Atlanta [US], October 1 (ANI): The legacy of the 2020 presidential election continues to shape Georgia’s Republican gubernatorial primary, where three prominent candidates — Lieutenant Governor Burt Jones, Attorney General Chris Carr, and Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger — are competing to succeed term-limited Governor Brian Kemp. The race is increasingly defined by their roles in defending or challenging the state’s 2020 results, The Hill reported.
Jones carries the endorsement of former US President Donald Trump, while Raffensperger and Carr resisted Trump’s attempts to overturn Joe Biden’s narrow victory in Georgia. This contest has become a key test of whether Georgia Republicans will prioritise independence from Trump or loyalty to him above all else.
“I think it’s gonna play a part,” said former Congressman Jack Kingston, a Georgia Republican who advised Trump in 2016. “If not actively, it’s in people’s hardwiring.”
Jones was among more than a dozen alternative electors who sought to overturn Biden’s victory, although he has faced no charges. Peter Skandalakis, executive director of the Prosecuting Attorneys’ Council of Georgia, said last year that Jones’s actions were “reasonable and not criminal in nature,” noting that he acted “based upon the advice of attorneys and legal scholars.”
By contrast, Raffensperger gained national attention after a leaked phone call revealed Trump urging him to “find” over 11,000 votes to reverse Biden’s win. Raffensperger refused, prompting Georgia GOP delegates to pass a resolution branding him “repugnant” to the party. Carr also defended Georgia against multiple legal challenges, dismissing one lawsuit filed by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton as “constitutionally, legally and factually wrong.”
Despite Trump’s backing of Jones, his rivals argue that opposing Trump is not a liability. Raffensperger cited his 2022 victory over a Trump-backed challenger, saying, “Like I did in 2022… just go out and talk to folks, and I won a primary without a runoff and I won in the fall — largest winning percentage.”
Carr emphasised his role in defending the rule of law in 2020, stating, “I stood with Brian Kemp to uphold that rule of law… we followed the facts, we followed the law and we followed the evidence.” He argued that “Burt Jones wrapping himself in the 2020 election chaos — it’s simply a losing strategy that cost Georgia two Senate seats,” adding, “Absolutely, I do” when asked if Jones bore responsibility for those losses. Jones’s campaign declined to comment.
Republican strategists predict that Raffensperger and Carr’s best route is to prevent Jones from securing a majority and force a runoff. Former state GOP Chair Chuck Clay said, “Carr and Raffensperger are going to be splitting whatever other vote that will not vote for Burt Jones… and are looking for an alternative.”
Republican strategist Jay Williams said the race may ultimately boil down to “who are the guys with Trump and that were fighting for his agenda, and who are the people that weren’t.”
Jones, a former University of Georgia football captain, has embraced his ties to Trump, running ads highlighting the president’s endorsement and branding Carr and Raffensperger as “Never Trumpers.”
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