What you need to know: Georgia special election
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}What you need to know: Georgia 6th
All eyes are on Georgia's 6th District Tuesday as Democrats look for an upset in a historically Republican seat -- in an effort to make an anti-Trump statement, and one of the first pushes to reclaim the House majority in 2018.
The special election for the seat in Georgia’s 6th was vacated when President Trump named then-Rep. Tom Price as his Health and Human Services secretary. The race is drawing significant attention across the nation -- the #Flipthe6th hashtag is even trending on social media.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Here’s what you need to know:
Candidate Field:
There are 18 candidates vying for Price’s vacant seat.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}? 11 Republicans—There are several strong GOP candidates like former Georgia Secretary of State Karen Handel, former Johns Creek city councilman Bob Gray, and former state senators Judson Hill and Dan Moody, among others. Handel seems to be the favorite among GOP voters with Moody trailing ever-so-slightly behind, after receiving an endorsement from Sen. David Perdue.
? 5 Democrats—For the Democrats, it seems there is only one likely candidate, and that’s 30-year-old Jon Ossoff, a former congressional staffer who has drawn a buzz to his millennial candidacy, and has a strong backing from Rep. John Lewis, D-Ga.
? 2 Independents
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Jungle Primary:
? A primary election of this kind is also known as a “jungle primary,” meaning that all candidates run in the same primary, regardless of their political party or affiliation.
? The winner must get more than 50 percent of the vote.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}? Georgia law states that if no one receives a majority of the vote in the April 18 all-party primary, the top two finishers, regardless of their party, will advance to a June 20 runoff.
Georgia 6th History:
? The district is historically Republican – Price never won less than 60 percent of the vote in his seven general election victories.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}? The highly sought-after seat was once held by former House Speaker Newt Gingrich.
? Mitt Romney carried the district by 23 points in 2012, but Trump only held it by a point and a half in 2016.
? The last Democrat to represent the 6th District was John J. Flynt Jr., who held the seat from 1965-1979.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}? According to the Census Bureau, the 6th District is almost 70 percent white, and wealthy, with a median household income of $83,800.
Fundraising:
? The race in the 6th District has drawn more cash from across the nation than usual.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}? Ossoff’s campaign has attracted its share of star-power donors including Chelsea Handler, singer-songwriter Judy Collins, actor Connie Britton of “Nashville” and actor John Leguizamo.
? As of March 29, Ossoff had raised $8.3 million and spent $6.1 million—more than double the highest amount spent by Price in any of his elections there.
? 95 percent of Ossoff’s donors came from outside Georgia, with reports of more than $500,000 from California, $400,000 from New York, and more than $100,000 from Massachusetts.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}? Samuel L. Jackson came out in support of the Democrats with a radio ad. Jackson's ad doesn't name Ossoff, but it is aimed to send a message to Trump: “Remember what happened the last time people stayed home: we got stuck with Trump,” he says.
? National Republican groups have dumped almost $4 million into the race to try to defeat Ossoff.
Fox News' Bryan Murphy and Amy Leedecke contributed to this report.