Kemp backs Mike Collins in Georgia’s U.S. Senate race with election less than two months away

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp has endorsed Republican Congressman Mike Collins in Georgia’s high-stakes U.S. Senate race after backing Collins’ rival in the GOP primary.

“Mike Collins and I share a commitment to making Georgia an even better place to live, work, and raise a family,” Kemp said in a statement Monday. “Mike has delivered results as a businessman and commonsense leader in Washington, and that’s what we need in our next Senator. Jon Ossoff’s far-left agenda doesn’t represent Georgia values, and the future of our state and country demands a different direction.”

Kemp endorsed Republican gubernatorial candidate Rick Jackson shortly after Jackson won the nomination in June. Kemp had previously supported Jackson’s opponent, Lt. Gov. Burt Jones.

Collins, the son of former Congressman Mac Collins, is challenging Democratic U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff this November. Ossoff has held the seat since 2021.

Kemp, who is set to finish his second and final term in January, is one of Georgia’s most popular political figures, and a July Morning Consult ranking of governors’ approval ratings placed Kemp at No. 5.

Because of that popularity among Georgia Republicans and independents, party leaders pushed him to run against Ossoff, but Kemp declined and backed former Tennessee football coach Derek Dooley for the job and crisscrossed the state making the case for his preferred candidate. At the time, Kemp argued that Dooley was a political outsider who could stay on offense against Ossoff rather than waste time defending his past record.

Collins’ campaign has been dogged by scandals, including a House ethics investigation into allegations his office misused government funds to pay a no-show intern, antisemitic conspiracy theory videos produced by his son-in-law and racist posts from a former staffer.

Collins, who is also endorsed by President Donald Trump, celebrated Kemp’s endorsement in a statement.

“I’m honored to have Gov. Kemp’s endorsement and even more proud to call him a friend,” Collins said. “Gov. Kemp has never been afraid of a tough fight, and Georgia is stronger today because he’s been willing to take them on. I’m grateful to have him standing with me to take back Georgia’s Senate seat, stand up to the far-left agenda, and defeat Jon Ossoff this November.”

In a statement, Ossoff campaign spokesperson Valeria Rivadeneira-Crandell expressed confidence that the endorsement would not move the needle.

“There’s a reason Brian Kemp worked so hard to defeat bigot Mike Collins in the GOP primary and waited to endorse the congressman until less than two months from Election Day, and it’s that Collins, who’s only a congressman because his daddy was a congressman, is surrounded at work and at home by neo-Nazis and white nationalists,” she wrote.

Ossoff is the only Democratic senator up for re-election in a state won by President Donald Trump in 2024. With 50 days left until the Nov. 3 election, Ossoff holds a significant lead in the polls. Real Clear Politics polling average puts Ossoff 7.8% ahead of Collins, 50.8% to 43%.