One State Senate election in Georgia has gotten national buzz.
That is State Senate District 48, which encompasses north Gwinnett, south Forsyth, and northeast Fulton counties.
The race is between Republican Incumbent Shawn Still, who has been embroiled in controversy surrounding his indictment in the Georgia fake elector case, and Democrat challenger Ashwin Ramaswami.
A notable thing about Ramaswami? He is one of only two Gen Z candidates in northeast Georgia running for state congress at just 25-years-old.
“Voters are actually really excited, because they realize that folks who are currently in office are not focusing on the issues that matter to us,” Ramaswami said. “One is never too young to do the right thing.”
Some of the issues Ramaswami is focused on is ensuring reproductive healthcare is available, school safety, and investing back into infrastructure.
Still could not be reached for comment by AccessWDUN, but his website says his top issues are tax cuts, election integrity, school choice, and eliminating squatter’s rights.
How they plan to implement these policies is entirely different, however.
Still’s school choice plan was his co-authored legislation that gave parents “the decision to send their children to a better school” and provided a $6,500 voucher for parents in “failing school districts so they can move their children to a private school or homeschool program.”
Ramaswami pushed back against this notion, first mentioning that investing into infrastructure could look like paying teachers more. He added onto that, saying that bill by Still did not go to any of the public schools in their district.
“This bill does not improve education for any of the residents in our district, because the schools in our district do not meet the threshold to actually qualify,” Ramaswami said. “Overall, we need to make sure that public money goes to public schools.”
Another contentious issue has been attacks that Still has reportedly made against Ramaswami.
On Oct. 22, Ramasawmi held a press conference to speak on Still’s attacks toward him through mailers.
“It said ‘public notice … beware of Ashwin’ and it … literally darkened my skin and asked people to call the cops when they see me,” Ramaswami told AccessWDUN.
Ramaswami provided a link to some of the mailers.
One that was paid for by Peach State Values — a political action committee that supports Senate Republicans — read “Ashwin Ramaswami wants your children’s private information … If you or your teenager is approached inappropriately by creepy Ashwin Ramaswami, call the Fulton County Sheriff’s Office at: (404) 612-5101.”
Still legally can not coordinate with the PAC.
Still, Ramswami said that he had to speak out about the attacks.
“I couldn’t stay silent, because ultimately it ended up leading to death threats,” Ramaswami said. “The reason why he’s attacking me this way is because there’s nothing else to attack me on.”
Still’s website claims he has sponsored or co-sponsored 75 of the 211 pieces of legislation that originated in the state senate over the last two years.
But Ramaswami said that the legislation Still supports does not benefit the constituents in their district.
“Shawn’s vision is one of division, one of election denialism, one of extremism, and one of racism,” Ramaswami said. “It’s absolutely not what our district needs.”
Still won the 2022 elections for the district by over 13 percentage points. But Ramaswami said that Senator Raphael Warnock (D-GA) won their region by one point in the 2022 runoff against Herschel Walker, potentially showcasing a demographic and ideological shift.
The counties in their district are Fulton, Gwinnett, and Forsyth. President Joe Biden carried Fulton and Gwinnett by 46 and 18 percentage points in 2020, respectively. Former President Donald Trump carried Forsyth by 33 points.
“We have a very diverse community here, people realizing that we need people who are going to be strong advocates for what matters for the community,” Ramaswami said.
Ramaswami’s closing statement to voters is to make sure your voice is heard.
“Make sure you come out and vote, because your voice is your vote and your vote is your voice,” Ramaswami said. “And this election is not about me, or even about this district. It’s about all the people who we're empowering and bringing to the table with this candidacy.”
