Un-Kemp’d: Georgia’s GOP Governor to Forgo Senate Bid
Georgia Republican Gov. Brian Kemp announced Monday that he will not run for Senate in 2026, dashing hopes that he would help flip Democrat Sen.... Read More The post Un-Kemp’d: Georgia’s GOP Governor to Forgo Senate Bid appeared first on The Daily Signal.
Dante Ulanday - News Moderator 
Georgia Republican Gov. Brian Kemp announced Monday that he will not run for Senate in 2026, dashing hopes that he would help flip Democrat Sen. Jon Ossoff’s seat from a state that Donald Trump won in 2024.
“I have decided that being on the ballot next year is not the right decision for me and my family,” said Kemp in a post to X.
“I spoke with President Trump and Senate leadership earlier today and expressed my commitment to work alongside them to ensure we have a strong Republican nominee who can win next November,” he said.
Kemp, who has been governor of the Peach State since 2019, was often discussed as Republicans’ top candidate to win a Senate seat in Georgia, with polls showing him leading Ossoff in a hypothetical matchup.
Speculation grew after Kemp met with Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., in Atlanta last month.
With Kemp abstaining, the Republican primary field has now opened up in Georgia. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., for example, sent out a fundraising email this weekend indicating that she was considering a run.
“Before anything further happens—before I move to the next step—I need to hear from you. I need to know if I should run for Senate in Georgia, and if I should, I need to know if I will have your support or not,” she said in the email.
Georgia Republican Reps. Rich McCormick and Mike Collins have not ruled out a Senate run when asked by the press.
Larry Sabato, the director of the University of Virginia’s Center for Politics, said on X that Kemp ruling out a run was a “smart move.”
“GA could edge D if anti-Trump wave. Ossoff’s chances for 2nd term improve, but far from certain,” he said.
Midterm elections in recent history have tended to favor the party outside of the White House, although Republicans bucked the trend and made huge gains in both the House and Senate in the 2010 midterms and again in 2014, during Democrat President Barack Obama’s two terms in the White House.
The post Un-Kemp’d: Georgia’s GOP Governor to Forgo Senate Bid appeared first on The Daily Signal.
