Today, Friday, December 2, is the last day of early voting in the U.S. Senate runoff between Sen. Rev. Raphael Warnock and challenger Herschel Walker. Polls are open until 7 p.m. Friday evening. By law, if you are in line at 7 p.m., the poll has to stay open for you to cast your ballot.
On Election Day, which is Tuesday, December 6, your regular local precinct will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Check your My Voter Page at https://mvp.sos.ga.gov to see where your local precinct is. People who don’t speak English or who have a disability can bring the person of their choice to assist them with casting their ballot.
Clayton County voters continue their part of a heavy statewide turnout. You can vote at any of six early voting location through 7 p.m. this evening, and you can check wait times on the Clayton County Elections and Registration homepage (we created a short link and QR code for you to make it easier to share: http://bit.ly/3EYRRWc ):
Democrats will be canvassing local neighborhoods all weekend, especially looking to turn out Hispanic voters on Tuesday, December 6. On Thursday in Savannah, a man shot and wounded a teenager who had been campaigning for Warnock. The teen is recovering with a non-life-threatening gunshot wound to one leg, according to Fox 5 Atlanta. Jimmy Paiz, who was arrested and charged with aggravated assault and aggravated battery, allegedly shot the teen through a closed door. However, Savannah Police say the incident did not appear to be politically motivated.
“I’m here to tell you, we can’t let up,” Obama said. “I’m here to tell you, we can’t tune out. We can’t get complacent. We have to run through the tape. And I know you can do it because you did it before.”
Warnock has framed his race as one of experience versus incompetence. This week, the Warnock campaign released a new ad, in which various people wearing headphones listen to highlights of Walker’s stump speeches, with one calling him “embarrassing.”
Walker has both Gov. Brian Kemp’s and former President Donald Trump’s endorsement but Republicans have leaned on Trump to stay away from Georgia during the race. Trump is supposed to appear by video. Walker has stuck to his script, attacking transgender youth, decrying abortion, and framing his candidacy in religious terms, but has said nothing about other issues. has taken more hits in the final week before the election, including another woman alleging he had abused her, as well as late revelations that Walker had taken a homestead exemption on his Texas home while residing in Georgia and that he is registered to vote in both states.
While it’s not illegal to be registered in two states at once, it is customary to change one’s voter registration when one moves. On November 27, Ann Gregory Roberts filed a formal voter fraud complaint with the Georgia Bureau of Investigation and state Attorney General Chris Carr challenging Walker’s voter registration status.
Roberts wrote, “Herschel Walker registered to vote in Georgia in 2021 and voted in the 2022 primary and general elections despite simultaneously claiming a homestead tax exemption in Tarrant County, Texas….Georgia law is clear that if a voter claims a homestead tax exemption, the address for which the exemption is claimed is the person’s residence for voting purposes. Therefore, according to his own claim to the homestead exemption in Texas, it appears that Walker was not a resident of Georgia for voting purposes when he registered to vote and voted.”
Meanwhile, Texas law allows homeowners to keep their homestead exemption if they expect to be gone less than two years. The Texas Tribune reported that “Under Texas law, homeowners can claim a homestead exemption — which exempts a certain amount of a home’s value from taxation — only on their primary residence. But homeowners may continue to claim the exemption if they ‘do not establish a principal residence elsewhere … intend to return to the home … [and] are away less than two years,’ according to the state comptroller’s office.”
Freelance journalist George Chidi tweeted that Walker also allegedly has a Georgia driver’s license:
Herschel Walker has a valid Georgia driver's license, I am now informed by Georgia DDS. Take that for what you will.
— George Chidi — The Atlanta Objective (@neonflag) December 1, 2022
You can check the claims of both campaigns using the Poynter Institute’s PolitiFact scorecard. The Poynter Institute is a non-profit journalism think tank based in Saint Petersburg, FL:
Some Georgia voters who are temporarily out of state had expected to get paper advance/absentee ballots by mail but still had not gotten them this week. All paper advance/absentee ballots must be received by 7 p.m. on Tuesday, December 6 to be counted in the election.
If you have problems or questions about your paper absentee/advance ballot, call the Clayton County Elections and Registration Office at (770) 477-3372.
If you want to be sure your ballot arrives on time, you can fax it to  (770) 477-4521. You also can fill it out, sign it, scan it, and send it as an e-mail attachment to elections@claytoncountyga.gov . Military and overseas voters can e-mail claytonuocava@claytoncountyga.gov .
