Georgia's Next Race Will Be a Test for Democrats' 2020 Strategy

Georgia can't escape being the center of the political universe. After completing the most expensive House election in U.S. history, this state is turning to its upcoming 2018 gubernatorial election, particularly the Democratic primary. The Deep South, particularly Georgia, is critical for any aspiring Democratic presidential candidate, and the race may turn into a preseason of sorts for national Democrats looking to plant their flags in the region in anticipation of a 2020 presidential run.

So far the contest -- between the state's House minority leader, Stacey Abrams, and a state representative, Stacey Evans -- is the first competitive Democratic primary for governor or U.S. Senate in Georgia since 2006, a demographic lifetime ago in a state changing as quickly as Georgia is. Over the past few election cycles, Georgia Democrats have relied on a consistent (some would say "stale") formula of nominating a moderate white candidate in the hopes of attracting a few older rural and white South Georgia swing voters who remember Democrat Jimmy Carter as governor or president back in the 1970s. The party has mostly ignored its urban, majority-black base. This strategy hasn't worked.