🗳️ Happy Election Day, Atlanta. Go vote today if you haven't yet!

☁️ Today's weather: Mostly cloudy and windy. High around 75 and a low near 63.

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Today’s newsletter is 1,052 words — a 4-minute read.

Georgia voters head to the polls today to help decide federal, state and local races that will determine everything from who writes laws to who picks up your trash.

• Let's not forget the proposed local school and transportation tax measures across Fulton, DeKalb and other metro counties.

Why it matters: Georgia's 2026 ballot is packed with consequential races that will affect the direction of your community, state and country.

State of play: More than 2.8 million Georgia voters have cast ballots during the early-voting period, a new state midterm record, AP reports.

• Head to your Georgia My Voter Page to confirm your polling location and view a sample ballot.

What we're watching

U.S. Senate: Democratic U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff led U.S. Rep. Mike Collins (R-Ga.) by 7 or 8 points in two recent polls.

• Keeping the seat is critical for Democrats to regain control of the Senate.

Governor: A favorable national environment and the strong top-of-the-ticket U.S. Senate race have Democrats believing that Keisha Lance Bottoms could defeat Republican Rick Jackson, Brookings says.

• If she wins, the former Atlanta mayor will become the first Black woman elected governor in U.S. history and the first Democratic governor elected in Georgia since 1998.

The big picture: The period between Election Day and January, when Georgia's newly elected officials take office, could spark high drama depending on today's results.

• Gov. Brian Kemp could call a special legislative session to redraw political maps, the AJC notes.
• If Bottoms wins, Republican lawmakers could attempt to rein in some powers of the newly elected Democratic governor.
• Neither Kemp nor Republican lawmakers have announced such plans.

What's next: Polls are scheduled to close statewide at 7pm. To view preliminary results, head to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger's website.

• Head to Axios.com or other local news outlets for breaking results, event coverage and analysis.

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President Trump is facing setbacks left and right in his push to investigate alleged election fraud. But in Georgia, he has an opening.

Why it matters: Six years ago, Georgia was at the epicenter of Trump's efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election. Now the state's own election board has invited his administration to investigate its voting system.

The big picture: The Justice Department disclosed in court on Friday that the administration has sent letters to officials in California, Washington, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Nevada, asking some states to segregate mail-in ballots from suspected noncitizen voters.

• A federal judge on Friday issued an emergency order that blocks federal officials from threatening to charge election officials who count ballots from voters the DOJ claims are ineligible.

But Georgia is different. "We've managed with duct tape and bubble gum to be able to bootstrap our way through one last round, but that's not a way of running elections," a Georgia election official told Axios.

• Georgia's State Election Board asked the Justice and Homeland Security departments to review and potentially investigate the state's voting system and handling of election data.
• The Sept. 30 letter cited outdated software, threats to ballot secrecy and QR-code ballots it says may violate the Help America Vote Act.

The other side: Georgia State Election Board Chair John Fevrier, appointed by Gov. Brian Kemp (R), opposed the letter and told Axios that a majority of the board now believes it "far exceeded what was in the resolution."

• Michon Lindstrom, senior director of communications for Georgia's secretary of state, said: "It's unfortunate that the state election board sought to inject chaos in the 11th hour of the election."

Go deeper

Another reason to make sure your phone stays charged: it's now an acceptable way to present your ID to Georgia state troopers.

Driving the news: The Georgia Department of Public Safety now accepts a digital version of your driver's license on compatible iPhones and Apple Watch, or Android phones using Google Wallet or Samsung Wallets..

Zoom in: Visit the Georgia Department of Driver Services website for instructions on how to add your license or ID to your digital wallet.

How it works: For example, if you have an iPhone and you're stopped by a state trooper, ask them if you can use your digital wallet on your phone.

• You are not required to hand your phone to the officer, DDS said.
• Hold your phone near the officer's verification device, double-click the side button and make sure your face is visible to activate Face ID.

Drivers review and approve what information gets shared with law enforcement, DDS says.

• Georgia law says displaying a digital ID does not give law enforcement permission to search your phone.

Zoom out: The Electronic Frontier Foundation has a good rundown on the pros and cons of the technology.

The fine print: Not all law enforcement organizations have the technology and equipment necessary to scan the IDs.

The bottom line: DDS says Georgia drivers should continue to carry a physical copy of their license.

Tell a friend

🛑 A proposal to build a residential development for adults with developmental and intellectual disabilities has been nixed in DeKalb County after some community members raised concerns. (Decaturish)

Brady Lum, the former chief operating officer at the High Museum of Art in Atlanta, will serve 12 months in prison after pleading guilty to embezzling more than $600,000 from the institution. (AJC)

⚾️ Former Braves owner Ted Turner and Dusty Baker, who began his career with the team, are candidates for the National Baseball Hall of Fame's Contemporary Baseball Era ballot for executives, managers and umpires. (MLB)

• The class of 2027 will be announced on Dec. 6.

⭐️ The B-52s, the rock band that got its start in Athens during the 1970s, was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. (WSB)

😋 Kristal loves the honey Thomas got for her from south Georgia.

🧘 Thomas is getting some chill time before covering the Keisha Lance Bottoms campaign's Election Night party.

This newsletter was edited by Crystal Hill.