


And there may be shaping up a phenomenon so rare in politics that it could turn what seems to be a very "red" state - Georgia, into a jump-ball contest.


But Democrats have managed to push Michelle Nunn, daughter of legendary former Democratic Georgia U.S. Sen. Sam Nunn, as their "anointed" nominee to compete with the ultimate Republican victor.

Nunn's advantage really isn't in name recognition, given that her respected father has been out of office for many years. Her "plus" is the ability to reunite what is left of the old Nunn political machine and raise dollars from around the rest of the nation based on her father's connections and those she created as the head of a major nonprofit organization. That might get Michelle Nunn within waving distance of the Republican machine, but not to the finish line as the winner.

But here is where things get very interesting. Georgia state Sen. Jason Carter, who is a Democrat, is a bright and attractive young man who belongs to the minority party in Georgia's Senate chamber. He's serving in the same chamber that his grandfather served in, before he became governor, and then president of the United States.

Jason Carter is Jimmy Carter's grandson, and if he should decide to run for governor, as there is reportedly a slim chance he might, Republicans need to watch out.


As the typical shenanigans that accompany any election year unravel, his re-election appears just slightly less certain. Deal faces two Republican primary opponents who he should handle with relative ease. But if Carter were to enter the race, his candidacy would receive national attention, and the money that would flow to him from "friends of Jimmy" and Democrat-leaning organizations would only amplify the amounts going to Michelle Nunn. Carter would present a genuine big-time Democratic opponent for Deal.

Beating an incumbent governor in Georgia is hard to do, and Carter could easily fall short in his bid, as did his grandfather in his first run for the state's top office. But he would lose only what his grandfather did: a few years in a legislature on his way to the governor's mansion and beyond.


Without Carter in the race, a Nunn victory seems a much bigger longshot. But if a "Carter-Nunn" ticket develops and the two can extricate themselves from a very unpopular Barack Obama in Georgia, anything might happen.
