John King has won the Republican nomination for state insurance and safety fire commissioner, defeating a candidate backed by former President Donald Trump.

King, the former Doraville police chief and major general with the Georgia National Guard, is the first Latino to hold statewide elected office in the state. He was appointed to the job 2 ½ years ago by Gov. Brian Kemp after then-commissioner Jim Beck was convicted of charges he swindled his former employer.

King defeated the Trump-endorsed Patrick Witt, a lawyer who worked on Trump’s team in Georgia in the aftermath of the 2020 election and worked in the Office of Personnel Management under Trump.

Ben Cowart, a Republican from Sandy Springs was also in the GOP race.

King will face the winner of the Democratic primary in November

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Laurence Walker, a volunteer with the Cajun Navy Relief, left, takes two volunteers out on his boat on Lake Oconee to search for Gary Jones, Tuesday, February, 18, 2024, in Eatonton, Ga. The Putnam County sheriff is investigating and searching after Spelman College instructor Joycelyn Nicole Wilson and an Atlanta private school coach Gary Jones went missing on Lake Oconee over a week ago, Saturday Feb. 8th. The body of Wilson was found Sunday, Feb. 9th and Jones has not been found. (Jason Getz / AJC)

Credit: Jason Getz / Jason.Getz@ajc.com