President Donald Trump finally got the best of Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp in a Republican race on Tuesday — but voters rejected both of them in another.
In the GOP primary runoff to take on Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff, the Trump-endorsed Rep. Mike Collins defeated Kemp’s choice, former football coach Derek Dooley. Collins’ win sets the stage for what will be one of the most closely watched Senate races of this year’s midterm elections — one that could have 2028 presidential implications if Ossoff wins reelection given the national buzz he’s generating.
The win for Collins, and Trump, came in an uneven stretch for the president’s picks in Republican primaries. The same Georgia GOP voters that backed Collins rejected the candidate for governor endorsed by both Trump and Kemp in favor of a self-funding businessman, Rick Jackson.
In Alabama, Trump-endorsed Rep. Barry Moore won the runoff for the GOP’s Senate nomination. But in Oklahoma, Trump’s choice in the governor’s race, Mike Mazzei, was in second place and only receiving about one-fourth of the vote in a primary that’s headed to a runoff.
Here are early takeaways from Tuesday’s elections.
