The upcoming election in Georgia on Tuesday is not just any ordinary race – it involves two key players in the criminal case against former President Donald J. Trump. Fani T. Willis, the Fulton County district attorney prosecuting Trump, and Scott McAfee, the presiding judge in the matter, are both on the ballot.
The two candidates are considered the favorites in their respective races, but they are facing some controversy following the election-interference case against Trump and his allies. Defense lawyers raised concerns about a conflict of interest due to Willis’s romantic relationship with a lawyer she hired to manage the prosecution. Judge McAfee ruled that Willis could stay on the case if the subordinate stepped down, which he did. The Georgia Court of Appeals will review this decision.
Despite facing criticism, Willis and Judge McAfee have certain advantages as voters head to the polls. Willis, running in a Democratic primary, has wide name recognition in heavily Democratic Fulton County, where she has suggested that racism played a role in the attacks against her. She was endorsed by prominent Black preachers in the Atlanta area.
The winner of the Democratic primary will face Republican lawyer Courtney A. Kramer in the November general election. Kramer, who has worked in the Trump White House and campaign, is running unopposed in the Republican primary.
Judge McAfee, a conservative appointed by Gov. Brian Kemp, is running in a nonpartisan election against civil rights lawyer Robert Patillo II. Patillo has criticized McAfee’s ruling on the Willis matter but has received fewer campaign contributions than the incumbent, who was endorsed by Kemp and former Democratic Gov. Roy Barnes.
As voters head to the polls on Tuesday, all eyes will be on these key players in the Trump criminal case and how their races unfold.
