Georgia voters today will get their say in a drawn-out race for governor, a 9th District congressional seat and a handful of other state and local races.
Republican candidates for Congress and governor were thrown into today's runoff after no one garnered more than 50 percent plus one of the vote during the July 20 primary.
On Monday, former Georgia secretary of state Karen Handel and former U.S. Rep. Nathan Deal, both in a close contest for their party's gubernatorial nomination, stormed the state for last-minute support. Handel campaigned with former Alaska governor and vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin. Deal criss-crossed the state from Gainesville to Albany.
On the trail, Palin called on voters to elect Handel as the state's first woman governor. Calling the race "epic," she asked a feisty crowd to prove the state is ready to "get rid of that good ol' boy network."
On Sunday, Deal brought out his own star power when former Arkansas governor and Fox Network show host Mike Huckabee joined him on the campaign trail.
Handel holds a narrow lead over Deal, according to the latest poll from Mason-Dixon Research and Polling, released Sunday. Handel has 47 percent of the vote to Deal's 42 percent. The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percent.
Whoever wins the race today will face former Gov. Roy Barnes, a Democrat who lost the office when Republicans rose to power in 2002.
Rep. Tom Graves was sworn in to fill what was left of Deal's House term on June 14 and is now running for the seat for the fourth time. He faces state Sen. Lee Hawkins, R-Gainesville.
The outcome of the race should stave off another contested election in the 9th District, which is among Georgia's most conservative, for another two years. There is no Democrat on the Nov. 2 ballot.
In local races, voters in Catoosa County will decide between incumbent District 2 County Commissioner Bobby Winters and challenger Stephanie Dickert.
In Whitfield County, two school board posts are on the ballot. Tony Stanley and Bill Worley are vying for an at-large post on the board, while Rodney Lock and Jessica Swinford are squaring off for the District 2 seat.
In Gordon County, voters will be asked to decide between Jewell Bunch and Becky Hood for the District 4 County Commission seat. Dewayne Bowen and Jerry Casey are facing each other in the contest for the County Board of Education's Post 7.
Also on the ballot today, voters will be asked to choose Republican nominees for state insurance commissioner, public service commissioner and attorney general. On the Democratic side, just one statewide race for secretary of state will be on the ballot.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.