Republican Clay Fuller under pressure in a race to replace MTG
No matter what happens Tuesday, Republican voters in northwest Georgia have not seen the last of Clay Fuller.
The former district attorney faces Democrat Shawn Harris in a special runoff to replace Marjorie Taylor Greene in a congressional district that President Donald Trump has dominated. But Fuller will also be on the ballot next month, this time in a Republican primary for a full term as the state’s representative of the 14th Congressional District.
Fuller trounced the Republican field in a special election last month, but a poor performance against Harris on Tuesday would only encourage GOP challengers who lost the crowded contest in March to challenge him again in the party primary with a much higher voter turnout.
Some Republican candidates, like Jim Tully and Tom Gray, have endorsed Fuller for the special election to finish Greene’s term even though they qualified to run against him in May.
Gray, pastor of a church in Powder Springs who finished fifth in the March election, said he may suspend his primary campaign if Fuller has a commanding win next week.
“I think we’ll just wait,” he said.
Then there’s former state Sen. Colton Moore, who finished third in last month’s special election and has so far remained silent on the runoff.
Former Paulding County Commissioner Brian Stover, who self-financed most of his campaign and finished in fourth place in March, said he plans to compete again in the May primary. But his messaging will depend greatly on how well Fuller does next week against Harris.
If Harris makes inroads or beats the odds and wins, Stover said he will tell voters they should begin seeking an alternative to Fuller.
“I think on April 7, if Shawn Harris wins the election, it’s going to put Clay Fuller in a very bad position,” Stover said. “And then Colton Moore, I feel like he has a base that he can’t reach any higher than he’s already shown. And if Harris was to win, I think there’s a lot of open votes to be grabbed.”
Harris, a retired Army general who is battle tested from a prior run against Greene, doesn’t face that kind of pressure. Democrats have mostly rallied around his candidacy, pushing aside would-be challengers from the left.
No matter what happens in the runoff, he plans to campaign again for a full two-year term in the district. He is the only Democrat who qualified, so he does not have a primary in May.
Georgia’s 14th District has traditionally been a seat that delivers for conservative candidates. But Tuesday’s vote could be tougher for Fuller.
Rising gas and grocery prices, concerns about immigration and foreign policy and President Donald Trump’s sagging approval numbers have dragged Republicans down and allowed national Democrats to make inroads in recent months.
Tuesday’s special election runoff will hinge on turnout as voters choose between a Democratic candidate who has worked for years to appeal to voters in the district and a Republican candidate backed by a party focused on keeping the seat red.
Fuller, the former district attorney for Georgia’s Lookout Mountain Circuit, is endorsed by Trump, Gov. Brian Kemp and right-leaning outside groups. He has spent the weeks leading up to the runoff speaking to Republican voters and holding meet and greets across northwest Georgia.
His message, according to a spokesperson, is that the district and Trump can’t afford to allow the seat to fall in a Democrats’ hands.
“The 14th District is united behind President Trump’s candidate Clay Fuller because they understand we can’t afford to give any ground to the radical left or their candidates,” spokesman Will Hampson said in a statement. “It’s time for all conservatives to get behind our nominee and ensure our full efforts can be on defeating the Democrats on April 7th and delivering results in Congress for the hardworking people of Northwest Georgia.”
Harris is running a campaign that is less partisan and more populist by focusing on acknowledging the economic uncertainty that many voters have expressed.
Recently, Harris has criticized the joint U.S.-Israeli military strikes on Iran and the skyrocketing costs for fuel the conflict has caused for those buying gas for their cars and diesel for tractors and trucks.
Harris presents himself as a moderate Democrat and is asking people to give him a trial run in this special election to finish Greene’s term. Greene resigned abruptly at the end of last year amid a feud with Trump.
“The reality of it is, with the cost of living and everything else is going on, this war that we’re in, people are saying, let’s give Shawn Harris a chance,” he told the “Politically Georgia” podcast. “And if he doesn’t actually produce something, we can vote him out of November.”
Democrats are investing heavily in Harris’ campaign, even though it remains unlikely he will win in a district packed with conservative voters. Even if Harris doesn’t win, if he keeps things close there could be lessons learned that could help the party fine-tune its messaging for the midterms.
About the Author
Tia Mitchell is the AJC’s Washington Bureau Chief and a co-host of the "Politically Georgia" podcast. She writes about Georgia’s congressional delegation, campaigns, elections and the impact that decisions made in D.C. have on residents of the Peach State.
