Hello and thanks for joining us.

I'm Zach Merchant, anchor and political reporter at 11 Alive News here in Atlanta.

Welcome to the Atlanta Press Club.

Loudermilk Young debate series from the studios of Georgia Public Broadcasting.

The 2026 debate series was made possible by the grants to the Atlanta Press Club from the Arthur M Blank Family Foundation and the Robert Charles Loudermilk Senior Foundation.

This is the debate for Democratic candidates running for lieutenant governor of Georgia.

We have two journalists who will question the candidates.

Maya Prabhu is the editorial director of Peach Poll, a political news platform launching at the end of April.

Tyreke Nguyen is a morning news anchor at 40:01 NBC in Macon.

I'm going to kick off today's debate, asking each of the candidates to introduce themselves and share with viewers and voters why they should be the next lieutenant governor of Georgia.

Candidates will have 60s to introduce themselves.

We will go in.

For medical order, starting with Josh McLaurin.

Well, thank you so much, Zach, and thank you to the Atlanta Press Club.

And good evening, Georgia Democrats.

My name is Josh McLaurin and I'm running to be your next lieutenant governor.

I am a Georgia native, an attorney, and I've been honored to serve you in the state legislature for the last eight years.

For the first four years, I was in the state House after flipping a Republican district in North Fulton County in the 2018 Blue Wave.

And then I went to the state Senate, where I am one of the foremost fighters for Democrats in the state.

I've built a reputation for being outspoken and courageous at the state Capitol, and I think that's exactly what Georgia Democrats want and need.

This year, the world is full of terrors right now.

Donald Trump has started an illegal Iran war.

He has increased tariffs and taxes on small businesses and everyday Georgians.

And he has wreaked havoc in communities like Minneapolis, Minnesota, by deploying Ice and CBP.

But we have state Republicans who don't stand up and say something at a moment like this.

But part of being a fighter and really showing up means being in the fight with presence and showing up to every possible location that you can in order to fight for Georgia Democratic values.

And so that's what I'm going to be talking about tonight.

Nabilah Parkes you are next.

60s to you.

Hi, I'm Nabilah Parkes and I've represented Gwinnett County for two terms in the state Senate.

I'm a proud mom of three and the daughter of working class immigrants from Bangladesh.

When I was elected to the state Senate, I was the youngest woman elected.

I was also the first woman to give birth while serving in the state Senate, and also the first Muslim woman to get elected to the state Senate.

As a daughter of working class immigrants, I saw how hard my parents worked to achieve the American Dream, and I will make sure that I will continue to fight for Georgians every single day.

Now, Georgians want a Democrat that will speak truth to power, and that is what I will do as the next lieutenant governor.

It is important that we have Democrats who will speak up and be outspoken, and I will make sure that every day that we are working hard to hold Republicans accountable for their misdeeds at the Capitol.

Richard Wright you are next 60s for your opening statement.

Yes.

Good evening everyone.

My name is Richard Wright, and before I go any further, I want to thank the Press Club.

I want to thank everybody in this room for putting this on.

I really appreciate it.

And everybody at home watching.

Thank you.

Democrat, independent or Republican who is Richard Wright?

Richard Wright is a son.

My mom lives with me.

Or let her tell her I live with her.

I am a father.

I am a CPA.

I am a high school dropout, and I'm a concerned citizen.

And so what I want to address is the three issues.

I believe that we as Democrats need to talk about.

That is the affordability crisis, because my money is just like your money, and our money isn't going far enough.

I want to talk about civility because that's what we're going to have to bring to get things done at the dome.

And visionary leadership, because life is an exercise in tomorrow, not today.

And so how we how we manage the budget, how we manage our funds, what we do will be reflected years from now.

So I'm excited to let to let everyone know that they have a real fighter.

Richard Wright thank you all for those responses.

For the full set of debate rules, please visit Atlanta Press club.org.

We are now going to go to the panel starting with Tyreke Winn, who will ask a question for Richard Wright.

Once again, as a reminder, you have 60s for your response.

Thanks, Zach.

Mr.

Wright, you've positioned yourself as a non-career politician with financial expertise.

The Lieutenant governor's race role is deeply political and requires navigating legislature.

So can you tell us what specific experience do you have?

Building coalitions or passing policy, and how would you avoid being outmaneuvered by other seasoned lawmakers?

Yes.

Great question.

I worked at PwC as a tax accountant there, and that's what gave me the experience about win-win situations.

I can read the the Senate procedures and understand, you know, what the Senate Secretary does and what other lawmakers do.

But I believe that I'm going to have to build relationships.

And that's what I've done over over my career, owning my own CPA firm and getting people to allow me to do their taxes.

You have to build a relationship with the person so that they can give you all of their intimate information.

And so that's why I plan on doing in the Senate is building the relationships and not Partizan relationships, but relationships that are deep and meaningful and that get things done for the people.

And so that's what I've done in my career working with people.

And that's what I plan on doing in the Georgia Senate.

Thank you.

Mr.. Right now to Maya Prabhu for a question for Josh McLaurin.

Senator, Senator McLaurin, like you mentioned earlier, you spent eight years in the legislature, the past four in the Senate.

What is one moment where you saw the lieutenant governor's power used in a way you strongly disagreed with, and what would you have done differently?

Well, the power of the lieutenant governor is various.

You can go direct to the camera like we're doing now, and use the bully pulpit to message and shape public opinion.

And that's what I think being a fighter really means is being a good storyteller and messenger to advance democratic values in the state.

But the other thing is that the lieutenant governor exercises procedural authority in the Senate.

I'm an attorney.

I know the Senate rules.

You know, the kind of things that Mr.

Wright is talking about tonight.

I've already done.

I've built the relationships with Republicans.

I have learned the Senate rules and used procedures skillfully to kill bad legislation and stop it in its tracks.

But the current lieutenant governor has abused that power by using procedural rulings to deny Georgians votes on critical issues like expanding Medicaid.

Georgia Democrats have tried to get a Medicaid vote on the floor, but Republicans are so afraid of that vote because they know that 70% plus of Georgians are with us, that they have used procedural tricks and rulings to try to deny us the opportunity to even get that on the record so that Georgians know Republicans are not helping them.

I would do the opposite.

I would use that procedural authority to force votes on all of our biggest issues, so that there would be real accountability.

Thank you, Mr.

McLaurin.

We now go back to Tyreke.

It is your turn to ask a question of Nabilah Parkes.

Yes, miss Parkes you've been a strong advocate for working families and have pushed progressive policies like raising wages and expanding benefits.

And given Georgia's current political structure, what's one major proposal that you would be willing to scale back on or compromise to actually get something passed.

Double down on the policies that Georgians need today?

They're sending us to the Capitol to fight for them.

And that means fighting to expand Medicaid.

We're one of ten states that have yet to do so.

Over 500,000 people don't have access to health care because Republicans are too afraid to put a Medicaid bill on the floor.

When I'm the next lieutenant governor, I will work with rural Republicans and get to get that bill to the Senate floor.

In addition to that, when I was in the Senate, I introduced bills to lower the cost of living, including eliminating the sales tax on menstrual products, on diapers and strollers and car seats, and bringing back to school tax holiday.

And I will continue to work on these positions when I'm the next lieutenant governor to lower the cost of living for so many Georgians and working families.

Thank you all for those responses.

That concludes our first round.

The candidates will now ask a question to an opponent of their choice.

They will have 30s to ask the question, 60s to respond, and the person who asked that question will then get a 32nd rebuttal.

Richard Wright you may ask the first question for one of your opponents of your choosing.

Uh, I asked him, McLaurin, if Richard Wright is an employer and he hires someone and they make $15 an hour, what does that cost?

Richard Wright the employer per hour?

Uh, I stopped taking math classes in high school.

Fortunately, I started to focus on humanities in college.

So what I will say is that we can afford a living wage of at least $15 an hour.

That was a number that was in vogue back in 2017.

The real numbers should be higher.

As you know, the minimum wage is 515 in the state of Georgia.

It's actually lower than the federal minimum wage.

So you may have a more precise mathematical answer to me.

I assume there's some withholdings that are required.

And, you know, there's taxes and payroll and all kinds of complicated things that go into being a small business.

And you're the CPA, not me.

So I would welcome you to enlighten me on exactly how that works out.

Mr.. Right.

A 32nd rebuttal for you.

Yes, it's $16.50 because as a small business, you have to match FICA and Medicaid, and you also have to pay unemployment insurance.

And so I believe that the next the next lieutenant governor is going to have to have this down because helping small businesses is helping working families.

Nabilah Parkes we now go to you, it is your turn to ask a question of a candidate of your choice.

Senator McLaurin, I introduced a bill in the Senate to hold ICE accountable, where Ice would need a warrant signed by a judge before they went into our public schools, our hospitals, our domestic violence shelters and our libraries.

When I asked you to sign the bill, you refused.

Can you answer why?

I don't recall that happening?

I will say that in general, there has been some tension among you and your colleagues, which is why 17 Senate Democrats have endorsed me and none have endorsed you for this race.

I also have the endorsement of over 40 of our House colleagues, and I think part of it is who do you want to be, a collaborator who's going to work together at the Senate Democratic level?

If you're the lieutenant governor, you would have to work with Senate Democrats all the time.

But they have spoken with one voice and saying, you should not be the candidate in this race.

So if you want to try to air some kind of grievances within the caucus, we can talk about that.

But I'll just note that both of our bills were drafted by Senator Reverend Kim Jackson, who worked with her chief of staff, to make sure that the Senate caucus, as she was the whip, had a host of bills to respond to Ice.

And the moment we were in.

So we can really credit Kim Jackson for the leadership, the senator and both of us should be grateful that she drafted bills that we worked on and then were able to introduce.

Miss Parkes.

A 32nd rebuttal to you if you would like it.

I drafted my own bill, but I've seen a troubling pattern with you, Senator McLaurin, in the state Senate, you voted with Republicans on a bill to give corporations that, you know, like Monsanto, full immunity from people who get cancer, from being able to sue them for compensation.

I voted with Democrats with 12 people to vote no on that legislation.

It was very troubling that you voted for big corporations instead of helping cancer patients.

Also, my opponent Josh McLaurin was was in Fox News praising Maga fake elector Burt Jones, talking about how great he was.

We need Democrats with a spine that will stand up to Republicans instead of coddling them.

And that is why I'm running for lieutenant governor, because I will hold them accountable.

Josh McLaurin, it is now your turn to ask a question of your choice.

Sure.

Thank you.

Zach, my question is for Miss Parkes.

Um, you resigned on March 13th from the state Senate, and as a result, your constituents and district seven lacked representation for the entire duration of the legislative session after that, including the busiest day of the year sine die, the last day of legislative session, where we passed a $38.5 billion budget, and bills like House Bill 295, which I voted against, that your districts did not get a vote on.

That was a crackdown bill on cities trying to address homelessness.

What is your message to constituents who you left unrepresented for the end of session?

Sara McLaurin I made the determination to get into this race after I saw that crazy AI video from Senator Greg Dolezal blowing up Muslims and depicting us as terrorists, I made the determination to jump into this lieutenant governor's race because we didn't have a strong candidate running for this seat.

I've watched you run for a year, hoping you would put a real campaign together, but you haven't.

You've been running a state House campaign for lieutenant governor, and frankly, you don't have the horsepower to take down a Greg Dolezal or Blake Tillery in a general election.

So that is why I'm standing before you today, because I am putting together a real campaign to hold these Republicans accountable and flip this seat after 20 years.

Mr.

McLaurin 30s for a rebuttal.

That is not true.

Richard and I, Mr.

Wright, were in Glynn County on the southeast coast just on Thursday.

Yesterday we both went to CD ten in Oconee County to meet with Democrats.

We've been going to dozens of events in the six weeks since you resigned your seat.

And I think it's troubling that you think that a statewide campaign is sitting in a room and fundraising and then posting on Twitter and posting those tweets over to Instagram.

That's not a real campaign.

It's a shell of a campaign.

I don't think you actually want this job.

I think you don't really want to meet with voters or go pound the pavement and do real democracy.

I think you think that this is a game, and your consultants told you that you would be able to switch races and raise more money, and that's why you're here tonight.

And it's sad.

But trust the legislators, the 60 legislators who have endorsed me over her.

She has not a single state legislator legislator endorsement.

And it's because she's not here to lead.

All right.

We're going to continue to move on here.

A reminder you are watching the Democratic primary debate for lieutenant governor of Georgia.

We will now go back to the panel, who will ask questions to the candidate of their choice.

Until we run out of time.

Maya Prabhu, you have the first question.

Senator Parkes, as Senator McLaurin just hinted, you, um, you were running for another office before you had that issue with Senator Dolezal and decided to run for lieutenant governor.

Why the change from insurance Commissioner to lieutenant governor at what seemed like the last minute?

Sure.

Like I said before, we needed a strong candidate that was going to be able to defeat the Republicans in the general election.

I did not see that happening.

I did not see that Senator McLaurin had put together a campaign that would protect families that look like mine, or Richard Wright's.

We needed a strong candidate to get in this race, and I've been putting together a real campaign to take take on these Republicans head on so that we can have a Democratic lieutenant governor that can shape the agenda for the working class and lower the cost of living and protect our fundamental freedoms.

Like a woman's right to choose or voting rights and expand Medicaid in the state of Georgia.

Mr.

McLaurin.

Yeah, you were named in that response.

You can have a 32nd rebuttal.

Thank you so much, Zach.

Again, when Miss Parkes says she wants to run a real campaign, all she means is fundraising.

And I'm not sure how well that's going.

We'll find out in early May.

Democracy is more than raising money and spending it on digital ads, or spending it on mail.

Democracy means showing up in person.

It means meeting people like Mr.

Right.

And I have for over a year so that we can hear people's real concerns and amplify their stories at the state Capitol.

This is an extremely cynical campaign that Miss Parkes is running.

She's hoping that her image and her story will convince voters that she's equipped for this job, but she doesn't show up and fighters don't back down.

What do you mean by image and story?

We're going to because you both have been named here.

We're going to go a little bit out of order here, Miss Parkes, you can answer 15 seconds.

Mr.

McLaurin, you got a 15 second response and we're going to win for our next question.

But let's close the loop on this conversation.

I'm the daughter of working class immigrants.

My parents worked low wage jobs to low wage job to put food on the table.

I went to Gwinnett County Public Schools and I was raised on free and reduced lunches.

Look, I don't I wasn't born on third base like you were.

You went to Westminster where it cost $30,000 a year for you to go to high school.

So yes, I have a story that is Georgia story that is relatable.

And I know I can connect with voters and that is why I'm running, because I know I can flip the seat.

Mr.

McLaurin, 15 seconds.

Then we're going to move to the next question.

I think Miss Parkes story is inspiring.

I think that she has a role in politics.

This job is a specific job that requires the collaboration of dozens of state legislators, and it requires a sharpness and a procedural acuity that Miss Parkes ran away from.

She resigned her position.

So, as inspiring as her story is, she is the one who backs down from the fight.

And I'm not going to apologize for saying that.

Thank you all.

We now go to the next question from Tyreke Winn.

Yes this is for you Senator McLaurin.

So you've been one of the most outspoken critics of Republican leadership.

And President Donald Trump.

How do you balance that combative approach with the need to work with Republicans to get legislation passed?

I love this question, and I really appreciate you asking it.

I think this is something I've spent eight years in the state legislature learning how to do.

It's a paradox.

How do you hold Republicans accountable while also building lasting relationships with them?

You know, the Fox News article that Miss Parkes mentioned, I got called by a Fox reporter and they said, does Burt Jones let Democrats pass bills?

And the only quote I said was basically sure he'll let Democrats pass some bills sometimes.

Now they put their own headline on it.

But I think it's important that we don't burn the whole system down just to hold people accountable.

That's what people are tired of right now, is the vitriol of people basically saying, let's break the entire system.

Trump is breaking the system.

Some Democrats want to break the system, but what we really need is to rebuild politics from the ground up.

I give it to these guys, I go to the Senate floor and I make fun of them for essentially sucking up to their narcissist daddy.

I use that phrase on the Senate floor that y'all appeal to your narcissist daddy to call them out for being spineless, but they trust me because they know that I'm there to do the work and that I won't back down.

And that's why.

Because I have Republicans respect.

I've passed legislation.

I got the first million dollars for veterans, for PTSD in the state budget.

I regulated Carr booting, all because I could work with them and hold them accountable at the same time.

Maya, we now go back to you for the next question.

Mr.

Wright.

What is something that the two state senators on stage have supported that you think was a mistake?

Uh, I just think that with this conversation, I say this is that you kind of get a little bit of insight on why we haven't been in the majority is because we fight each other a lot.

Uh, there's some things that both of them have done that I disagree with.

Uh, Miss Parkes, obviously, she, she left the session early, but I would defend her against any and all Democrats and Republicans because I don't believe in disrespect.

I can disagree with her without disrespecting her.

Uh, in terms of Senator McLaurin, uh, this issue about Burt Jones is, is one that I can't stomach.

Burt Jones has been a lobbyist as lieutenant governor.

That's what he's done.

Uh, I'm a moderate Democrat, and I believe in working across the aisle, but still, we have to speak truth to power when it comes to our Republican friends.

Uh, and the current lieutenant governor.

So what I want to do is I want to run the lieutenant governor's office and the 180 roll is I want to have bipartisanship on all bills.

I'm going to speak with Speaker Burns Weekly about how do we move legislation forward, not for the D or the R, but for the people of Georgia.

Thank you, Mr.

Wright.

Both of y'all were named in that response.

I want to give Miss Parkes and Mr.

McLaurin a chance to respond in a 32nd rebuttal, if you would like Miss Parkes the first opportunity to you.

I'm fine.

Mr.

McLaurin.

Sure.

I mean, I respect Mr.

Wright's hustle.

He has been all over the state.

He's been campaigning longer than I have.

He does what we should be doing, which is getting out to the communities like Miss Parkes has failed to do to actually campaign.

But what I will say is this is a very specific building, and it's very difficult to operate in experience matters.

Having the relationships matters, knowing how to play politics is something that Democrats want to be better at.

We want to send fighters who know the game and can maneuver strategically to get things done.

And like I mentioned a minute ago, I was able to get the first statewide regulations of the predatory Carr building industry ever passed in Georgia, because I know how to work the building.

So I do think that experience is extremely important.

Thank you all.

We now go back to Tyreke for another question.

Yes, Miss Parkes is for you.

Can you tell us what's the toughest decision that you're prepared to make as lieutenant governor that could cost you politically but you believe is necessary for the state of Georgia.

I mean I'm going to make hard choices.

I mean, I'm going to I rise to the occasion.

So like, as I've been saying, like my priorities have been to make sure, for example, like we need to defend a woman's right to choose.

We need to repeal the six week abortion ban that has claimed the lives of so many women in this state.

We need to make sure that we're fighting for affordable housing, making sure that we, you know, cap Wall Street investors who are coming into our neighborhoods and jacking up the price of housing.

I'm a renter and rent is too high.

And we need to focus on lowering the cost of living for so many Georgians that are struggling to get by.

Maya, the next question to you.

This question is for everyone.

Um, unless something unexpected happens, you would be presiding over a majority Republican chamber.

How as a Democratic lieutenant governor, would you handle working with Republicans when it's also possible, as we heard in the previous debate, that they would strip all of your power away from you.

And since this question goes to everybody, we're going to work our way down the line, beginning with.

Mr.

Wright.

This is a great question.

I believe I'm the only person on this stage that will be able to maintain the power.

Uh, both my opponents are pretty partisan, and they don't have the respect of the Republican Party.

Me being a CPA, walking in there as a new, fresh face to begin building those relationships, to be able to maintain the power.

And so I hear a lot of rhetoric on, on the campaign trail about what we're going to do as lieutenant governor.

But right now, we're speaking from a place of we have a V8 car.

Well, if any, if either one of my opponents get the position, you're going to have a four cylinder car because the Republicans will walk in and strip the lieutenant governor of every power, not constitutionally nailed down.

I will be able to keep that power as a person who will will go out throughout the community and build respect and go into Republican districts like I've been doing the past 15, 16 months.

Now.

Miss Parkes.

Look as the next lieutenant governor of Georgia.

We will not yet have a majority in the state Senate as Democrats, but I will use the negotiating power of the lieutenant governor because we have control of the calendar.

What bills make it to the floor and what bills don't.

And so I'll definitely work with my colleagues on stopping bad bills and making sure good bills like lowering the cost of living on housing, on on limiting the sales tax on so many products that everyday Georgians use and expanding Medicaid bills that make it to the floor.

Now, also, I will say that as the next lieutenant governor, you know, you have the power of the bully pulpit.

And so I will definitely use that to make sure that, you know, we are moving legislation along that actually affects everyday Georgians.

And last thing I'll say is, look, I'll work with Republicans when it makes sense.

But if they are doing dumb stuff, I'm going to fight them.

Mr.

McLaurin, same question to you.

Sure.

Well, I think what both of my opponents are going to not be able to do if they were elected is use the power of persuasion with Republicans to who may or may not respect them in order to try to get compromises done.

After Miss Parkes resigned from the Senate the very next Monday, I gave a speech against criminalizing addiction on the Senate floor because there was a bill that would penalize people for simple possession of drugs.

I made my argument, my colleagues backed it up, and then something amazing happened.

The first time I'd seen this in eight years, Senate Republicans fixed their bill to solve that criminalization problem and to promote mental health instead.

That is the kind of thing that's possible when you do have the relationships and the respect and have that persuasive ability.

My fear with both of my opponents is that they would be trapped with a gavel and have no way to wield influence.

There's a three part vision I have for this seat messaging using the bully pulpit maneuvering procedural skill to be able to get favorable rulings to get our issues on the floor, and fundraising using the seat as a national lightning rod to make sure people keep investing in Georgia.

Democrats to flip both the state House and the state Senate.

And Miss Parkes.

A 32nd rebuttal to you.

If you would like one.

Senator McLaurin, I don't know what you meant about if Republicans will not respect Richard Wright in me, what is it about us that you think that they won't respect me and Richard, but they would respect you.?

This is not a time of the debate where the candidates get to pose questions to each other.

Yeah.

Mr.. Right.

You can go ahead.

Yes.

I think Senator McLaurin, the question that or or theory that I'm posing to him is that how can you do more without a vote than than what you did when you had one?

If you look at the Senate record, the Senate record is not strong, right?

The Republicans have ran roughshod over us over since since Mark Taylor was the lieutenant governor of Georgia.

And so the respect that he's talking about is not there.

When I get in there, the respect will be there.

As a financial expert, because we're going into some times where we're going to have to have financial experts because the Obamacare is gone.

And a lot of things that that we are doing, we're going to have to do more fiscally effective.

All right.

We're going to go now to Tyreke.

When we have time now for a question to just one candidate.

Tyreke the floor is yours.

Yeah.

So let's talk about middle Georgia communities like Macon and Warner Robins and surrounding areas often feel overlooked compared to Metro Atlanta.

So tell us what specific policies would you implement to ensure economic investment reaches Middle Georgia, not just the urban centers?

I want to get that to Mr.

McLaurin.

Sure.

I'm glad you asked that question as well.

Rural Georgia needs some love.

We are not just metro Atlanta candidates.

We have to run for the whole state, which is why I've been traveling the whole state for 12 months.

And what I've learned is that rural investment usually happens according to a one note song that Brian Kemp keeps playing, which is attract the big corporation, give billions in tax credits or tax breaks, and then that corporation plops in.

They do a ribbon cutting.

And where the jobs are they hiring local union work?

Are they accounting for local governments who need help with the water and the power grid, or affordable housing to sustain that type of development?

It's top down development that doesn't work.

What rural Georgia really needs is bottom up development, and that means a rural task force that we can implement.

When Democrats flip the state to go around to rural communities and small towns and say, what do you need?

What do you need for that storefront downtown to be revitalized, to get a hotel in, to get a little tourism dollars?

Tell us how we can best support you.

And that is the way that we can lead for the entire state.

All right.

Thank you.

All that is all the time we have for questions.

The candidates will now have 60s for a closing statement.

Josh McLaurin, we begin with you.

Thank you so much, Zach.

Thank you to the Atlanta Press Club.

I regret that this got a little heated tonight, but I just think it's time for Democrats to get serious.

You know, Mr.

Wright earlier said this is why Democrats don't win.

I disagree.

The reason Democrats don't win is because we have not been skilled at messaging, and we have not been serious about picking candidates who have a steady hand, who are ready to lead, who have demonstrated chops.

And I am so proud to be building a consensus campaign.

We've got the support of the Georgia AfL-CIO, meaning working people, in a year where we care about affordability.

I have the endorsement of Georgia Equality because I've stood up to fight back against bullying legislation against the most vulnerable groups in our society.

And I have the support of former Lieutenant Governor Mark Taylor, who knows, I can operate in a tough environment with Republicans and the endorsement of Young Democrats of Georgia who think that I can address climate change and other generational challenges that Democrats need to address to win and to keep governing well in Georgia.

So, folks, I'm so honored that you're watching the debate tonight.

It's time to get serious.

It's time to put real experience in a steady hand in the nomination position, so that we can flip the state for Democrats and have a new era in Georgia.

Richard Wright it is now time for your closing statement.

Yes.

I want to thank everyone here for doing this to to my opponents here.

Thank you.

Uh, my name is Richard Wright and candidate for Lieutenant governor.

Uh, I have got all the endorsements that I wanted to get, and it kind of hurt me a little bit, but I was in Coweta County and a woman came up, came up to me and gave me $20.

And you could tell that that's all the money that she had was $20.

She came up and gave it to me.

And being sad, looking at that, a voice asked me and said, Richard, are you doing this for endorsements or are you doing it for the people?

And so I got up and continue doing it for the people.

And so what I've been doing for the last 16 months is going to listen to people.

I've been going to the African American caucus, not just once, not sending a representative there, but I go there personally.

I've been going to the Latino caucus myself personally.

I've been going to the Rural area caucus.

That's how I know how to solve your problems is because I go and I listen and I'm there, and so you can depend on me fighting hard with the with the financial expertise to lead this state forward in a position of importance.

Richard Wright for lieutenant Governor, thank you.

Nabilah Parkes we go to you for the final closing statement.

Thank you for your attention this evening.

We're in a critical moment in Georgia and in this nation this year.

Democrats have to win elections.

We see what Maga Republicans and Donald Trump are trying to do.

They're trying to take our a woman's right to choose away.

They're trying to make our.

Terrorize our communities with Ice agents or masks are coming into our homes, in our streets, and they're trying to take away our rights.

That's why I got into this campaign for lieutenant governor.

I was twice elected to the toughest state Senate seat held by a Democrat.

My story is Georgia's story, and that's why I know I can connect with voters and the proud daughter of immigrants.

I went to Georgia, Gwinnett County Public Schools.

I attended Georgia State University and worked my way through college and with the hope, with the help of the Hope scholarship, became the first person in my family to graduate from college.

My life experiences have informed my work, and that's why I'll fight harder than anyone to protect our fundamental freedoms, to protect our right to choose our right to vote and expand Medicaid in the state of Georgia.

I'm Nabilah Parkes, and if you want a fighter to fight for you and fight for regular Georgians as the next lieutenant governor, I'm your candidate.

And I hope that I'm humbly asking you for your vote.

I won't let you down.

Thank you.

Thank you all.

A reminder to all those watching.

Early voting starts Monday, April 27th and runs through May 15.

Election day is Tuesday, May 19.

We thank all of the candidates and our panel of journalists and all of you for watching.

We would also like to thank the Atlanta Press Club and Georgia Public Broadcasting for arranging today's debate.

I'm Zach Merchant.

Thanks for joining us for the Atlanta Press Club.

Loudermilk-Young Debate Series.