- On Election Day, voters in the Atlanta area headed to the polls with many issues in mind.
- While some pointed to their civic duty and a dislike of the GOP for voting, others cited trust.
Across the Atlanta area on Election Day, voters came out to cast ballots in the highly-consequential Georgia US Senate and gubernatorial races, with the results likely to determine the trajectory of the state for years to come.
Once tinged with a solidly red hue, Georgia in recent years has become of the most competitive swing states in the country, narrowly backing now-Republican Gov. Brian Kemp over former Georgia House of Representatives Minority Leader Stacey Abrams in the 2018 governor's race, while supporting Joe Biden in 2020 and now-Sens. Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff in dual Senate elections in January 2021.
But now Warnock — who was first elected to fill the remaining term of former GOP Sen. Johnny Isakson — is up for reelection in a political environment much more challenging for him as he faces a well-known GOP opponent in Herschel Walker, the former University of Georgia and NFL football standout.
On Tuesday, citizens had their final say in the race, and whether it was a rejection of the GOP or simply pursuing a civic duty, a range of voters in Cobb and DeKalb counties told Insider that they came out to the polls not dissatisfied with the candidates themselves but the state of politics.
At the Bridge Pointe Church in Marietta, Nicole Richardson wasn't driven to cast a ballot by any one particular issue, but said it was "really important at the state level to cast your vote."
Another voter, Dani, who declined to giver her last name, decried the state of negative advertisement in modern politics.
"A lot of political ads have gotten so ugly. People are just saying things so ridiculous that it blows my mind and just makes me feel it's more important than ever to make sure marginalized communities are protected by electing officials that actually care about them," she told Insider.
"There was definitely a clear side for me on people who would represent those marginalized communities versus people who would use them as scapegoats," Dani added, remarking that the voting process was easy.
At the Cobb County Adult Education Center in nearby Smyrna, voter Charles Jackson exited the building in the morning and told Insider he was "inspired to vote" by his daughter. Minutes later, Dawson Cantrell told Insider that it was his "duty as a resident and as an American" to vote, pointing to the issue of voting rights.
"This is our way of letting our voices be heard," he said. "Voting really impacts me and my family. There are a lot of ramifications if you don't vote."
"I'm curious to see what the future is going on to hold. We just can't have it where people can just spill out false information," he added. "We've got to elect people who have Georgia in their best interests."
Cantrell also criticized Walker's candidacy.
"There's no way that Herschel Walker should represent any city, state, country, you name it," he told Insider.
At Druid Hills High School in suburban DeKalb County, Jim Perkins told Insider that there were "too many crazy people" in politics and he had to cast a ballot because of it.
"I'm generally neutral or middle-of-the-road, but everyone in the Republican Party seems to be insane, so I felt like I had to vote. There are just too many crazy people out there," he said.
Perkins said that while he wasn't supportive of Kemp, he thought the ads from the major candidates were "good."
"I'm not a fan of the current governor, but he seemed to run effective ads. It didn't change my mind, though. I think most people know who they're going to vote for. Not sure if the ad money really does anything in all honesty," he added.