A week ago, President Donald Trump made a highly publicized endorsement in the Republican U.S. Senate runoff in Texas. However, his potential involvement in the upcoming Georgia Republican primary runoff on June 16th remains unclear.
According to most recent reports, Trump-endorsed state Attorney General Ken Paxton is expected to defeat four-term Senator John Cornyn in Texas. But will the president take a similar step in Georgia?
Sources in Georgia and close to the White House indicate that such an endorsement by President Trump is highly unlikely. “Trump and Georgia Republicans of all stripes want to defeat Ossoff,” veteran Georgia GOP consultant and publisher Phil Kent stated. “The president will go with whichever Republican wins the runoff to achieve this goal. He’s being very strategic in this race.”
The Republican primary for the nomination to oppose Democrat Senator Jon Ossoff features Rep. Mike Collins, who finished first in the primary with 40.5%, and former University of Tennessee football coach Derek Dooley, who finished second with 30.2%. Rep. Buddy Carter, who finished third with 25% and has yet to endorse either candidate, remains uncommitted.
Both Collins and Dooley are strong conservatives who support President Trump’s agenda. During the primary, Dooley admitted he was so disgusted with politics that he did not vote for 20 years and did not vote for Trump in either 2016 or 2020. However, the son of legendary University of Georgia football coach Vince Dooley stated he voted for Trump in 2024 and strongly supports the president’s agenda.
Support from popular Governor Brian Kemp was frequently cited as a key reason Dooley outpaced Carter in the initial primary. “Gov. Kemp’s statewide organization knows how to turn out votes,” former Representative John Linder, R-Ga., stated.
A newly completed Insider Advantage poll shows that Collins leads Dooley among likely runoff voters by 46% to 41%.
