Georgia Votes 2016: Your Guide to the Candidates

Georgians head to the polls Tuesday to vote in the 2016 presidential primary.

The Peach State is part of the historic SEC primary. Georgia, along with Alabama, Arkansas, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia, are all holding their primaries on the same day in an effort led by Secretary of State Brian Kemp to give the South a greater say in choosing both parties’ White House candidates.

Georgia has been the focus of both parties’ leading contenders in recent days. Republicans Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio made campaign stops in Atlanta on Saturday, while Democrat Hillary Clinton followed up her Friday visit to the city with a decisive victory in South Carolina’s primary.

Cruz held a rally at downtown Atlanta’s Liberty Plaza on Saturday morning, while Rubio appeared at Mount Paran Christian School in Kennesaw.

GOP presidential frontrunner Donald Trump is spending more than $886,000 in TVs ads that will air in Georgia and five other states next Tuesday.

The billionaire businessman is spending $170,000 on ads in the Atlanta market, and $200,000 in Georgia, reports Politico. He is also spending more than $160,000 in Alabama; $130,000 in Tennessee; $100,000 in Arkansas; and $80,000 in Virginia.

In Georgia, Trump is leading in many polls over U.S. Sens. Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz. Clinton has a sizable lead over Vermont U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders.

Patch will have live election results throughout the evening of March 1, 2016. Meanwhile, check out this handy, interactive guide to the leading Republican and Democratic candidates.

Patch is your leading source for local news and information regarding this year’s historic presidential election. Check out some of our previous coverage, and stay with your local Patch for the latest in political news throughout our communities.

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• Hillary Clinton In Atlanta on Friday
• Trump Hits Atlanta ... And the Lights Go Out
• Thousands of Students, Supporters ‘Feel the Bern’ in Atlanta
• Georgia Ranks High in Black Political Engagement
• Trump, Sanders Head South After Winning New Hampshire
• Democrat Big-Wigs Coming to Atlanta
• Monday is the Last Day to Register for Georgia’s Presidential Primary
• Jimmy Carter: I Prefer Trump Over Cruz
• Trump Won’t Give Up Georgia Without a Fight
• Absentee Voting For SEC Presidential Primary Begins in Georgia
• Donald Trump Opens Georgia Campaign Office
• Bernie Sanders Rally in Atlanta Monday
• Patch Poll: Should Georgia Provide Spanish-only Ballots?
• ‘Trump as Hitler’ Graffiti Spotted in Buckhead
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• Trump Remarks Get Him Disinvited From Conservative Forum in Atlanta
• Trump, GOP Candidates Heading to Buckhead