Democratic candidate Jon Ossoff arrives with Alisha Kramer to greet supporters at a campaign office on April 15, 2017 in Atlanta, Georgia. After 12 years, Jon Ossoff, a Democrat running to fill Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price's now empty House seat, is finally engaged to Alisha Kramer, according to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution .

Start the conversation, or Read more at The Washington Post. </s> Interpretation of the news based on evidence, including data, as well as anticipating how events might unfold based on past events The Georgia 6th Congressional District special election to replace now-Secretary of Health and Human Services Tom Price was already looking like a referendum on President Trump. With millions of dollars pouring into the race on both sides, the contest between Democrat Jon Ossoff and Republican Karen Handel seemed tailor-made to measure the demographic shifts in wealthy suburbs and the staying power of the Trump message.

Start the conversation, or Read more at The Washington Post. </s> Voters head to the polls on Tuesday in special elections to fill House seats in Georgia and South Carolina, vacated by congressmen who joined the Trump administration.

The most watched of the two races is Georgia’s election to replace former Republican Representative Tom Price, who was tapped to serve as President Trump’s Health and Human Services Secretary. Democrat Jon Ossoff is locked in a neck-and-neck race against Republican Karen Handel in Georgia’s sixth congressional district, which has been a Republican stronghold for over a decade. Although Trump managed to pull out a win over Hillary Clinton in the district, he fared far worse than Mitt Romney in 2012, creating an opening that Democrats hope to exploit.

South Carolina’s special election has flown under the radar by contrast, largely because it lacks the suspense of Georgia’s race. Republican Ralph Norman is the heavy favorite to defeat Democrat Archie Parnell in South Carolina’s fifth congressional district, and is expected to win an election to replace former Republican Representative Mick Mulvaney, now the director of the Office of Management and Budget.

Although the outcome of a single special election isn’t a reliable predictor on its own of what will happen in upcoming midterm elections, the contest in Georgia could nevertheless have a significant, and even immediate, national impact.

Democrats believe the tight race in Georgia may be their best opportunity to flip a House seat ahead of the 2018 mid-term elections, and send a message that backlash to Trump can help the party win elections in conservative parts of the country. </s> Ga. Rep. Tom Price was confirmed as the new health secretary in a 52-47 Senate vote. (NBC) </s> Share On more Share On more

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A federal court on Thursday ordered Georgia officials to extend the voter registration deadline through at least May 21 to be eligible to vote in the special election runoff in Georgia's sixth congressional district between Republican Karen Handel and Democrat Jon Ossoff.

Under Georgia law, only those people eligible to vote in the April 18 special election would be eligible to vote in the June 20 runoff.

The Georgia NAACP and others argued in a lawsuit that the rules violate the National Voter Registration Act of 1993, which bars states from having registration deadlines greater than 30 days before an election.



Georgia opposed the request, arguing that "[v]oter qualifications in elections are left to the states" and that the runoff was a "continuation" of the initial election.

On Thursday, US District Judge Timothy Batten held a hearing in the case — and sided with the challengers and against the state.

The competitive seat opened when Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price left the House to join President Trump's cabinet. </s> In a middle-of-the-night vote, the Senate confirmed Rep. Tom Price to be the next secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services.

The 52 to 47 vote was along party lines.

Democrats opposed Price, a Republican from Georgia, because he is a key architect of undoing the Affordable Care Act and has advocated making major changes to Medicare.

Their suspicions were deepened when it was revealed Price traded health care stocks while having oversight duties of the health care industry. Price has consistently denied any wrongdoing.

Republicans view Price, an orthopedic surgeon, as a champion of free market principles who will guide the repeal and replace of Obamacare, the top legislative priority for President Donald Trump and Congressional Republicans.

The Senate worked late because of procedural delays pressed by Democrats on a series of Trump’s Cabinet members. </s> Atlanta (CNN) In Karen Handel, Republicans found an experienced political hand to take on Democratic online fundraising star Jon Ossoff in the runoff for a hotly contested House seat in Georgia.

But with Handel's political experience comes baggage.

The former Georgia secretary of state's stances on social issues are certain to be a focus in the runoff -- particularly her effort to stop the Susan G. Komen Foundation, the breast cancer charity where she was senior vice president for policy, from funding screenings through Planned Parenthood because she opposes abortion rights. She later wrote a book, "Planned Bullyhood," about the episode.

The contest has largely been seen as a test of President Donald Trump's popularity -- particularly because he barely won the district, even though his pick for health and human services secretary, former Rep. Tom Price, was re-elected in 2016 by more than 20 points, and Mitt Romney had carried the district by 23 points in 2012.

Handel raised eyebrows when she didn't mention Trump at all in her speech Tuesday night. But she tweeted Wednesday morning that the President had called her. And, asked on CNN's "New Day" whether Trump would campaign for her, she said: "I would hope so."

"He just called to say, 'Congratulations' and encourage me and let me know that as we go into June 20, that it's all-hands-on-deck for Republicans and we take it very seriously," she said.

Handel, 55, grew up in the Washington suburbs in Maryland and moved to Atlanta in the 1990s for her husband's work. She later became a Fulton County commissioner and then Georgia's secretary of state.

Handel has twice run unsuccessfully for higher office, losing in GOP primaries both times. In 2010, she was defeated in a governor's race by Nathan Deal. And in 2014, she unsuccessfully sought a US Senate seat won by David Perdue.

Since her 2010 campaign, Handel has been -- as the Atlanta Journal-Constitution put it -- on the outside of local Republican politics looking in.

"Now we have the question: Will the Republican power crowd that isn't here right now, and they're not going to be here tonight -- there's going to be some talking done in the backroom. Do they get behind her or do they not?"

Handel was targeted by other Republicans during the 6th District jungle primary -- including Dan Moody, whose campaign aired a memorable ad portraying Handel, who often wears a pearl necklace, as an elephant wearing an enormous set of pearls.

She was also attacked by the Club for Growth over what it called out-of-control spending -- particularly on her office budget -- as a Fulton County commissioner.

Democrats are already readying their attacks against Handel, signaling they are prepared to pick up on the spending-related attacks.

"Handel's career as a big-spending career politician will haunt her candidacy," Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee press secretary Evan Lukaske said in a memo.

Handel's efforts as secretary of state to purge Georgia's voter rolls by requiring voters to prove their citizenship led to fights with the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division.

In an interview last month, Democratic National Committee Chairman Tom Perez -- who led the Civil Rights Division during President Barack Obama's first term -- said voters would hear "a lot" about Handel's efforts to require voters to prove their citizenship if she advanced to the runoff.

"Secretaries of state matter, and when they're good, then people can actually vote who are eligible to vote. And when they're following the ALEC playbook of the far right, they make it harder for people to vote," Perez said, referring to the conservative American Legislative Exchange Council. </s> WASHINGTON — Rep. Tom Price of Georgia was sworn in Friday as health and human services secretary, setting the stage for the conservative to play a leading role in dismantling President Barack Obama’s health care law.

Vice President Mike Pence administered the oath to Price hours after he won Senate confirmation on a narrow 52-47 vote early Friday.

Price is an orthopedic surgeon who is expected to help scuttle the Affordable Care Act, in part, by issuing regulations to weaken it.

Democrats assailed Price as an ideologue with a questionable history of trading health care stocks and warned that he would take away health insurance from millions of Americans.

Price took the oath of office at the White House just hours after the Senate confirmed him 52-47 in a party-line vote. That roll call came in the dead of night, thanks to Democrats’ tactic of forcing prolonged debates to broadcast their opposition to Trump and his team.

“Having Dr. Tom Price at the helm of HHS gives us a committed ally in our work to repeal and replace Obamacare,” House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., said Friday.

Democrats focused on the legislation Price sponsored during a seven-term House career, including efforts to kill Obama’s law. He’s also sought to reshape Medicare’s guarantee of health coverage for seniors into a voucher-like program, cut Medicaid, which helps poor people afford care, and halt federal payments to Planned Parenthood because it provides abortions.

Sen Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., conceded that Price had experience but added, “It’s the kind of experience that should horrify you.”

That battle won, Republicans were preparing to next win Senate confirmation for financier Steven Mnuchin to be Treasury secretary. He was expected to get the chamber’s approval Monday, along with Trump’s choice to head the Department of Veterans Affairs, physician David Shulkin.

Republicans have lauded Mnuchin’s long career in the finance and banking worlds.

As they did with Price, Democrats are attacking Mnuchin’s background, such as criticizing OneWest bank, which he led, for not protecting thousands of homeowners from unnecessary foreclosures. They also said he failed to disclose nearly $100 million in assets on forms he filed with the Senate.

Price’s nomination is part of a larger clash in which Republicans want to quickly enact priorities long blocked by Obama. Democrats, with few tools as Congress’ minority, are making a show of resistance, stretching some floor debates to the maximum 30 hours Senate rules allow.

The high stakes plus Trump’s belligerent style have fed the combativeness. They’ve also produced remarkable scenes, including Democratic boycotts of hearings, Republicans suspending committee rules to approve nominees and GOP senators voting to bar Warren from joining one debate.

Democrats have accused Price of lying about his acquisition of discounted shares of an Australian biotech company and benefiting from insider information. They’ve also asserted he pushed legislation to help a medical implant maker whose stock he’d purchased.

Price has said he’s done nothing wrong. It’s illegal for members of Congress to engage in insider trading.

His close confirmation was the fourth consecutive Senate clash over a Cabinet nominee that closely followed party lines.

Attorney General Jeff Sessions was confirmed 52-47, after Warren was punished for reading a 1986 letter by Coretta Scott King criticizing him. Betsy DeVos became Education secretary by 51-50, thanks to a tie-breaking vote by Vice President Mike Pence.

And Former Exxon-Mobil CEO Rex Tillerson became secretary of state by 56-43.

Those close tallies are a departure from most Cabinet votes, in which the Senate usually grants overwhelming approval in a show of deference to letting presidents choose their teams.

Just four of 31 votes for then-President Barack Obama’s Cabinet vacancies drew at least 40 “no” votes, as did only two of 34 votes for Cabinet positions under President George W. Bush.

During that period, the closest tally for health secretary before Price was the 65-31 roll call for Obama’s 2009 pick, Kathleen Sibelius. </s> DUNWOODY, Ga. — Republican Karen Handel has won a nationally watched congressional election in Georgia, avoiding an upset that would have rocked Washington ahead of the 2018 midterm elections.

Her narrow victory Tuesday over Democrat Jon Ossoff in Georgia’s 6th Congressional District allows Republicans a sigh of relief after what’s being recognized as the most expensive House race in U.S history, with a price tag that may exceed $50 million.

Yet the result in a historically conservative district still offers Republicans a warning — and Democrats some encouragement — that President Donald Trump’s tenuous standing will dominate the looming campaign cycle. Georgia’s outcome follows similar results in Montana, Kansas and South Carolina, where Republicans won special House races by much narrower margins than they managed as recently as November.

Democrats must flip 24 GOP-held seats to regain a House majority next November, but the latest losses mean party leaders and liberal groups will have to rally donors and volunteers after a tough stretch of special elections.

Handel, 55, becomes the latest in a line of Republicans who have represented the district since 1979, beginning with Newt Gingrich, who would become House speaker. Most recently, Tom Price resigned the post in February to join Trump’s administration as health and human services secretary. The president himself struggled here, though, edging Democrat Hillary Clinton but falling short of a majority among an affluent, well-educated electorate that typically has given Republican nominees better than 60 percent of the vote.

“This is such an important election because of what goes on in D.C.,” said Tom Greathouse, 52, a business owner who supported Handel. He added that there’s been “a ton of emotion” in a district used to watching Republicans coast.

In April, Handel trailed Ossoff in the first round of voting but led all Republican candidates to qualify for a runoff. Ossoff tallied 48 percent, just shy of an outright victory.

A former Georgia secretary of state, Handel emphasized throughout the campaign that she has lived in the district for 25 years, unlike Ossoff, who grew up in the district but lives in Atlanta, a few miles south of the 6th District’s southern border.

Handel also pointed to the district’s pedigree throughout the campaign, urging Republicans not to let Democrats “steal” a seat that became a proxy for the national dynamics in Washington. Party organizations, independent political action committees and donors from Los Angeles to Boston sent a cascade of money into a race, filling metro Atlanta’s airwaves with ads and its 6th District neighborhoods with hordes of paid canvassers.

Handel insisted for months that voters’ choice had little to do with Trump, whom she rarely mentioned, despite holding a closed-door fundraiser with him earlier this spring. She pointed voters instead to her “proven conservative record” as a state and local elected official. Her protestations aside, Handel often embraced the national tenor of the race, joining a GOP chorus that lambasted Ossoff as a “dangerous liberal” who was “hand-picked” by House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi of California. She also welcomed a parade of national GOP figures to Atlanta to help her raise money, with Vice President Mike Pence and House Speaker Paul Ryan holding fundraisers following Trump’s April visit.

It was enough to help Handel raise more than $5 million, not a paltry sum in a congressional race, but barely a fifth of Ossoff’s fundraising haul. The Republican campaign establishment, however, helped make up the difference. A super PAC backed by Ryan spent $7 million alone.

Besides allowing national Republicans to exhale, Handel ended a personal losing streak, including failed primary bids for governor in 2010 and the U.S. Senate in 2014.

On policy, she mostly echoes party leaders. She said she’d have voted for the House Republican health-care bill, though she sometimes misrepresented its provisions in debates with Ossoff. She touts traditional supply side economics, going so far as to say during one debate that she does “not support a living wage” — her way of explaining her opposition to a minimum-wage increase.

That wasn’t enough to sway the election. But a living wage was a key driver for voters like Grant Robison, 25, a Johns Creek resident who works for National Cash Register. He voted for Jon Ossoff.

“I don’t think that anybody should live in poverty, dealing with that when they’re working a 40-hour week,” he said.
Democratic candidates face off with Republican candidates in a primary for a U.S. House seat vacated by Tom Price, now Health and Human Services Secretary, in a suburb of Atlanta, Georgia.