Trump-backed Senate pick advances as Georgia voters reject governor choice

Georgia Republicans gave President Donald Trump an uneven primary night, selecting his favored US Senate candidate while rejecting his choice for governor, according to Al Jazeera and The Associated Press. The results matter because November’s midterm elections will decide control of Congress for the final two years of Trump’s second term.

In the Senate race, Republican Representative Mike Collins defeated former football coach Derek Dooley and moved on to a general election contest against Democratic Senator Jon Ossoff, Al Jazeera and AP reported. Ossoff is the only Senate Democrat seeking re-election this year in a state Trump carried two years ago.

Collins, 58, is a second-term congressman who has called himself a “MAGA warrior,” according to the report. He has also repeated Trump’s false claims that the former president’s 2020 loss in Georgia was rigged.

Ossoff, first elected in the 2020 cycle, has centered part of his campaign on criticism of Trump, Al Jazeera and AP reported. He has called Trump a “national embarrassment” and accused him of using the presidency to benefit himself and his family.

Governor’s race breaks against Trump

The governor’s primary produced a different result for Trump. Healthcare businessman Rick Jackson defeated Lieutenant Governor Burt Jones, even though Jones had the president’s endorsement, according to Al Jazeera and AP.

Jackson, 71, spent about $100m of his own money on the campaign, the report said. He will face Democrat Keisha Lance Bottoms, the former mayor of Atlanta, in November.

Trump did not travel to Georgia to campaign with Jones, according to Al Jazeera and AP. After the vote, Republican winners also gave the president less public attention than candidates have on some other primary nights.

Collins thanked family members, friends, supporters and campaign staff during his victory remarks, but did not thank Trump, the outlets reported. Jackson had spent months drawing comparisons between himself and Trump, but did so less directly on election night.

Trump later congratulated Jackson on social media, saying the political newcomer “very successfully campaigned on being ‘TRUMP,’ and won,” according to Al Jazeera and AP.

Endorsement record faces more tests

The Georgia outcome came as four states and the District of Columbia held primaries on Tuesday, putting Trump’s influence inside the Republican Party under fresh scrutiny, Al Jazeera and AP reported. Most of Trump’s endorsed candidates had won their primaries earlier in the spring.

Another test is due in Oklahoma in August, where Trump’s preferred candidate for governor faces a Republican runoff, according to the report.

This story draws on original reporting from Al Jazeera.