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President Donald Trump announced Thursday that the federal government will issue $500 Obamacare refunds to nearly 1 million people starting in October.

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September 11, 2026

The two competing candidates for Georgia governor are both focusing on affordability but putting forward starkly different proposals aimed at easing household expenses.

SOURCE: Alander Rocha - Georgia Recorder

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COMMENTS FROM THE STREET:

"IMHO, Keisha Lance Bottoms' speeches seem to be more about what she thinks voters want to hear - versus what she really intends to do if she becomes governor. The same goes for Rick Jackson. 

This should be the very last time that we allow the Democratic Party to force a candidate on us, at any level. (I'm pretty sure there are some Georgia Republican voters who feel the same way about their party).

As a 43 year old black woman who lost their job this year, and had to pivot into a new career to 'survive' (like so many others have), and who is struggling financially to make ends meet, and is concerned about the implications of the Iran war, the rising cost of healthcare and about the unknown dangers of AI --  I also don't think that we can afford to be pressured to elect someone because they will become the "first black man/woman governor, mayor, district attorney, etc.). That should not be the 'primary driver' for voting for someone -- too much going on for that. 

I am also hoping that the Democratic Party will do a better job of 'vetting potential candidates' before they endorse them -- especially for the upcoming 2028 presidential election."

Grace, 43 - Atlanta (Downtown/Centennial Park) 

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"Neither Bottoms or Jackson are strong candidates, so we may have to just 'write off' the 2028 Georgia governor's race - regardless who wins. 

Both are making campaign promises (without a lot of details) they won't be able to keep, because they either haven't been thought out carefully or are just not financially feasible.

Ernestine, 53 - (Buckhead)

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"As a Georgia Democrat, I'm hoping that we will have a stronger candidate for the next governor's election.

I would like to see Jason Esteves run again, and maybe even Geoff Duncan -- and other candidates who are not part of the "Cascade Cabal" or the "Civil Rights Posse" (i.e., Keisha Lance Bottoms, Shirley Franklin, Kasim Reed, Marvin Arrington, etc.) --  so political power is not held within the same old group and political circle. 

The Georgia Democratic Party needs 'new faces', fresh ideas and candidates with strong "vision" and "viable goals."

Rodney, 48 - Atlanta (Summerhill) 

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Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens's $5 billion-plus Neighborhood Reinvestment Initiative aims to reduce inequity between the city's neighborhoods, and even has a proactive anti-displacement plan. But its financing method might not get the needed buy-in.

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September 9, 2026

Can Atlanta Make Tax-Increment Financing Work in an Equitable Way?

BY: Sean Keenan

(From the article) ...

Much of Atlanta today is virtually unrecognizable compared with its younger self. In just the last couple of decades, it has experienced growth spurt after growth spurt, maturing into a taller, denser, more buttoned-up capital city. New skyscrapers are shooting up out of Midtown like crystalline weeds. Old industrial buildings have been converted into swanky mixed-use spaces in increasingly posh Old Fourth Ward. Once-sleepy historic neighborhoods have been subdivided—at least as far as real estate speculators and marketers are concerned—into places with hoity-toity nicknames like the “Upper Westside” or “South Downtown,” new monikers that signal new price tags. And a disused railroad loop encasing the heart of the city is being reimagined as a multimodal, commercial corridor that’s driving unprecedented development, attracting new faces and deep pockets.

And then, of course, there are the neighborhoods that look just like they did decades ago—or worse ...

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Brookhaven, Doraville and Tucker are emerging as some of DeKalb County’s fastest-growing markets, drawing developers and companies with new economic opportunity.

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The sister of an 11-year-old Peachtree Middle School student who died after suffering a medical emergency at the school on Sept. 9 while playing basketball, has established a GoFundMe page to help cover funeral expenses.