If you want to understand what will happen this November, pay close attention to primary elections. From Idaho to Pennsylvania, the races happening now will set the stage for the midterm elections — and while those who vote in primary elections tend to be more politically engaged than most, the results tell us plenty about the temperature of voters.

On Tuesday night, we learned a lot about the state of the Republican Party. And no place was the lesson starker than in Georgia.

In key races — from the gubernatorial to secretary of state — election deniers swept the state’s GOP primary. It offered further proof that, whether you’re a Trump appointee or an elected official, voter suppression and election denialism are the only litmus tests for the GOP.

The Republican gubernatorial primary was especially notable. Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger was defeated by two election deniers — Lt. Gov. Burt Jones and billionaire healthcare executive Rick Jackson. Jones and Jackson are now headed to a runoff election.

If you’re a close reader of Democracy Docket, you know that the secretary of state only met half of the Republican Party’s requirements. Yes, he was a vote suppressor. But he was not an election denier.

While Raffensperger made it harder to vote in Georgia, and over the summer, he purged nearly 47,000 voters from the rolls, this was not enough to protect him. He became Trump’s enemy by refusing to do the impossible: “find” 11,780 nonexistent votes in 2020.

Yet, Jones and Jackson are even worse. Jones, who is Trump’s hand-picked choice for governor, attacked Raggensperger for refusing to overturn the 2020 election. Meanwhile, in an effort to delegitimize the 2020 election, Jackson joined the alternate slate of electors for Trump.

If either of these men wins the governor’s seat, Georgia’s elections will be threatened at every turn. They will listen to Trump’s demands. They will purge voters from the rolls and perhaps even “find” fictional votes for Trump.

It might be even worse if Republicans win the secretary of state race, they will have an enthusiastic partner in their efforts to subvert election outcomes. Trump ally Vernon Jones and state Rep. Tim Fleming are also headed to a runoff election.

Vernon Jones has called the 2020 election “stolen,” and Fleming claimed there were "irregularities." While Raffensperger guarded the 2020 election from being overturned, we cannot expect the same from either of these candidates should they win.

We also can’t expect Vernon Jones or Fleming to take the same view as Raffensperger on the probe into Fulton County’s 2020 election results. As secretary of state, Raffensperger has repeatedly defended the sanctity of Georgia’s elections against the Department of Justice’s probe. I expect the DOJ will have an enthusiastic partner in either Vernon Jones or Fleming.

If Democrats falter in the general election, it could set the stage for disastrous elections in 2028. Georgia voters would be suppressed. Election results would be called into question by state officials. Trump would have henchmen at every level.

We cannot give him that power. The time to protect our elections is now.

What worried me this week

As expected, Georgia Republicans are already casting doubt on their elections. After a delay in reporting the Fulton County election results, Republicans jumped on the chance to cry election fraud.

Republican Rep. Clay Fuller posted on social media, “Fulton County is at it AGAIN! Nearly 10PM and ZERO percent reporting. What the hell is Brad Raffensperger doing? Time for the state to take over this clown show and end the madness once and for all.”

The delay was caused by a shutdown at a polling location while police investigated a suspicious person in the area, but Republicans aren’t interested in the truth.

This is just a preview of things to come. If Republicans are claiming fraud during a primary, imagine what they will do during a general election. I am worried — and preparing to fight back now.

What I’m watching in the courts

What gave me hope this week

Tuesday wasn’t all bad news, though. Democrats turned out in droves for the Georgia primary. In fact, Democrats turned out in higher numbers than Republicans in key races. As Republican officials fight to suppress Democratic votes, Georgian voters showed up on Tuesday to prove what the GOP is up against. 

This is good news for the midterms. If Democrats keep showing up and keep turning out, we will send the Republican majority packing. This is the pro-democracy movement at work. Now, let’s keep that energy going.