The Republican Party needs someone to step up in 2026 to run against Senator Jon Ossoff (D-GA), but they have no big-name takers at this point.
There were quite a few in the party who thought Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) may take a shot, but she has declined to run, taking a shot at the party in the process.
Shockingly, the Democrats now control both Senate seats in Georgia, a state that was once a GOP stronghold.
That all changed after Trump’s first term, when Georgia started to go purple instead of red.
Senator Ossoff beat the Republican incumbent in his election, defeating Senator David Perdue (R-GA) in a runoff election after having lost the general election by about 2% to Perdue, but since no candidate had won over 50% of the vote, the top two candidates, Ossoff and Perdue, ran it again, with Ossoff taking the seat.
To add insult to injury, Trump-backed Herschel Walker lost his attempt to snag the other seat in Georgia, losing to Raphael Warnock, who had scandal after scandal plaguing his campaign.
While there have been issues between Donald Trump and Georgia Governor Brian Kemp, Kemp remains popular in the state and was arguably the GOP's best hope to defeat Ossoff.
Unfortunately, Kemp recently announced that he would not be running, deciding to spend time with his family instead.
He stated, "Being on the ballot next year is not the right decision for me and my family."
Even though I don’t think a MAGA candidate would do well in this race, considering the new dynamic, many were looking to Trump ally Rep. Greene to step up.
Greene would have easily gained the endorsement of Trump if she decided to run, but she also bowed out of the race, and took a shot at Republicans serving in the Senate in the process.
She stated, “Now, they’re trying to carefully select someone who can dress up in MAGA just enough to trick the grassroots into thinking they’re one of us — someone who won’t dare challenge the Republican establishment or disrupt the status quo that has failed the people time and time again. These are the Republicans who see Trump as a speed bump, one they believe they can carefully roll over now that he won’t be on the ballot again.
“Even with a few good Republicans in the Senate, nothing changes. So no, [Democratic Georgia Sen.] Jon Ossoff isn’t the real problem. He’s just a vote. A pawn. No different than the Uniparty Republicans who skip key votes to attend fundraisers and let our agenda fail. Someone once said, ‘The Senate is where good ideas go to die.’ They were right. That’s why I’m not running. I won’t fight for a team that refuses to win, that protects its weakest players, and that undermines the very people it’s supposed to serve.”
I want to be pretty clear, MAGA candidates are not the answer for every seat, as you have to read the room, and Georgia is now clearly more moderate. In states like Georgia and Arizona, we need to be willing to accept a candidate who could depart from the GOP on some issues, so it is a matter of finding the right candidate you can depend on for the really important issues to move the conservative movement forward.
