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Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger officially launched his long-expected campaign for governor Wednesday with a video announcement touting his conservative bona fides.
“I’m a conservative Republican, and I’m prepared to make the tough decisions,” he said. “I follow the law and the Constitution, and I’ll always do the right thing for Georgia, no matter what.”
Raffensperger became a household name after the 2020 election when President Donald Trump called on him to “find 11,780 votes” and help overturn his loss in the state.
Raffensperger refused, and elements of the GOP have been hostile to him ever since – delegates at this year’s state GOP convention passed a resolution barring him from running as a Republican, though they acknowledge they do not actually have the power to do so.
The only mention of the president in Raffensperger’s announcement was a pledge to work with Trump and Congress “to bring jobs back to Georgia, deport criminal aliens, and restore law and order in communities across the state.”
If Raffensperger’s popularity took a hit among Republicans after 2020, it wasn’t enough to stop him from winning re-election in 2022 by comfortable margins against a Trump-backed opponent in the primary and a potent Democratic challenger in the general.
He will face stiff competition again next year as a slew of candidates from both parties seek to replace Republican Gov. Brian Kemp, who is not running again because of term limits.
GOP voters in May’s primary election will select between Raffensperger and other big names including Lt. Gov. Burt Jones and Attorney General Chris Carr.
In a statement on social media, Jones touted his Trump endorsement.
“Chris Carr and Brad Raffensperger have one thing in common: They are both Never Trumpers,” he said. “There is only one candidate in this race that’s always supported and has the full and complete endorsement of @realDonaldTrump.”
Carr spokesperson Julia Mazzone called Carr the most electable candidate.
“We welcome anyone to this race, but the reality is Chris Carr is the only candidate who can win both the primary and the general election,” she said. “Chris Carr is also the only candidate who understands the challenges real Georgians face in making ends meet and building a better future.”
The winner of the Republican primary will go on to face the Democratic candidate next November. The names on the Democratic primary ballot are set to include Atlanta state Sen. Jason Esteves, former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, former DeKalb County CEO Michael Thurmond and former Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan.
Democrats are hoping the GOP candidates’ connections to Trump will damage their nominee’s prospects in a general election.
“As he wades into the governor’s race, Brad Raffensperger will have to pay the price of admission to any 2026 GOP primary: fully embracing Donald Trump and his toxic agenda of sky-high costs, shuttered hospitals, health care cuts, and economic chaos,” said Democratic Party of Georgia Chair Charlie Bailey in a statement. “We’ll see if Raffensperger can successfully out-MAGA Burt Jones and Chris Carr to win this messy, bruising primary – good luck!”
This story available through a news partnership with Capitol Beat, an initiative of the Georgia Press Educational Foundation.
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