Georgia
Recent Achievements
Investment in organizing Black communities and other communities of color over the last six years has radically shifted the political dynamics of Georgia. A key participant within that effort, BMI Georgia contributed to historic wins 2020 and 2022.
Joe Biden won Georgia’s 16 electoral college votes in 2020, the first time a Democrat prevailed in the state since Bill Clinton in 1992.
Democrats flipped two US Senate seats in 2020, winning the regular election runoff to replace a Republican incumbent with Democrat Jon Ossoff, as well as a special election runoff to replace a Republican appointee with Reverend Rafael Warnock; in winning these two flips, Democrats secured control of the US Senate, with Vice President Harris serving as the tie-breaking vote.
In 2022, Democrats defended Reverend Warnock’s Senate seat from MAGA Republican challenger Herschel Walker, thereby preserving control of the US Senate.
During the 2022 election cycle, the Black Male Initiative Georgia contacted voters at their doors, over the phone, and via their own personal networks to support a historic midterm performance. The universe of voters that BMI reached out to included 58% more voters of color and 24% more voters under age 40 vs. statewide proportions. BMI helped register thousands of new voters, knocking on 153,000 doors during the general election as well as over 265,000 doors for the runoff that resulted in Reverend Raphael Warnock winning a full six-year Senate term. In addition to BMI’s door knocks, they held 15+ events focused on voter education and understanding issues that challenge their communities.
What makes Georgia crucial in 2024
Georgia is an important swing state for the presidential election; President Biden won there in 2020 by 11,779 votes — less than a .25% margin of victory.
Under Republican leadership and at the urging of right-wing activists, Georgia’s government has taken extreme steps to make voting harder and to purge registered voters from the rolls, necessitating continuous efforts to help voters protect and exercise their right to vote.
Democrats have a chance to flip seats in the State legislature, particularly the Georgia State House. They can get closer to winning back that chamber and rolling back bad legislation that has been the blueprint for other conservative states across the nation.
Democrats must maintain the progress accomplished in Georgia since 2020 in order to re-elect Jon Ossoff and attempt to flip the governorship in 2026.
What Flip the Vote’s support means for 2024
BMI has ambitious plans in 2024, including a goal to knock over 1 million doors between now and November, targeting more than 500,000 Black men, Black women, and young people in Metro Atlanta as well as the Black Belt along the state’s southern border. Support from Flip the Vote will allow BMI to hire additional organizers and canvassers from local communities, increasing the number of touchpoints they have with voters to offer support they may need while also educating them about candidates, what the upcoming elections mean for them, and how and where to vote. Early resources from Flip the Vote ensure that BMI can reach more voters at their doors and in the community, to gain understanding of what issues matter to them in time to help channel that energy into civic and electoral action.
The Black Male Initiative Georgia (BMI) works to create effective outcomes for communities by empowering Black men economically and civically through the use of direct action, advocacy, and grassroots organizing. BMI is centered around 5 pillars of programming that offer support and opportunities to Black men in Atlanta and other counties throughout the state: Civic Engagement, Criminal Justice Reform, Education, Economic Enfranchisement, and Black Mental Health & Wellness. BMI also highlights and supports the exceptional work of Black Women, collaborating in ways that help sustain and enrich GA communities overall.
“We are in a fight for our actual survival. What’s at stake is not only our democracy, but our humanity. That’s why we are deeply committed to capturing and reshaping the narrative about Black Men. We know how powerful we are, but more importantly we know how beautiful our society becomes when we’re all fully part of it.”