More than 180,000 residents of Georgia participated in early voting on the first day, which was Tuesday, marking a new record for midterm elections. This figure surpassed the opening day of early voting in 2022 by over 55,000 votes, according to state election officials. Georgians have the opportunity to vote early until October 30.
“This record turnout shows that voters trust the integrity of our elections,” stated Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger. “It’s a strong endorsement of our election system, managed by 159 of the finest county election officials in the nation.”
On the same day, Georgia’s U.S. Senate race took a dramatic turn during a debate. Sen. Jon Ossoff, a Democrat, accused Republican candidate Rep. Mike Collins of letting “neo-Nazi propaganda” spread in his household. Collins countered, questioning Ossoff’s ties to a billionaire linked to Jeffrey Epstein.
The exchange occurred during the candidates’ second and final debate before the general election on November 3, which was organized by the Atlanta Press Club and aired on Georgia Public Broadcasting.
Throughout the debate, Ossoff aimed to tie Collins to White nationalism, urging him to take a stand against what he described as hateful rhetoric from his campaign team, particularly concerning Collins’ son-in-law, who had faced prior scrutiny.
Ossoff directed pointed questions at Collins about his ability to control such behavior in his home. He cited a CNN investigation revealing that Collins’ son-in-law had circulated Nazi propaganda and promoted antisemitic theories.
Meanwhile, Collins accused Ossoff of inciting threats against his family and criticized him for not rejecting campaign funding tied to Reid Hoffman, a co-founder of LinkedIn. Collins also pressed Ossoff on his associations with the controversial streamer Hasan Piker.
“Honestly, I’m just… tired of this, Jon,” Collins remarked during the debate. “Your rhetoric has put a crazy person in jail.” He mentioned having received threats recently, pointing to ongoing tensions surrounding the campaign.
Collins further pressed Ossoff to denounce Hoffman, highlighting the significant financial support he has received, and challenged Ossoff to return that money.
