Election Tuesday
Nov. 5 — Voting is underway and polls are open until 7 p.m. for the long-awaited general election. Find your polling place at My Voter Page and follow our election blog for ongoing updates from the Rough Draft team and our partners, including live results from The Associated Press.
🌤️ After a cloudy morning, it will be mostly sunny and 78° today.
ELECTION 2024
🗳️ With more than four million early votes already banked, Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger said during a Monday press conference that 70% of Georgia’s vote total will be known by 8 p.m. tonight.
⚖️ Raffensperger also said that counties that accepted in-person absentee ballots over the weekend did so legally.
🗣️ The Georgia Supreme Court overruled a Nov. 8 extension granted to 3,000 mail-in voters in Cobb County after election officials shipped the ballots late. Voters have to return the ballots by 7 p.m. tonight or cast a ballot at the polls.
🏫 Atlanta Public Schools and DeKalb County Schools are closed today, while City Schools of Decatur and Fulton County Schools will have remote learning days. More details here.
🚗 The Urban League of Greater Atlanta has partnered with Lyft to offer discounted rides to the polls. The Buc shuttle in Buckhead is offering free rides to polling places in the district.
LOCAL NEWS
⏰ The DeKalb Tax Commissioner’s Office is extending hours at its Decatur office to accommodate long lines of customers paying their property tax bills.
🎖️ Brookhaven will host its inaugural Veterans Day ceremony on Nov. 11 at 9 a.m. in Langford Park.
💵 The Decatur Downtown Development Authority has renewed funding for three grant programs to support local businesses through financial aid.
🎭 The Georgia Council for the Arts announced that it has awarded over $1.4 million in grant funding to arts organizations across the state.
ELSEWHERE
✈️ Boeing machinists approved a contract with a 38% wage increase, ending a 53-day strike.
➡ X has changed its policy so that even accounts you’ve blocked can still see your public posts.
🕖 Here’s what’s in today’s newsletter:
• Election Day dining, deals
• GPB Around the State: Voting groups
• Perspectives in Architecture
AND
• Volunteer Opportunities
Have a good day,
Collin & Sammie
🔮 Experience Atlanta’s inaugural Jewish Storytelling Festival Nov. 16-17. Join master storytellers weaving tales that connect generations through shared Jewish experiences. A weekend of inspiration and tradition. Get tickets and info here. SPONSOR MESSAGE
1. Atlanta restaurants offering Election Day deals, hosting watch parties
🍑 After you “Post the peach” to social media, make sure to hold on to that sticker because it could get you a discount or freebie at local restaurants on Election Day.
In addition to those discounts, there will also be plenty of watch parties so you don’t have to wait for the results alone. Manuel’s Tavern will once again host a party, and there will also be parties to visit at Argosy and a collab between Colette Bread and Elemental Spirits Co.
🍻 For more on this story, click here.
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2. Meet five groups of voters who could shape the outcome of the election
🗳️ Georgia had among the tightest margins of any swing state in 2020. That year, Joe Biden won the Peach State by 11,779 votes, the first Democrat to capture Georgia’s electoral votes since 1992.
Since then, Georgia voters reelected a Republican governor and a Democratic U.S. senator in 2022. Polls suggest Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump are locked in a tight race and both campaigns have devoted significant resources to winning the state.
In a state recently decided by such small margins, subtle shifts among any demographic can matter. And of course, no demographic is a monolith — political diversity certainly exists within races, classes, and geographies. But there are five groups of voters to watch who will be key in determining who wins Georgia — and possibly the presidency.
➡ Learn who those five groups are here.
3. Perspectives in Architecture: A better Atlanta through brilliant architecture
🏗️ Oscar Harris recalls 30 years ago in Atlanta with fond memories. The city was preparing to host the 1996 Summer Olympics and massive capital improvement projects were under construction across the Atlanta region.
Since he opened his firm in 1977, the architect has had a hand in designing the Hamilton Holmes MARTA Station, the revitalized Underground Atlanta, the Atlanta Fulton County Government Center, and more local landmarks.
🏛️ As part of Atlanta Intown’s 30th anniversary, columnist Melody Harclerode looks back at Harris’ storied career.
🔮 Experience Atlanta’s inaugural Jewish Storytelling Festival Nov. 16-17. Join master storytellers weaving tales that connect generations through shared Jewish experiences. A weekend of inspiration and tradition. Get tickets and info here. SPONSOR MESSAGE
4. Volunteer Opportunities
IN PARTNERSHIP WITH HANDS ON ATLANTA
🫧 The Launch Pad Foundation needs volunteers Thursday morning to help with storage clean up for the Adamsville Community Garden. You will assist with pressure washing floors, painting walls and coat racks, and designating items for the dumpster.
🥔 Another Chance of Atlanta, Inc. seeks volunteers for its food pantry on Friday afternoon at its warehouse in Southwest Atlanta. Roles include packing food bags, assisting with registration, loading food into client vehicles, organizing warehouse food, and more.
🐝 Livable Buckhead (pictured) is looking for volunteers Sunday morning to help with its pollinator garden refresh at Garden 684. Expect to pull weeds, spread new seeds, and paint bee hives. No previous experience is necessary.
📧 Today’s newsletter was edited by Julie E. Bloemeke.
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