By Salma El-Sakka
Former President Barack Obama headlined a campaign rally in suburban Atlanta on Wednesday, urging voters to support Democratic candidates in the final week of the 2026 midterm elections.
Rally draws thousands in Clayton County
Between 3,500 and 4,000 attendees filled the Discovery Center in Clayton County, just south of Atlanta, for the late-season event. Obama appeared alongside U.S. Senator Jon Ossoff, former Atlanta mayor and gubernatorial candidate Keisha Lance Bottoms, and other down-ballot Democrats as part of his cross-country tour.
Sharp criticism of Trump and Republicans
Obama delivered pointed attacks on former President Donald Trump and the Republican Party, calling them “not serious people” and saying Americans are paying the price for their lack of seriousness. He mocked Trump’s reaction to a previous joke comparing White House renovations to a Cheesecake Factory, noting the White House mobilized a government response. Obama also highlighted Trump’s personal financial gains while in office, accusing him of unprecedented corruption.
Ossoff and Bottoms echo anti-corruption message
Senator Ossoff accused Trump of leading “the most corrupt administration of all time” and pledged that Democrats would pursue impeachment if they win control of Congress. The crowd responded with chants of “Lock him up!” Bottoms contrasted her campaign with Republican opponent Rick Jackson, a billionaire healthcare executive, labeling both as “two out-of-touch billionaires who want to keep getting rich on the backs of taxpayers.” She invoked the legacies of civil rights icons John Lewis and Coretta Scott King, framing her candidacy as a movement transcending politics.
Polling and political stakes
Ossoff holds an eight- to 10-point lead over Republican Representative Mike Collins, while Bottoms remains statistically tied with Jackson. A Bottoms victory would break Georgia’s Republican trifecta — control of both legislative chambers and the governor’s office — which has held since 2004. Senator Raphael Warnock warned of “spiritual wickedness in high places,” citing deep cuts to Medicaid and SNAP nutrition programs for children.
Trump counters with own rally blitz
Meanwhile, Trump campaigned in Ohio on the same day and has held near-daily events in the final stretch, including two recent appearances in Georgia districts considered safe for Republicans.
