[ad_1]
ATLANTA (AP) — Georgia’s 2024 legislative session again showcased contrasting Republican approaches to governing, while minority Democrats couldn’t leverage those differences to advance top policy priorities.
And while many GOP initiatives in the state Senate seemed like appeals to that party’s primary voters, Republicans are hoping tax cuts and a harder line on immigration will carry them to victory in November’s legislative races. Democrats walked away more furious than ever about the failure to expand Medicaid health insurance, one cornerstone of their campaign to make gains in the state House.
TRUMP APPEALS GEORGIA COURT ORDER THAT KEEPS FANI WILLIS ON THE CASE: ‘SHOULD HAVE BEEN DISQUALIFIED’
In the background of 2024 campaigns for all 236 state legislative seats is jockeying for elections to statewide office in 2026. Republican Lt. Gov. Burt Jones, displaying a conservative edge, seems more likely than ever to run to succeed Gov. Brian Kemp, as many GOP lawmakers try to satisfy an activist base.
Georgia House Speaker Pro-Tempore Jan Jones, R-Milton, House Speaker Jon Burns, R-Newington and Majority Leader Chuck Efstration, R-Auburn, speak to reporters after the House adjourns in the early hours of Friday, March 29, 2024 in Atlanta. Georgia’s two-year legislative session ended early Friday, after lawmakers stayed past midnight on Thursday pass some bills and reject others as the term ended. (Matthew Pearson/WABE via AP)
Some issues unified Republicans, including speeding up an income tax cut, uniting around a crackdown on undocumented immigrants in jails, and pay raises for teachers and state employees.
But there’s a continuing power struggle between the chambers. Last year, that conflict burst into the open, with House and Senate leaders killing bills from the other chamber in a dispute that was set off by Jones’ push to loosen health care permitting requirements.
Jones won a partial loosening of those rules this year, and conflict overall was less public….
[ad_2]
