Ahead of Biden-Trump debate, Georgia voters weigh 2024 decision

In Peachtree City, an idyllic suburb in the Republican stronghold of Fayette County, 100 miles of paved “multi-use” pathways – dominated by golf carts – wind between the city’s lakes and tall lush green trees.

Amid the picturesque landscape here, south-west of Atlanta, signs of a changing demographic hang from flyers in the local library. Brochures printed in dual languages offer everything from free English classes to “linguistically diverse caregivers”.

Buzzing by the library on a Monday afternoon in her golf cart was Alyona Clement, a 32-year-old from Kazakhstan who last voted for Trump in 2016.

“I’m not voting anymore,” she said.

She has been in Georgia since arriving to the US in 2005 but moved to Peachtree City with her husband and five children in 2020.

“All the lawsuits that Trump is going through, all these women accusing him of stuff, that’s what turned me off from him,” Ms Clement said, referring to Trump’s legal troubles.

In May, Donald Trump became the first US president convicted of a felony for business fraud charges in New York. He’s facing three other criminal cases, including election fraud charges in Georgia. His mugshot was taken in this state.

Ms Clement is also not considering President Biden, because of his age and “how crazy prices are”.

There are also voters like Alex Smith, a Fayette County transplant who voted for Joe Biden in 2020 but wasn’t living in Georgia at the time. He plans to vote for the president again.

“Biden’s age is an issue, but Trump is just as old,” Mr Smith said, with his three-month-old child strapped to his chest and another running around the Peachtree City playground.

Mr Smith said he likes Mr Biden’s policies and has benefited from the president’s student loan interest reduction program.

Voters like Ms Clement and Mr Smith will likely undermine the Republican hold on Fayette County, where Trump’s margin of victory decreased by nearly six points in the last election.

Democrats hope gains in areas like this will help to offset declining support for Mr Biden elsewhere in the state.

“Fayette will be the next county to flip [to Democrats],” Prof Bullock said.