Why Derek Dooley is trying to turn Georgia’s Senate race into a revolt against D.C.
Derek Dooley is trying to pull off a tricky balancing act as he campaigns for the U.S. Senate: run against Democrat Jon Ossoff while waging war on Washington itself.
The former football coach sharpened that message Tuesday with the launch of his first TV ad, timed to promote his campaign against U.S. Reps. Buddy Carter and Mike Collins just before early voting begins next week in the Republican primary.
“D.C. politicians focus on getting rich and famous, and never on who hired them, which is you,” Dooley says in the spot. “And as a football coach for 30 years, I can spot these ‘me first’ guys a mile away. And we gotta get rid of them.”
Dooley has been selling the same outsider pitch on the campaign trail alongside Gov. Brian Kemp, who is staking his own political capital on Dooley after passing on a Senate run himself.
Kemp’s argument is blunt: Only a political newcomer without the usual baggage can take the fight to Democratic U.S. Sen. Ossoff, a brand name in national Democratic politics with more than $31 million in his campaign account.
“It takes an outsider that doesn’t have to worry about defending their political record or other things to stay on offense, to tell people the real story about these guys and the real story about Jon Ossoff,” Kemp told a few dozen supporters at a barbecue joint in Canton on Monday. “That’s what I think Derek Dooley can do.”
The focal point of Dooley’s campaign is a “Georgia First Contract” he signs for supporters. It calls for enacting term limits, banning stock trading by members of Congress and their families, halting lawmakers’ pay during government shutdowns, and aligning himself with President Donald Trump, who has yet to take sides in the three-way race.
The strategy reflects the unusual crosscurrents of the race. While hammering Ossoff, Dooley is also trying to elbow past two sitting Republican lawmakers for the nomination.
Collins has consistently led public polling, but many surveys show at least a third of likely GOP voters remain undecided. A June runoff between the two top finishers is likely.
Carter escalated the fight Monday with a new ad that targeted Collins over a congressional ethics probe into allegations of misused taxpayer funds. Collins has said he will cooperate fully and expects to be cleared.
It’s a risky move, since any damage against Collins could wind up helping Dooley. But Carter allies argue most voters know little about the complaint now — and that Ossoff would almost certainly make it a centerpiece of the fall campaign if Collins wins the GOP nod.
Dooley has seized on the investigation from a different angle, contending Ossoff will use it to keep Republicans on the defensive while avoiding scrutiny himself.
“His whole goal is to keep attacking them so they’re on defense, so they have to defend themselves. It distracts everyone from who Jon Ossoff is,” Dooley said at the Canton stop.
“Let me tell you, he’s not going to be able to do any of that to me. We’re going on offense.”
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.
