Georgia hurtles toward 2026 as Trump’s return reshapes the political map
It was supposed to be a quieter year in Georgia politics — a pause between election cycles, a chance for both parties to regroup before the 2026 onslaught.
Instead, 2025 became a prelude to what is sure to be a political tempest.
President Donald Trump’s return to office reset the national landscape almost overnight, forcing Republicans and Democrats alike to grapple with his expansive view of executive power, his disruptive agenda and the ripple effects back home.
In Georgia, those aftershocks have transformed the terrain. Some Republicans leaned into Trump’s norm-shattering approach; others kept their distance. Democrats showed a new willingness to meet them head-on.
Now Georgia barrels toward 2026 with rising stakes.
Once again, the state sits at the center of the national political map, poised to host some of the most expensive and closely watched contests in the country.
And once again, the outcome here could help define the direction of American politics, turning Georgia into a proving ground for competing ideas, coalitions and leadership styles.
Democratic U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff’s seat is among the nation’s marquee midterm prizes, one of the few true Senate battlegrounds. Once a newcomer who tested the limits of Trump’s appeal during his first term, Ossoff now runs as a seasoned incumbent in Trump’s second.
But his race is hardly the only one that could alter the trajectory of Georgia politics. Dozens of candidates are lining up for state offices, setting the stage for crowded primaries and general elections that will define Georgia through the rest of the decade.
Neither reliably red nor blue, a “periwinkle” Georgia now occupies a shifting middle ground where small changes in turnout, messaging or candidate quality can tip the balance. For both parties, razor-thin margins mean risk and opportunity.
“Going into 2026, Republicans are fully aware we have to work harder and smarter,” said Brian Robinson, a veteran Republican strategist.
“Georgia is sort of like the NFL, when any given Sunday the other team can win. There’s so much parity, we have to go into next year as scrappy underdogs ready to fight.”
‘Into her soul’
Yet the terrain looks markedly different than it did just a year ago, when Trump’s recapture of Georgia put Republicans on the ascendancy and Democrats on the defensive.
Now Democrats enter the cycle with cautious confidence, buoyed by unexpected off-year victories headlined by a sweep of two Republican-held Public Service Commission races that delivered the party its first nonfederal statewide victories in nearly two decades.
Those wins, propelled by economic anxiety and affordability concerns, have fueled growing confidence among Democrats that Ossoff is suddenly on firmer footing — and rising concern among Republicans who acknowledge they may need to recalibrate. Republican U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene’s surprise resignation after a public feud with Trump only underscored that uncertainty.
“I cannot see into her soul, but it demonstrates that even among many of the president’s strongest supporters, there’s opposition and disaffection about what the administration is doing,” Ossoff said of Greene’s shocking departure.
Some giddy Democratic leaders are evoking memories of the mark they set five years ago, when Joe Biden became the first Democrat to carry Georgia since 1992 and Ossoff and Raphael Warnock scored runoff victories that flipped control of the U.S. Senate.
“We are on a roll. We’ve got Republicans on the ropes, and they’re scared,” said Democratic state Rep. Al Williams of Midway, one of the longest serving legislators in the General Assembly. “We’re going to take Trump’s saying and make it a reality: ‘We’re going to win so much, you’re going to get tired of it.’”
Behind the hyperbole, there’s a deeper truth. Republicans are still navigating the same Trump-driven internal tensions they’ve grappled with since his first bid in 2016, and few can pull off the arm’s-length approach that Gov. Brian Kemp has honed after years of political combat. The central question — how closely to tether their fortunes to the president — could make or break their midterm chances.
Trump’s devotees point to his 2024 victory as evidence of his enduring popularity. But they also acknowledge polls showing his approval slipping among voters who have long anchored the GOP’s coalition. And some Republicans are increasingly willing to push back on his agenda, including his use of the Justice Department to exact retribution.
“This is not going to end well for any of us,” said Attorney General Chris Carr, a Republican candidate for governor who has warned against “lawfare” from both sides of the aisle. “And it isn’t going to end well for the American experiment.”
A 2026 battle
It has all the makings of a volatile moment in Georgia, one that could again reshape the state’s political identity. And for politics-weary Georgians, 2026 is shaping up to be a doozy.
The governor’s race alone has drawn nine credible contenders, each vying for a distinct lane in an open contest to succeed a term-limited Kemp. Open races for lieutenant governor, attorney general and secretary of state have produced crowded fields and frenzied jockeying.
There are three open U.S. House seats in reliably Republican districts, while several Democratic incumbents face generational challenges from insurgent liberals demanding a more confrontational approach.
And many state lawmakers face tough reelection fights or bids for higher office, ensuring that the coming legislative session could be as much about political positioning as policymaking.
Hovering over every contest, of course, is Trump himself.
Republicans are still debating how best to harness his influence in a state where his endorsement can dominate primaries but complicate general elections. Georgia GOP Chair Josh McKoon welcomes the idea of Trump as a constant presence in races that could become a referendum on his second term.
“I want the president to come here. I want him to talk about his message,” McKoon said. “We are in a battle for working class Georgians’ votes. And he’s going to tell the story of why we need a Republican U.S. Senate or why we need another Republican governor and Republicans up and down the ballot.”
Democrats, too, have leaned into Trump’s dynamic, positioning themselves against the president’s efforts to dismantle federal agencies and overhaul Washington in his image. They’ve taken to calling him their secret weapon.
“I don’t want him to hush. He’s doing a great job of turning us out. He wants to be front and center,” said Williams, the veteran legislator. “And we love having him stay there.”
About the Author
Greg Bluestein is the Atlanta Journal Constitution's chief political reporter. He is also an author, TV analyst and co-host of the Politically Georgia podcast.
