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Georgians are currently voting in rare off-year elections for two seats on the Public Service Commission (PSC), the only statewide elections on the ballot this year. More Democrats are expected to turn out to vote as Democratic strongholds like Atlanta elect a mayor and city council members. In June about twice as much Democrats, like Republicans, came to the party primaries.
Republicans see the risk of losing seats they've held for two decades, opening the door to further losses. Both parties are looking forward to next year, when governor and a U.S. Senate seat are on the ballot, and view the PSC race as something of a front-runner. All this makes Republicans somewhat nervous.
Recently, some of Georgia's top Republicans gathered in Forsyth County, about 40 minutes from Atlanta, in a show of party unity and patriotism. Local and state officials stood on dais behind the podium while longtime Civil Service Commissioner Bubba McDonald led the small crowd in a rendition of “God Bless the USA.”
McDonald and his colleagues on the commission responsible for regulating Georgia Power, Georgia's largest electric utility, are Republicans. Standing behind a sign that read “Don't judge the Georgia light,” the evening's speakers encouraged the crowd to keep up the good work.
“We are all united in one goal – to make it clear that Georgia is closed to the Democratic Party,” said state party chairman Josh McKoon.
By focusing on broader party politics, Republicans who have rallied their base in Forsyth County have also shed light on the PSC's role in determining energy costs and sources in Georgia – critical positions that traditionally operate in relative obscurity.
“You hear everyone talk about how important it is that our state continues to be the number one state for doing business, raising a family and getting a job,” McKoon said. “The foundation of this is reliable energy.”
For incumbent Republican commissioners, reliable energy means fossil fuels. Last year they greenlit new gas turbines, and earlier this year they voted to approve Georgia Power's plan to keep coal plants open past previously approved retirement dates to meet growing demand that comes largely from data centers.
“If these two Democrats are elected, they will go to war with our fossil plants, and we have a lot of them,” Commissioner Tim Echols told the rally. “These fossil plants are absolutely essential to our reliability, and we cannot allow anyone to take over the Public Utilities Commission and shut down these plants.”
Echols has been an advocate for solar, nuclear and other alternative energy sources since joining the commission in 2010, but sees natural gas in particular as an important part of the state's overall energy mix.
Fellow commissioner Fitz Johnson issued equally dire warnings about the potential consequences of Democrats joining the commission.
“We won't let their California become our Georgia,” Johnson said, pointing to significant rate hikes in states like California and New York.
But Johnson and Echols voted to raise rates in Georgia as well. Georgia Power's bills have increased six times over the past three years: three times as part of overall rate increases, twice to pay for new nuclear reactors at the Vogtle plant and once to cover high natural gas prices. Earlier this year, the commission voted unanimously to freeze base electricity rates for the next three years, although bills will still be adjusted next year for fuel prices and hurricane cleanup costs, which could mean further increases.
The state Democratic Party is largely focused on raising the stakes in its quest to unseat Echols and Johnson.
“These two Republicans running now have not once said 'No' – not once – to a request for a rate increase,” said state party chairman Charlie Bailey. “We believe that this, frankly, is not even something partisan. That is, these people should not hold positions.”
Both Democratic candidates see expanding renewable energy and exploring alternatives such as better managing energy demand, installing solar panels on rooftops and public spaces, and working with neighboring utilities as key to meeting growing demand and curbing skyrocketing costs.
These options, according to Democratic candidate Peter Hubbard, are “woefully underrepresented in the current planning process.”
“What's filling that gap is gas-fired capacity, expansion of coal plants and generally things that are less affordable and less reliable,” he said.
Democrat Alicia Johnson advocates such solutions as affordable and reliable, and as protection against weather disasters caused by climate change such as last year's Hurricane Helen, which destroyed much of Georgia's power grid and left some areas without power for weeks.
“We need to invest in a smarter, more resilient energy grid that can withstand the extreme weather conditions Georgia faces while also expanding access to clean energy,” she said. “I believe we could promote the use of microgrids and energy storage in vulnerable and rural communities to protect against outages.”
To spread those messages and try to capitalize on a calendar quirk that could boost their party's turnout, Democrats are also investing in these races in a way they haven't done before.
“The state party has never spent any money on the PSC race. Period,” Bailey said.
This year they are running phone banks, sending out thousands of mailers and knocking on doors. The Democratic National Committee also took part in raising funds and sending Vice Chairwoman Jane Kleeb to campaign in Georgia.
While the political stakes of the PSC election have eclipsed the climate stakes, the results are no less important for the future of Georgia and perhaps the entire country. For Bailey, the fight for these little-known seats is a sign that Georgia is still in the battlefield. State narrowly voted for Biden in 2020 and for President Trump last year 50.7 percent.
“The recent elections are further evidence that this is a battleground,” he said. “The battlefield, by its very definition, can be won or lost.”
And both sides decided that they were striving to win – this year and next.
