Southern Dispatch

What’s happening in Atlanta, Georgia, and the rest of the South.

[theGAnerds @theGAnerds_Real]

Do we have a deceased voter in the 05/19/26 Primary? You be the judge.

@GaSecofState cancelled Mrs. Pheil in 2024 as deceased. Keep reading......

[Garland Favorito @VoterGa]

VoterGA's Election Integrity Scorecard - 2026 Gubernatorial Contest
https://t.co/IfggnOIbRF

[Tansu Yegen @TansuYegen]

So true☹️

📹 vetoshkin.evgeniy

[Phil Holloway ✈️ @PhilHollowayEsq]

Oh boy 🤦‍♂️ - the GA governor runoff is going to be wild

“It’s slightly true”

🤡🤡

So here’s @RickJacksonGA admitting it’s slightly true he donated to a Liz Cheney PAC

PLUS:

He he donated to Stacey Abrams because he had to in order to get a meeting 🤡

[Josh McKoon 🇺🇸 🇹🇼 🇮🇱 @JoshMcKoon]

Quick reminder of what the leadership of Mayor Bottoms looked like in 2020:

[WhatmattersinGeorgia @WhatmattersinG]

🚨 GEORGIA 🚨
⁉️ELECTION SELECTION⁉️

Here’s another Georgia election “selection” question:

Top vote-getter for Secretary of State, Tim Fleming, was a no-show for the Atlanta Press Club debate.

Raise your hand if you saw a Tim Fleming sign… or saw him featured at candidate events? 🙋‍♀️

Who is Tim Fleming?

A longtime Brian Kemp insider:
• Managed Kemp’s 2018 gubernatorial campaign
• Served as Deputy Secretary of State under Kemp
• Served as Kemp’s Chief of Staff (2019–2020)

Georgia voters are asking a fair question:

How does a candidate run such a low-visibility campaign and still emerge as the top vote-getter statewide?

Looks less like a traditional grassroots campaign… and more like an establishment selection process.

What do you think? 🤔

[Douglas Weinstein @DouglasWei43233]

Forgive me while I mourn over three individuals losing their judicial seats with whom I have no real connection.

[Southern Dispatch @SoDispatch]

@WhatmattersinG @MizDonna69 @MariaGaudio4 Unfortunately, the Fulton/Atlanta judges Fani doesn’t like got beat, including Schwall and Whitaker (who derailed her Young Thug RICO debacle). Very disappointing.

[Douglas Weinstein @DouglasWei43233]

Not only saddened by the losses of objectively good judges, but disturbed that a DA can target judges whom she has an issue with and successfully dislodge 2/3 of them.

[David Shafer @DavidShafer]

From the returns tonight, it appears that Brad Raffensperger will end his government service in a hidden bunker directing phantom armies.

[Southern Dispatch @SoDispatch]

Political reporter lovefest for Gabe Sterling as he loses badly in the GOP Secretary of State primary. Per Chuck Todd, he’s been a major leaker.

[Decision Desk HQ @DecisionDeskHQ]

Decision Desk HQ projects Sarah Hawkins Warren wins the GA State Supreme Court Sarah Warren's Seat Nonpartisan General Election

#DecisionMade: 8:09 PM EDT

[Decision Desk HQ @DecisionDeskHQ]

Decision Desk HQ projects Burt Jones and Rick Jackson advance in GA Governor Republican Primary

#DecisionMade: 8:13 PM EDT

[Southern Dispatch @SoDispatch]

Republican primary for Governor called by @DecisionDeskHQ as heading to runoff between Rick Jackson & Burt Jones.

Raffensperger is out of state government! 🎉🎉🎉

[Southern Dispatch @SoDispatch]

Per Atlanta News First, the AP calls the Republican Georgia Attorney General race for Brian Strickland over Bill Cowsert.

[Kevin Moncla @KevinMoncla]

UPDATE
The Order permitting the SEB to access the bunker has been vacated by the judge. The SOS claimed that he was not informed of this morning's hearing, which is weird because he issued a statement last night about the lawsuit which sought the injunction.

So ask yourselves, why would the SOS, a candidate running for office, go to such great lengths to prevent oversight by the board who possesses the duty- by the legislature- to ensure free and fair elections? All possible answers are not good and everyone sees it. It's analogous to scanning ballots at SFA on election night without observers present. There is a reason that even the appearance of impropriety must be avoided.

Why do people like me dare to question Georgia's elections? A better question is why would anyone trust them?
https://t.co/3Dm3Y5prCP

[Ted Metz for Secretary of State @Vote4TedMetz]

Also, hand marked paper ballot elections do not require a 513 page operators manual.

[Ted Metz for Secretary of State @Vote4TedMetz]

Breaking News! The original Temporary Restraining Order granted by Judge Glanville has indeed been vacated and effectively reversed.

What Just Happened (The Midday Pivot)
The Secretary of State’s office immediately filed an emergency motion to dissolve the TRO once they realized it had been granted ex parte (without them in the room).

The state's attorneys successfully argued a massive jurisdictional point: The Georgia Election Code explicitly places the administration of election-night reporting and central tabulation under the authority of the counties and the state party framework, not a centralized room that constitutes a poll-watching location under O.C.G.A. § 21-2-408. They argued that forcing the state to alter its security protocol for the "Election Night Reporting Room" at the last minute would cause operational chaos while votes are actively coming in. The court agreed, stayed the previous order, and shut the door back down.

The "Bunker" is Closed for Tonight
Because of this reversal, as the polls close at 7:00 PM tonight, the Secretary of State’s office is legally permitted to keep observers and State Election Board members out of the central data aggregation room.

The full evidentiary hearing is still on the books for May 28th, but for tonight's primary processing, Raffensperger's team has regained total control over the room's access.

[Southern Dispatch @SoDispatch]

Good to know that the Secretary of State Propaganda will do absolutely no adding up (aka tabulating) and reporting of statewide results at all In his secret bunker war room.

what a disgrace.

[Mark Meadows @MarkMeadows]

Disgusting omission by @thehill.

The judge is STACEY ABRAMS’S SISTER.

You’d think that would make the headline.

This is beyond political interference by another radical leftist judge!