GA-07: Cook Political Moves Race to Lean Republican
Atlanta suburbs: most of Gwinnett County
Lean Republican. Woodall has been on Capitol Hill for over two decades (including as a chief of staff before winning this House seat in 2010), but he's never faced a competitive general election. Now, his Gwinnett County district is shifting beneath his feet - it voted for President Trump by just 51 percent to 45 percent in 2016, down from Mitt Romey's 60 percent - and Woodall looks undefined and unprepared for a potential wave.
Woodall had just $528,000 on hand at the end of June, which doesn't buy a lot in the expensive Atlanta media market. He's raised less this cycle than Democrat Carolyn Bourdeaux, who won the July runoff with 52 percent. Bourdeaux, a public policy professor at Georgia State University and a former budget director for state Senate Democrats, isn't the most naturally charismatic challenger but is privately touting a campaign poll showing her leading the incumbent.
Democrats aren't convinced Stacey Abrams will with the governor's race, but contend she will overperform in diverse, high-income Atlanta suburbs like these. Meanwhile, some Republicans are now more concerned about Woodall than neighboring Rep. Karen Handel, who eked out a special election last June. Republicans may be forced to spend money here. This contest moves from Likely Republican to the Lean Republican column.
CAROLYN BORDEAUX
https://www.carolyn4congress.com
