his May 24 primary against Trump-backed former Sen. David Perdue.

Why it matters: Pence's decision to back one of former President Trump's most prominent GOP targets puts the fractures inside the Republican Party, and between Trump and his former vice president, on stark display.

The Georgia governor's race is one of the nation's most high-profile contested Republican primaries.

What he's saying: "Brian Kemp is one of the most successful conservative governors in America," Pence wrote in a statement, calling Kemp a friend. "I am proud to offer my full support for four more years of Brian Kemp as governor of the great state of Georgia!”

Catch up quick: The news comes after Axios first reported that Pence's former chief of staff Marc Short had joined Kemp's campaign as a senior adviser.

The big picture: Kemp has also lined up campaign support from fellow Trump targets including Gov. Doug Ducey of Arizona, Gov. Pete Ricketts of Nebraska and former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie.

Former President George W. Bush is headlining a fundraiser for Kemp in Dallas on Monday.

Of note: The last time Pence campaigned in Georgia was to support Perdue and former Sen. Kelly Loeffler in the Georgia runoffs.

The other side: Trump has criticized Kemp consistently since the last election and thrown all his support behind Perdue. He held a March rally in Commerce, Georgia, a tele-rally after that and donated half a million dollars to Perdue's campaign.

But the former senator remains an average of 22 points behind Kemp in public polls, and Kemp has nearly 12 times more cash on hand than Perdue.

According to a source familiar with the situation, no plans for another in-person Trump event are in the works right now, but another tele-rally is likely.

What's next: A candidate needs more than 50% of the vote to avoid a June runoff. 

Atlanta Alerts

Axios Atlanta Thought Bubble

Mike Pence to campaign for Trump target Brian Kemp

Pence's decision to back one of Trump's most prominent targets puts the fractures inside the GOP on stark display.

Gov. Brian Kemp and Vice President Mike Pence in May  2020 in Atlanta. Photo: Brynn Anderson/AP

Mike Pence

Politics & Policy

Mike Bloomberg’s gun-control group Everytown for Gun Safety is spending $1 million on a new TV ad through its super PAC to boost Rep. Lucy McBath. She is in the final weeks of her campaign against Rep. Carolyn Bourdeaux.

Why it matters: The two suburban Atlanta Democrats are locked in an intra-party battle for a single congressional seat after Republican-led redistricting pushed McBath to run in Bourdeaux's district.

Georgia's 7th is one of five congressional incumbent 2022 matchups.

State of play: In the most recent federal disclosures, McBath reported about $1 million more in donations than Bourdeaux. Plus, McBath is seeing far more outside support, including a $2 million ad buy from Protect Our Future PAC and other support from the Asian American Advocacy Fund.

State Rep. Donna McLeod, the only candidate to live within the district’s new boundaries, is also in the primary.

The primary is May 24. If no candidate gets more than 50% of the vote, the top two will head to a June runoff. 

Catch up quick: Everytown has long backed McBath, who's well-known as a gun control advocate after her son died of gun violence. The group had already committed about a million dollars in radio, digital and mail ads to McBath's 2022 campaign.

John Feinblatt, head of the Everytown for Gun Safety Victory Fund said, “Lucy has always gone all out for the gun safety movement, so we’re going all out to get her re-elected, including talking to voters on the airwaves, in their mail boxes, and online, as well as deploying our grassroots army of Moms Demand Action volunteers to turn out gun sense voters for Lucy.” 

The other side: Bourdeaux has been promised a six-figure ad buy from the Democrats Serve PAC, but her campaign does not expect any additional outside support. 

In a past interview with Axios, Bourdeaux characterized herself as "very grounded in this community. And I think for me, that is the key difference, versus somebody who is more focused on national issues and comes with a lot of outside money into this race."

Exclusive: Lucy McBath gets a $1 million bump from an outside group

Everytown for Gun Safety is putting the money toward TV ads

Reps. Lucy McBath (left) and Carolyn Bourdeaux are racing toward the May 24 primary. Photos: Greg Nash-Pool, Chip Somodevilla via Getty

Mike Bloomberg’s gun-control group Everytown for Gun Safety is spending $1 million on a <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="new TV ad " data-vars-click-url="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bkkGcFN-1Ug" data-vars-content-id="ab9d758f-67d0-4b45-a93c-2d0fa01b6697" data-vars-headline="Exclusive: Lucy McBath gets a $1 million bump from an outside group" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bkkGcFN-1Ug" target="_blank">new TV ad </a>through its super PAC to boost Rep. Lucy McBath. She is in the final weeks of her campaign against Rep. Carolyn Bourdeaux.Why it matters: The two suburban Atlanta Democrats are <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="locked in an intra-party battle" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/atlanta/2022/05/03/georgia-democratic-congressional-showdown" data-vars-content-id="ab9d758f-67d0-4b45-a93c-2d0fa01b6697" data-vars-headline="Exclusive: Lucy McBath gets a $1 million bump from an outside group" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/atlanta/2022/05/03/georgia-democratic-congressional-showdown" target="_self">locked in an intra-party battle</a> for a single congressional seat after Republican-led redistricting pushed McBath to run in Bourdeaux&#x27;s district.

Georgia swing voters in the latest Axios Engagious/Schlesinger focus groups strongly support abortion rights — but say the issue alone probably won't decide who they support in November's midterm elections.

Why it matters: This could limit the effectiveness of the Democrats' plans to convert public opposition to the Supreme Court's expected overturning of Roe v. Wade into a strategy to save their congressional majorities.

Driving the news: The limits of abortion as a voting issue was a key takeaway from our two online focus group panels Tuesday night.

They included 13 Georgians, all from the greater Atlanta metro region, who voted for Donald Trump in 2016, then Joe Biden in 2020. Three identified as Democrats, six as Republicans and four as independents.

A focus group isn't a statistically significant sample like a poll. But the responses help show how voters in crucial states are thinking about key issues.

Details: All 13 participants said they supported keeping abortion legal. None said they would vote for Democrats in November as a "protest vote" based on the issue alone — though most said it would be one factor in their decisions.

Between the lines: Abortion politics may be more effective in turning out some reliable Democratic base voters for whom abortion rights are a highly motivating factor — including younger voters, college-educated women and people of color —  than in driving swing voters to the polls.

Billy C. of Atlanta, a Democrat, said that while he supports abortion rights, he considers the issue a "gray area" with legal and moral nuances.

He said he'd look "negatively toward any candidates who are using this as a political platform just to gain notoriety."

Kayla A. of Decatur said she's torn. Abortion rights are important to her, while on other issues, "I want to vote Republican, because I agree on most of the other things that they stand for."

"I may do like I did for this election, and vote for the Democrat because certain issues are just very important."

But, but, but: On the other hand, participants said Republicans can't solely count on their votes based on their frustration with inflation.

While none of the 13 places the entire blame for inflation on President Biden, a majority said he bears some responsibility.

What they're saying: “Conventional wisdom has narrowed the midterm debate to abortion vs. inflation, but what we heard from Georgia swing voters upends that construct,” said Rich Thau, president of Engagious, who moderated the focus groups.

Only one participant could recognize — by image — any of the primary opponents to GOP Senate front-runner Herschel Walker.

Only about half recognized Walker's photo, but when prompted, almost all said questions about Walker's past, including allegations of domestic violence, were "concerning" to them.

Most, though, said they wanted to do more research on his background.

Opinions of Gov. Brian Kemp had moved in a positive direction for a majority of the focus group participants since he took office, they said.

Several credited his refusal to give in to pressure from former President Trump to overturn Georgia's 2020 election results, though some said they found him "wishy-washy" or "trying to play both sides of the fence."

On the Democratic side, participants described gubernatorial hopeful Stacey Abrams as "a go-getter," "driven" and a "fighter"— but also expressed questions about her motives and authenticity.

In the GOP primary for Georgia secretary of state, only four of the 13 could identify incumbent Brad Raffensperger by his photo.

Those who could had a positive opinion of his handling of election pressure brought by Trump.

None of the panelists recognized Raffensperger's opponent, Jody Hice, who's been endorsed by Trump.

https://engagious.com/swingvoters/

http://www.engagious.com/

Georgia swing voters: Abortion isn’t the central issue

Focus groups pour cold water on Democrats' hopes to win based on calls to protect Roe v. Wade.

Swing states

The U.S. Supreme Court Building on May 9, 2022.

Georgia swing voters in the latest Axios <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Engagious/Schlesinger" data-vars-click-url="https://engagious.com/swingvoters/" data-vars-content-id="ce578fd9-c460-4231-bff0-5ac20d2231e1" data-vars-headline="Georgia swing voters: Abortion isn’t the central issue" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://engagious.com/swingvoters/" target="_blank">Engagious/Schlesinger</a> focus groups strongly support abortion rights — but say the issue alone probably won&#x27;t decide who they support in November&#x27;s midterm elections.Why it matters: This could limit the effectiveness of the Democrats&#x27; plans to convert public opposition to the Supreme Court&#x27;s expected overturning of Roe v. Wade into a strategy to save their congressional majorities.

​​In the waning days of the 2022 primary, former Sen. David Perdue says he’s not concerned that Gov. Brian Kemp has nearly 12 times more cash on hand and is polling far ahead.

Perdue has said this is “exactly like 2014,” when he first ran for Senate as an outsider against several GOP candidates.

What he’s saying: While visiting Paulding County this week, Perdue reflected that back then, “Everybody said, ‘Oh, he's going to lose, he’s going to lose, and I had one message that said, Look, I'm running against these career politicians: If they were going to make a difference, wouldn’t they have done it already?’”

Yes, but: Unlike 2014, Perdue is now a former U.S. senator. Plus, in 2014, he had the benefit of the network of operatives and strategists built by his cousin, former Gov. Sonny Perdue. 

This time around, most of those alums are supporting Kemp. 

And Sonny Perdue hasn’t joined his cousin on the campaign trail due to his new non-political job as chancellor of the University System of Georgia — a role that was pushed through by Kemp.

Another yes, but: Jay Walker, a veteran of Sonny Perdue's campaigns and David Perdue's 2014 team who is now a senior adviser to Kemp, also tells Axios that things are different this time around.

“David Perdue did not have a big deficit, and he was ahead in the polls at this point in the 2014 primary campaign," he said. "We knew he was going to be in the runoff. There was no question.”

Trail mix: In these final days, Kemp has pulled in support from "anti-Trump" Republicans around the country, including Gov. Doug Ducey of Arizona, former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and even former President George W. Bush, who’s hosting a fundraiser for Kemp in Dallas on Monday.

When Trump lashed out at this news, calling the governors “RINOs,” Christie responded in kind: “Insightful commentary about three Republican governors who were overwhelmingly re-elected by their people from a former president who lost to Joe Biden. Maybe the ‘R’ in RINO really stands for re-elected.” 

By the numbers: Early voting turnout continues to far outpace 2018 numbers. Per Georgia Votes, nearly 300,000 Georgians have cast ballots: 42% Democratic and 58% Republican.

Email Emma at emma.hurt@axios.com with what you think should be in next week’s Trail Notes.

Trail Notes: David Perdue's 2014 campaign vs. today's

Perdue has said his current campaign is “exactly like 2014,” when he first ran for Senate as an outsider against several GOP candidates.

​​In the waning days of the 2022 primary, former Sen. David Perdue says he’s not concerned that Gov. Brian Kemp has nearly 12 times more cash on hand and is polling far ahead.<ul><li>Perdue has said this is “exactly like 2014,” when he first ran for Senate as an outsider against several GOP candidates.</li></ul>What he’s saying: While visiting Paulding County this week, Perdue reflected that back then, “Everybody said, ‘Oh, he&#x27;s going to lose, he’s going to lose, and I had one message that said, Look, I&#x27;m running against these career politicians: If they were going to make a difference, wouldn’t they have done it already?’”

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Mike Pence to campaign for Trump target Brian Kemp

Georgia swing voters don't view abortion as a key issue

Trail Notes: David Perdue's 2014 campaign vs. today's

Georgia swing voters: Abortion isn’t the central issue

Exclusive: Lucy McBath gets a $1 million bump from an outside group

Newsletter editions

💬 Swing voters weigh in

🏫 More scrutinized schools

Young Thug in hot water

🌙 The nightlife dilemma

Combating misinformation