Georgia Senate runoff could become Kemp vs Trump proxy battle in June

The quest to find the one candidate that can beat Sen. Jon Ossoff, D-Ga., isn’t quite over yet, with a runoff between a political outsider and an experienced lawmaker teed up for next month. 

Rep. Mike Collins, R-Ga., and former college football coach Derek Dooley are headed to a runoff election on June 16 in a state of particular political consequence for either party hoping to keep or gain power in the Senate.

The contest comes after a bruising primary between Collins, Dooley, and Rep. Buddy Carter, R-Ga., and a battle that President Donald Trump has so far avoided. 

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His endorsement, as in other races, could make or break either Collins’ or Dooley’s chances moving forward.

Dooley has embraced the outsider moniker, arguing that he would side with Trump in ways that benefit Georgians. 

“As your Senator, I’ll never forget that you’re the boss and D.C. politicians need accountability,” Dooley said on X. “Term limits. Ban insider trading. End government shutdowns. I’ll fight to end politics as usual in Washington.”

Collins has heavily leaned into his MAGA bonafides in trying to court the president to back him in the race.

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“Georgia needs the right Republican to take on Jon Ossoff,” Collins said on X. “Someone who’s delivered, has the conservative record to prove it, and had President Trump’s back when it mattered most.”

But for Ossoff’s campaign, it doesn’t matter which opponent they face in November. 

“Regardless of which Trump puppet makes it out of this messy and brutal GOP primary, they will be bruised and terminally inseparable from the toxic president,” Ossoff campaign spokesperson Ellie Doughtery told Fox News Digital in a statement. “Meanwhile, the juggernaut Ossoff campaign will continue building insurmountable momentum to win decisively in November.”

While Trump has stayed out of the race, Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, who Republicans heavily lobbied to run for the Senate until he ultimately declined, has weighed in.

Kemp threw his support behind Dooley, a family friend that he believes can bring a shake-up to the GOP establishment, given his lack of political experience.

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“I want to win our Senate seat back,” Kemp said before Election Day. “We haven’t done so well in U.S. Senate races here in the state of Georgia in the last several cycles, and we have one more opportunity to try to get one of our Senate seats back. And we got to have the right person to do that.”

The runoff could turn into another political battle between Kemp and Trump, who have sparred since the 2020 election. And Dooley and Collins would act as surrogates in the back and forth should the president decide to get involved. 

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Meanwhile, Democrats are confident that Ossoff will hold on to his seat despite being the only Senate Democratic incumbent running for re-election in a state Trump won in 2024. But the infighting among Republicans and Ossoff’s battle-tested track record have encouraged Democrats that they can win in November.

Sen. Raphael Warnock, D-Ga., who, like Ossoff, beat an incumbent and again won against a Trump-backed opponent in 2023, had some advice for Republicans hours before polls closed. 

“I want to offer a word of encouragement,” Warnock told Fox News Digital of the GOP’s infighting. “They should keep that up.”