Kemp drops out of consideration for Georgia Senate seat

Senator Jon Ossoff (D-GA) is up for re-election and Republicans really wanted a big name to run against him to get that seat back on the Republican side of the aisle.

By far, the best hope the party had was Governor Brian Kemp, who had the backing of Trump if he would run, but Kemp just decided that running for the Senate was not in his best interests.

The Olive Branch

Over much of the last eight years, Donald Trump and Governor Brian Kemp have not exactly been friends.

The source of the discontent was Kemp refusing to cave to Trump’s insistence that he won Georgia in the 2020 election. Georgia, along with every other battleground state, was investigated by Republicans, and not a single committee found enough evidence that a state could have been turned. Not only that, but if Trump had won any of these states, just ask yourself why someone like Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH), who has backed Trump at every turn, never took this up.

I never thought these two would be friends again, but Kemp backed Trump for the presidency once Nikki Haley was out, and Trump, while trying to crush other Republicans who stood up for Haley, buried the hatchet with Kemp during his first Governor’s Association Meeting.

Trump stated, “I especially want to thank the chairman of the Republican Governors Association, Brian Kemp, who is fantastic.  (Applause.)  He was fantastic.  We won Georgia by a lot.  Where is Brian?  We won Georgia by a lot.  Where are you, Brian?  There you are.  And we did a great job together, and I appreciate it.  We won’t forget it.  Thank you, Brian.”

Running for the Senate

There are a few people who have already thrown their hat into the ring, but none of them have the profile of Kemp.

Ossoff stunned the country when he won his seat, but now that he is back up for election, and with Trump having won Georgia in 2024, hopes were high that the seat could be flipped.

Kemp was being courted by many big donors to run for the seat, and it appeared that it was all but guaranteed that he would take them up on their offer.

Then, this week, Kemp shattered everyone’s hopes.

Not Happening

Kemp broke our hearts by announcing that he would not be running for office on Monday.

He stated, "Over the last few weeks, I have had many conversations with friends, supporters, and leaders across the country who encouraged me to run for the U.S. Senate in 2026.

“I greatly appreciate their support and prayers for our family. After those discussions, I have decided that being on the ballot next year is not the right decision for me and my family.”

I wish I had the answer for our readers on this one, but I don’t. Georgia is no longer a red stronghold, so a pure MAGA candidate will not do the job here. Someone like Rep. Greene (D-GA) would be a disaster as a candidate, as we need a moderate candidate who leans more right than left to take this seat if we want to win it back. With the state of the party today, I don’t see Trump endorsing someone like that, and if he does not, that means MAGA does not vote, which means we lose, again. I hope I am wrong, but we will just have to wait to see who emerges from the primary race before making a prediction on this one.