Peach Tree Times

Federal data shows the Atlanta area has the country's second highest local metropolitan inflation reading. As the national Consumer Price Index climbed an average of 8.3% over the past year, that of Atlanta climbed a whopping 11.7% during the same time period

With high inflation remaining a key issue among constituents, strategists worry this could threaten Sen. Raphael Warnock's (D-GA) hopes of holding onto his Senate seat in the upcoming November election.

"Democratic strategists have worried since the spring that pockets of high inflation, particularly in the West and the South, could complicate their efforts to hold the Senate," Axios wrote in a recent tweet.

This comes as Atlanta saw inflation rise 11.7% from Aug. 2021 to Aug. 2022— the second highest rate out of all other major metropolitans, behind that of Phoenix, Axios recently reported. 

On Sept. 13, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released the Consumer Price Index (CPI) data for the 12 months ending August 2022. The data showed an 8.3% all items annual increase, which represents a 0.1% rise from last month, on a seasonally adjusted basis. Some of the largest contributors were increases in the indexes for shelter, food, and medical care.

Axios noted back in February that since the onset of the pandemic, high prices have been hitting worse in battleground states, and some of the most politically sensitive voters are the ones that have been feeling price hikes the sharpest. 

"During an already volatile midterm year for Democrats, inflation concerns have prompted the party to focus its messaging on lowering costs and cutting taxes," the article states.

According to the report, the metro Atlanta area is home to roughly 6 in 10 Georgia voters. Incumbent Warnock is up against Republican Herschel Walker in the U.S. Senate race this November.

FiveThirtyEight's senate election forecast describes the race as a "toss-up". As of Sept. 14, Warnock's chances of winning the seat are at 53%, while Walker's are 47%.