Georgia special election: one local penny for every $10 in national cash

Tom Price, Georgia's 6th congressional district’s longtime Republican US House member, stepped down earlier in 2017 to join President Donald Trump’s Cabinet. That sparked April 18’s special election to fill his seat, which has suddenly made the district the unlikely focus of national political interests willing to spend unprecedented amounts of money.

The barrage of TV ads, e-mail messages and robo-calls, often from organizations headquartered hundreds of miles away, have left some district residents feeling like pawns, not players, in their own congressional election — and some candidates as if they’ve lost control of the race. Through April 16, super PACs, nonprofits and other groups independent of any candidate’s campaign have spent $9 million on the Georgia 6th race. Just one of these outside groups spending money to influence the Georgia 6th election — Athens (GA)-based Better Georgia Inc. — is headquartered within state lines. When the candidates’ own campaign money is excluded, the Georgia 6th special election has attracted about one Georgia penny for every $10 in national cash.