Trump Holds Key in Georgia GOP Senate Runoff Race
With just nine days until Georgia’s Republican Senate runoff, President Donald Trump has yet to endorse a candidate in the race between U.S. Rep. Mike Collins and former University of Tennessee football head coach Derek Dooley — a decision that could determine not only the Republican nominee but also the balance of power in the U.S. Senate. The winner will face Democratic incumbent Sen. Jon Ossoff in the November general election.
The Race So Far
The runoff, scheduled for June 16, was triggered after no candidate reached the 50% threshold in the May 19 primary. Collins led the five-candidate field with approximately 40.5% of the vote, followed by Dooley with roughly 30.2%. U.S. Rep. Buddy Carter finished third and was eliminated, as Fox News reported.
A JMC Analytics poll conducted May 26–27 showed Collins leading Dooley by 14 points, 50% to 36%, with 15% of voters still undecided. Among those undecided voters who expressed a leaning, 39% favored Collins while 27% backed Dooley, according to Breitbart.
The Trump Factor
The central question looming over the race is whether Trump will endorse — and if so, whom. Both candidates have aggressively courted the president’s support. Collins has positioned himself as a MAGA loyalist, hiring Trump’s top advisers Tony Fabrizio and Tim Saler, and has touted his conservative credentials, including authorship of the Laken Riley Act. Dooley, a political newcomer, has also sought to align himself with Trump while emphasizing his outsider status.
According to The New York Times, Trump’s silence is unusual for a race where both candidates are vying for his approval. An endorsement could prove decisive: Collins leads among voters who identify as “Trump/MAGA Republicans,” per the JMC Analytics survey, but Dooley has the organizational backing of Georgia Governor Brian Kemp.
The Kemp-Trump Proxy Battle
Governor Kemp’s endorsement of Dooley has added a layer of intra-party tension to the contest. Kemp, who has a fraught relationship with Trump dating back to the 2020 election when he certified Joe Biden’s win in Georgia, endorsed Dooley — a family friend and the son of legendary University of Georgia football coach Vince Dooley.
“I want to win our Senate seat back,” Kemp said, as reported by The Current GA. “We haven’t done so well in U.S. Senate races here in the state of Georgia in the last several cycles, and we have one more opportunity to try to get one of our Senate seats back.”
The runoff could become a proxy battle between the two Republican heavyweights, with Collins and Dooley serving as surrogates. Kemp has proven his political strength in Georgia, winning re-election in 2022 by a wide margin despite Trump’s opposition.
Immigration as a Wedge Issue
Immigration and border security have emerged as defining issues in the runoff. Collins has attacked Dooley’s past comments suggesting openness to allowing some undocumented immigrants to remain in the country under certain conditions.
“The guy who has the same immigration policy as Jon Ossoff shouldn’t be who we replace Jon Ossoff with,” Collins said on social media, as reported by Breitbart.
Dooley, when asked about a path forward for undocumented immigrants, said: “I think, obviously, we think they should have some penalty because they came here the wrong way. That’s something we can all talk about and debate on what’s the right way — whether it’s a payment or whether it’s community service or whatever it is, but they need to pay some penalty for coming here the wrong way.”
Ossoff’s Fundraising Advantage
Whichever Republican emerges from the runoff will face a well-funded incumbent. Ossoff, who ran unopposed in the Democratic primary, has amassed a massive war chest — over $77 million raised with $31.7 million cash on hand as of March 31, according to the Wikipedia page for the race. By contrast, Collins had raised $4.3 million and Dooley $3.7 million.
Ossoff’s campaign has already signaled its strategy, with spokesperson Ellie Dougherty telling Fox News: “Regardless of which Trump puppet makes it out of this messy and brutal GOP primary, they will be bruised and terminally inseparable from the toxic president. Meanwhile, the juggernaut Ossoff campaign will continue building insurmountable momentum to win decisively in November.”
Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-GA), who won his own runoff in 2022, offered a more succinct assessment of the GOP infighting: “I want to offer a word of encouragement. They should keep that up.”
What to Watch
Georgia is one of only two Democratic-held Senate seats up in 2026 in a state Trump won in 2024 (along with Michigan), making it a critical battleground for control of the Senate, currently split 50-50 with Vice President Vance as the tiebreaker for Republicans. With the runoff just over a week away, all eyes are on whether Trump will break his silence — and which candidate will emerge to take on one of the most vulnerable Democratic incumbents in the country.