Republican David Shafer snagged the endorsement of George P. Bush on Monday in his pursuit of Georgia's No. 2 job.
The support from Bush, the Texas land commissioner and son of former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, is the latest in a string of national endorsements Shafer picked up for his campaign to succeed Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle.
The state senator also won the backing of Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, Home Depot co-founder Bernie Marcus, the GOPAC political action committee and former Reps. John Linder and Bob Barr.
Bush is a de facto leader of the still-potent family network that has extensive ties in Georgia, and was the only member of his family to endorse President Donald Trump. In a statement, he called Shafer a "true conservative."
“He has fought for conservative values,” Bush said. “And he has gotten results. I know he will continue to fight for conservative values.
Shafer is trying to position himself as both the establishment-favorite – the Gwinnett Republican has served 15 years in the state Senate – while also trying to inoculate himself from attacks that he's a political insider.
He faces two GOP opponents in the 2018 contest to replace Cagle, who is running for governor: State Sen. Rick Jeffares of McDonough, and state Rep. Geoff Duncan of Cumming.
No Democrats have yet announced a run.
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