The city of Atlanta announced this week a new get out the vote campaign called ‘Go Vote ATL,’ aiming to ensure that Atlantans from across the city vote this November. The nonpartisan campaign is undoubtedly careful to not take any stances of who these votes would actually go to but considering Joe Biden swamped then-President Donald Trump in the city of Atlanta, the more turnout in Atlanta the better for candidate Kamala Harris.
“Voting is how we get City services we deserve, and we make our voices heard. It is a foundational element of our democracy and long before I was an elected official I was encouraging citizens to vote. We are reaching out to partners because Atlanta is a group project, and civic engagement requires everyone,” said Mayor Andre Dickens.
The voter registration deadline in Georgia is October 7 and the Go Vote ATL initiative will be holding a series of events to get people registered ahead of the deadline. Activities will include community conversations, public art, mass media and other engagement opportunities for voters of all ages, including new voters and high school students that are eligible to vote by the big day in November.
“With the several critical elections at the local, state and national level, it’s important that we come together as a city to make our voices heard,” said Austin Wagner, Deputy Chief of Staff to Mayor Dickens and team lead on the initiative. “The ‘Go Vote ATL’ campaign is about more than just casting ballots; it’s about empowering every citizen to be an active participant in shaping the future of our city.”
On its website, the group states that it is nonpartisan and “youth-led,” so it will certainly be targeting younger voters, a notoriously flaky group that is perennially turning out in the lowest numbers across demographic groups. For the whole country, about two-thirds (66 percent) of eligible voters turned out in 2020. Compare that number to the 50 percent for turnout among the youngest group (ages 18 to 29) to vote that year. In Georgia, the number for youth in 2020 was 51 percent, a 14 point jump from the 37 percent in 2016. We’ll find out in November whether the youth are more attracted to Kamala Harris than they were to the 2020 version of Joe Biden – not necessarily known for his appeal to 18-year-olds.
Additionally, generally the population growth of a city from one presidential election cycle would not make much difference. And it may not mean anything here. But just since the 2020 election, Atlanta has added more than 15,000 people. Considering Joe Biden won the state by just under 12,000 votes, that additional 15,000 in the city could help Kamala. Certainly some of those new voters will go to former President Trump but odds are they will at least skew in Kamala’s direction. For those that work in Georgia politics, it is the burden of being a “purple” state. If you work in West Virginia, certainly there are some primary elections that are important but the scale of work required in Georgia now might be a bit different. Every door knock could make a difference.
