Fresh Loaf

Some familiar Democratic names, such as Congressman John Lewis, D-Ga., are scheduled to be on hand for the “For The People Rally” in Gainesville on Sunday, Sept. 21. The former Civil Rights activist and longtime lawmaker will be the afternoon’s keynote speaker. Billed as  a day that “celebrates the values of the Democratic Party,” the gathering will be held from 1 pm to 5 pm. All ages are invited.

Lewis will be joined by U.S. Senate Democratic Party nominee Jim Martin, Public Service Commission candidate Jim Powell and Congressional Candidates Jeff Scott, Bobby Saxon, Bill Jones and Doug Heckman.

Former State Legislator and Congressional Candidate Wyc Orr will be the evening’s host of the event.

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— Amy and Lauren are in Denver and blogging from the convention on Georgia Women Vote. They were both moved by a speech U.S. Rep. John Lewis gave this morning to the Georgia and Alabama delegations. Lewis will address the nation tonight before Obama accepts his party’s nomination.

— One person not at the convention is WXIA-TV’s political reporter Denis O’Hayer. As Live Apartment Fire notes, while the Democratic Party goes all historic on us O’Hayer was covering a tree that fell on the house. I’m personally disappointed that WGCL-TV didn’t send Dagmar Midcap to Denver. After all, they seem to have her everywhere else.

— ATLmalcontent has a complaint of a different nature. He’s also watching the convention on television and thinks the three major cable news channels have pretty much dropped all traces of objectivity — they all seem to have a horse in this race.

— Dcup at Politits isn’t in Denver either, but at least that has left her time to bake a very special cake in honor of Hillary. Yum!

— She obviously gave DriftGrift a slice because he has a sizzling Hillary-related “Morning Wooten” for our viewing pleasure.

— And finally, two very different MARTA experiences to share. Jamsmooth writes about a jamming smooth ride. But over at Arc of Time, a loud snorer and the shooting downtown almost sent their bus going the wrong way down I-20.

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Here’s a quick rundown on the July 15 Georgia primary results. The big news was generated by high-stakes runoffs:

* U.S. senator: The two experienced Democrats — Vernon Jones and Joe Martin — vanquished three first-time candidates and will face each other in an Aug. 5 runoff. With 91 percent of precincts counted, DeKalb CEO Jones won 40 percent of the vote, while Martin got 35 percent. Martin — who entered the race late and has been criticized for a lackluster campaign — may have a slight edge in the runoff: He has more money in the bank, he seems more likely to pick up support from supporters of other candidates, and his largely white base historically shows up for runoffs better than does Jones’ base of black voters. What does Jones have going for him? A runoff in the contest for who will replace him as DeKalb CEO could spur turnout in his home county. The winner takes on Republican incumbent Saxby Chambliss in November.

* DeKalb County CEO: The contest for the most powerful local government post in the state heads for a runoff as well, although DeKalb Commissioner Burrell Ellis turned out an impressive showing with 46 percent of the vote. No surprise that he’ll face well-liked state Rep. Stan Watson in the runoff. But a 20 point head start has gotta give Ellis the edge. (more…)

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