Qualifying begins for Georgia's 2022 elections

Georgians eyeing a bid for elected office in Georgia can now formally qualify to run.

Driving the news: Qualifying begins at 9am Monday for statewide and select local offices for the Nov. 8 general election. The deadline is noon Friday.

Why it matters: All eyes will be on Georgia’s hotly contested top races in the 2022 election season. Polling shows them to be toss-ups.

• Stacey Abrams, the likely Democratic gubernatorial nominee, could meet Gov. Brian Kemp for a rematch or face his primary opponent, former Sen. David Perdue, in November.
• Incumbent Sen. Raphael Warnock will face a Republican nominee, and former UGA football star Herschel Walker is leading the GOP field in that race.

The details: Statewide candidates running as Democrats, Republicans or Independents have to qualify with their respective parties in separate rooms at the State Capitol.

• Local candidates will qualify with their county political party.
• Qualifying fees for each race can be found online. They range from $400 to run as state senator or representative to $5,250 to run for governor (the highest fee is for State Supreme Court judge candidates, who have to shell out $5,373 to qualify).

A list of qualified candidates will be updated daily on the Secretary of State’s website.

Of note: Monday is also the first day you can request an absentee ballot for the May 24 primary election. Information on that process can be found on the Secretary of State’s website.

• April 25 is the last day to register to vote in the May primary. You can check your registration status or register to vote by clicking here.