The GPR Digest - November 29, 2023
Court ruling on Georgia Public Service Commission elections, Israel-Hamas truce, and more
[EDITOR’S NOTE: This will be the final edition of the GPR Digest for the semester.]
GPR FEATURES
New Articles
Reproductive Rights in South America: What America Can Learn from the Green Wave Movement
Author Katie Kress offers a comparative analysis of movements fighting for abortion rights in South America and the United States.
Realignment in Gwinnett County: Part I
Gwinnett County is Georgia’s second most populous county and a key to understanding the shifts in our state’s recent political tides. Andy Wyatt offers a deep, data-driven dive into one of Georgia’s most interesting political stories in the last decade.
COMING SOON!
Georgia Political Review - Fall 2023
The newest print issue of the Georgia Political Review will be available soon! See a sneak peek of the edition here. Keep an eye out for more details from this newsletter, our website, or our Instagram (@GAPolitical) on when and where to pick up your copy!
GEORGIA
Court says Georgia can elect Public Service Commission through statewide vote, overturning previous ruling
Last week, a federal court ruled (ABC) that Georgia’s Public Service Commission can be elected through a statewide, at-large vote, rejecting a 2022 decision that said the PSC should be voted in through districts. In 2022, a lower federal judge struck down the electoral scheme of the PSC on the grounds of the Voting Rights Act, saying that the statewide elections illegally diluted the votes of Georgia’s Black residents. The appeals court instead ruled that “there is no evidence… that race was a motivating factor” in the decision to hold statewide elections for the PSC.
The elections for two of the seats on the PSC were delayed by the 2022 ruling, and a third seat will be up for election in 2024. At this time, it is unclear whether the two parties will nominate their 2022 candidates or new ones, or whether the delayed elections for the two seats will be held in November 2024 or some other date.
NATIONAL
Rep. Dean Phillips, a Democratic challenger to President Biden for 2024, announces he will not run for reelection to the House
Rep. Dean Phillips (D-MN) released a statement last week saying that he will not seek reelection to Congress in 2024. Phillips, a three-term representative from Minneapolis’s western suburbs, is running for the Democratic presidential nomination against President Joe Biden.
Phillips’ decision to challenge Biden drew strong criticism from many Democratic leaders, including Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and the chair of the Minnesota Democratic Party. In a recent poll, Phillips received (Morning Consult) 4% support from Democrats, compared to 73% for Biden.
Colorado judge says Trump is an insurrectionist, but rejects attempt to keep him off of state’s primary ballot
District Judge Sarah B. Wallace ruled against (PBS) Colorado Republican and independent voters who argued in a lawsuit that the 14th Amendment should bar President Trump from appearing on ballots. The legal argument is based upon a clause in the Civil War-era 14th Amendment that says anyone who “engaged in insurrection or rebellion” against the Constitution is banned from holding public office. Wallace said in her decision that while Trump engaged in insurrectionary acts during the events of January 6, 2021, the 14th Amendment does not specifically refer to the offices of the presidency or Congress, only civil and military offices and electors. Similar legal efforts to keep Trump off ballots in Minnesota (CBS) and Michigan (CNN) have also failed.
INTERNATIONAL
Israel and Hamas agree to temporary truce, release hostages
Israel and Hamas entered (Reuters) a temporary, four-day ceasefire last week in a deal mediated by Qatar. In return for a pause in the fighting, Hamas agreed to release some of the hostages militants took during its October 7 attack, while Israel would return Palestinian prisoners to Gaza. The parties agreed to extend the truce (Al Jazeera) earlier this week another two days until Thursday morning, with negotiators in talks to prolong the pause at least another 48 hours.
So far, Hamas has released (AP) 70 hostages, including several American citizens; the group still holds about 180 other hostages. Israel has said that they will extend the ceasefire by one day for every 10 hostages released, meaning the pause could be extended as long as two and a half weeks.
Trump says he will visit far-right Argentinian president-elect Milei
President Trump announced (AP) last Thursday that he would travel to Argentina to meet with president-elect Javier Milei. While he did not provide a specific date for the planned visit, it would mark the first time an active or former U.S. president has visited South America since Donald Trump attended the G20 summit in Argentina five years ago. Milei has been an admirer of Trump’s right-wing policies and was congratulated by the former president last week after winning the Argentinian nomination. The son of former right-wing Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro helped connect the two as the politicians look to facilitate diplomatic relations before Milei takes office and Trump ramps up his 2024 presidential campaign.
COP28 begins in Dubai on Thursday
Dubai is set to host the 28th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP28), which begins on Thursday. The conference will see representatives from nearly 200 countries in attendance. Some of the topics set to be discussed include moving to clean energy sources by reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 and the creation of a bill that would help developing nations become more environmentally friendly. With President Biden set to skip (Washington Post) the conference, COP28 has been marked with controversy (BBC) as the UAE has appointed Sultan al-Jaber, the chief executive of the state-owned oil company, as the president of the meeting. Critics say that the UAE is planning to use its role as the host to push oil and gas deals. COP28 will take place over the course of a week and a half with many climate activists hoping the conference leads to meaningful change.
CULTURE
Advertisers pull out of X after owner Elon Musk endorses anti-Semitic conspiracy
The social media giant X, formerly known as Twitter, may see advertising revenue losses (New York Times) of up to $75 million as major advertisers take flight from the platform after its owner, Elon Musk, embraced an anti-Semitic conspiracy theory this month. Internal company documents note that more than 200 companies, including Microsoft, Apple, and Disney have paused or halted ads on the platform altogether. X has seen a steady departure of advertisers as hateful content and misinformation on the platform surges—ad sales are down by 50% since Musk took over the company.
The exodus hastened this month when Musk said in a post that a conspiracy that Jewish people support the immigration of racial minorities to replace white people is “the actual truth.” The conspiracy, generally known as the “Great Replacement Theory,” originated with white supremacists but has seen mainstream platforming (NPR) in recent years as media figures like Tucker Carlson espouse its ideas.