ATLANTA (AP) — Just days ahead of Georgia’s Republican U.S. Senate runoff election, President Donald Trump has thrown his weight behind U.S. Rep. Mike Collins, passing over former football coach Derek Dooley in what has become a familiar pattern of backing loyalists in GOP primaries.
The two Republican candidates face off Tuesday for the right to challenge Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff in what is expected to be one of the most high-profile races of the November midterm elections. Collins has built his political brand around unwavering support for Trump and the MAGA movement. In a social media post early Sunday, Trump praised the trucking company owner and two-term congressman, saying he “has been with me from the very beginning” and called him a “true friend, fighter, and WARRIOR.”
Dooley, a political newcomer, has the backing of outgoing Gov. Brian Kemp, who has had a contentious history with Trump. The president was blunt about his feelings toward Dooley, writing that he doesn’t know him and pointing out that Dooley failed to cast a ballot in either the 2016 or 2020 elections — both of which featured Trump on the ticket. Dooley has acknowledged going roughly two decades without voting, though he says he did vote for Trump in 2024.
Collins came out on top in the May 19 primary but fell short of the 40% threshold needed to avoid a runoff, leaving a significant pool of Republican votes still in play. Trump’s endorsements have repeatedly proven to be a decisive force within the party.
“Everybody knows that I do best with the MAGA base,” Collins said on primary night. “It’s because they know I’ve always been with President Trump.”
The endorsement puts Trump at odds with more establishment-aligned Republicans, particularly Kemp. The move echoes Trump’s recent decision to back Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who went on to defeat U.S. Sen. John Cornyn in that state’s primary runoff.
Dooley fired back at Trump’s announcement, arguing that Georgia voters are hungry for “a political outsider” rather than “typical D.C. politicians like Mike Collins.” He posted on X that he remains confident heading into Tuesday’s vote.
Collins has been a Trump ally since his first congressional run in 2022, and he has repeated the president’s unsubstantiated claims that Trump’s 2020 loss to Democrat Joe Biden involved fraud. Collins also sponsored the Laken Riley Act, a 2025 law mandating detention of immigrants charged with certain crimes — a measure Republicans believe puts Ossoff in a difficult spot, since the Democratic senator initially voted against it before switching his position after Trump returned to office.
Dooley and his top surrogate, Gov. Kemp, contend that a political newcomer stands a stronger chance against Ossoff, who is the only Democratic senator up for reelection in a state Trump carried in 2024. Kemp, who previously angered Trump by declining to help challenge Biden’s Georgia victory, had been the preferred pick of Senate Republican leaders to take on Ossoff. He ultimately recruited Dooley, a childhood friend, to enter the race instead.
Kemp points to three first-term Republican senators — Montana’s Tim Sheehy, Pennsylvania’s Dave McCormick, and Ohio’s Bernie Moreno — who unseated Democratic incumbents in 2024 by running as outsiders who still aligned with Trump.
Trump, meanwhile, has been on a winning streak within his own party. In recent weeks, he has seen multiple Republicans who failed his loyalty test go down to defeat. Cornyn lost to Paxton, U.S. Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky fell to Ed Gallrein, U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana didn’t make a runoff, and several Indiana state senators were ousted by Trump-aligned challengers.
Dooley has told Georgia voters he will “work with President Trump but fight for you,” and he has stressed that Republicans have not won a U.S. Senate seat in Georgia since 2016.
Collins sees no need for that kind of balancing act, while still insisting he can broaden his appeal come November.
“You don’t beat Jon Ossoff by having no record,” Collins said. “You win by having a record of results.”
