Keisha Lance Bottoms trails by just 3 points as 7% of Georgia voters remain undecided
TheGrio...
The former Atlanta mayor is calling for full Medicaid expansion as 7% of likely voters remain undecided in the latest survey.
With Georgia’s gubernatorial race entering its final stretch, Democrat Keisha Lance Bottoms is making Medicaid expansion a central part of her campaign message as a new poll shows just three percentage points separating her from Republican opponent Rick Jackson.
According to a Rasmussen Reports poll cited by FOX 5 Atlanta, Jackson leads Bottoms 48% to 45% among likely Georgia voters, while 7% remain undecided. The survey of 1,019 likely voters, conducted Monday through telephone and online interviews, has a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.
The numbers underscore how closely contested the race remains, with the share of undecided voters potentially significant as both campaigns work to reach Georgians ahead of the November election.
Bottoms, a former Atlanta mayor, made her Medicaid pitch during a weekend campaign stop in Cobb County. She criticized Georgia’s current Pathways to Coverage program, which provides Medicaid coverage to certain low-income adults who meet work or other qualifying-activity requirements.
“We have not taken advantage of any openings that we have to expand Medicaid in the state,” Bottoms said. “So whatever the rules are, we’ll work within those rules.”
Bottoms said her administration would begin with the goal of fully expanding Medicaid and then determine how to implement the policy under applicable federal requirements.
The health care debate comes as both candidates have made affordability a major component of their campaigns. Bottoms has repeatedly argued that expanding Medicaid would strengthen Georgia’s health care system, while Jackson has advocated for a more limited approach to expansion.
The latest polling also shows a notable divide among demographic groups. Jackson leads among men and older voters, while Bottoms holds an advantage among women and voters under 30. Bottoms also leads Jackson among Black voters, 77% to 18%, according to the Rasmussen survey.
With Jackson at 48%, Bottoms at 45% and 7% still undecided, the latest numbers provide a snapshot of a race in which the candidates remain separated by a relatively narrow margin heading into the final weeks of campaigning.