Endorsement chaos sows confusion in Georgia’s Republican U.S. Senate runoff

Today’s newsletter highlights

• Chase Oliver, Libertarian nominee for governor, suspends his campaign.
• Stacey Abrams endorses Josh McLaurin for lieutenant governor.
• Fallout grows after Mike Collins’ dismissal of his longtime adviser Brandon Phillips.

Endorsement war

U.S. Rep. Mike Collins (left) and former football coach Derek Dooley will face each other in the June 16 runoff in the Republican primary for Georgia's U.S. Senate seat. (AJC file photos)

The battle for support in Georgia’s Republican U.S. Senate runoff is heating up. So is the confusion and gamesmanship.

We noticed about a dozen officials appearing on endorsement lists for both U.S. Rep. Mike Collins and former football coach Derek Dooley. A few responded to our texts and calls seeking comment.

Grady County Sheriff Earl Prince said he never endorsed Collins.

“I have never spoken to Mike Collins or any of his people. My named was used without my permission and I have no use for anybody that does business that way,” he said.

Worth County Sheriff Don Whitaker said he met Collins for the first time at a luncheon a few months ago and isn’t sure how he ended up on an endorsement list.

“I have no problems with them but I believe it was miscommunication. I’ve spoken with one of his campaign team about this and my name was to be taken off his endorsement list. Obviously it wasn’t. I am endorsing Derek Dooley,” he said.

Rabun County Commissioner Kent Woerner said he said he initially backed Collins but switched to Dooley in recent weeks, citing his family’s long alliance with the Dooley family. His brother, Scott, was a standout player under Dooley’s father, Vince Dooley, on Georgia’s 1980 national championship football team. Woerner is also close with Gov. Brian Kemp, Dooley’s most important backer.

“If he’s supporting Dooley, I take that as another good sign,” Woerner said. “But like I said, I have nothing against Mike, if he wins the nomination I’ll support him.”

Others who appeared on both endorsement lists said it was no mistake. Lamar County Sheriff Ed White said he backed both because he just wants to see Democratic U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff defeated. Gordon County Sheriff Mitch Ralston said he’s “praying for both.”

Collins’ camp dismissed the overlap, saying that Dooley’s “C-rate campaign team finally convinced a single recruit to flip — which is fitting, since that was about the same conversion rate Derek had as a football coach.”

Things to know

Keisha Lance Bottoms and U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff lead the Democratic ticket for governor and senator after the May primaries. (AJC file)

Good morning! Here are three things to know for today:

• President Donald Trump’s baseless claims about his 2020 defeat in Georgia have never stopped shaping state Republican politics, and the race to succeed outgoing Republican Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger is a case in point, writes the AJC’s Caleb Groves.
• Ossoff and former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms are joining forces atop the Democratic ticket in November, Bluestein writes.
• The sports betting industry invested heavily in 34 state legislative races ahead of last week’s primary. A review by the AJC’s David Wickert found the industry’s favored candidates won or advanced to a runoff in all but two of those races.

He’s out

Then-Libertarian U.S. Senate candidate Chase Oliver speaks to supporters during a 2022 party meeting at Manuel's Tavern. (Miguel Martinez/AJC)

Georgia Libertarians are facing another setback in their quest for a spot on the November ballot.

Chase Oliver, the party’s nominee for governor, said he is suspending his campaign to focus on work and family. He said he is still paying off debts from his 2024 presidential campaign, when he was the Libertarian nominee, and can’t give the governor’s race the attention it demands.

“I have found that due to the commitment to my work and ultimately the commitment to my family that I cannot give the full-throated campaign I thought I could for governor of Georgia,” said Oliver, who was also the party’s 2022 U.S. Senate nominee, in a video posted on YouTube.

Oliver told us the party can still name a replacement at its next executive committee meeting. But that doesn’t guarantee a place on the ballot.

That’s because the Libertarian Party of Georgia is struggling to qualify candidates under a 1943 state law originally aimed at keeping Communists off the ballot.

The law requires third-party statewide candidates to win at least 1% of the vote in the previous election or collect signatures from 1% of active voters to automatically qualify. Oliver won about 0.4% of the vote in Georgia as the party’s presidential nominee in 2024.

That means Libertarians need to gather 72,679 signatures by July to qualify candidates for the midterms. Oliver says they’re still short, though he wasn’t sure by how much. Other party officials didn’t immediately comment.

If they don’t make it, it could reshape a Georgia election cycle where runoffs have become regular features. Because statewide contenders must clear 50% to win, Libertarians who draw even a fraction of the vote have repeatedly forced marquee races into overtime.

Abrams endorsement

State Sen. Josh McLaurin, who is running for lieutenant governor, speaks to media at the Fulton County Election Hub and Operation Center in January. (Arvin Temkar/AJC)

Stacey Abrams is making a rare move into state Democratic primary politics this cycle.

The two-time gubernatorial nominee endorsed state Sen. Josh McLaurin in his runoff for lieutenant governor against former state Sen. Nabilah Parkes. Abrams’ endorsement gives the metro Atlanta Democrat a major boost in one of the party’s marquee down-ballot contests.

Abrams has largely avoided taking sides in internal Democratic fights since her back-to-back governor’s races. But the political organization she founded, Fair Fight, rolled out a slate of endorsements last week.

Abrams said McLaurin has proven himself as a “fighter” for Georgia Democrats.

“Whether as an attorney, a legislator or a community leader, Josh works to deliver for all of us — from health care to affordable housing to basic human dignity,” Abrams said. “As our next Lieutenant Governor, he will be a leader under the Gold Dome and a voice for progress.”

McLaurin embraced the endorsement and credited Abrams with helping transform Georgia politics.

“We wouldn’t even be having a conversation about the prospects of a competitive Lieutenant Governor general election without the work she has done to inspire voters and protect their access to the ballot box,” he said.

Fallout continues

(Photo Illustration: Broly Su/AJC; Source: Courtesy of Brandon Phillips)

Brooke Nevils said in an Instagram post that Collins called to apologize for a comment his campaign posted referencing her accusation that former NBC anchor Matt Lauer sexually assaulted her.

“I saw it,” Nevils said of the post. “And I was in the fetal position on the floor in my office.”

Collins fired Brandon Phillips, his longtime aide who sent the post that was targeted at Nevils’ husband, who is a Dooley operative. But Nevils said the episode raised a larger question for Collins: Why did he keep Phillips in a senior role for so long despite his long history of controversy?

“Think about the comments you make about people,” Nevils said at the close of her video. “Think about the behavior you accept in your life.”

Hold that snapper

From left to right: Russel Kent, Hudson Kent and Brian Kent show off their red snapper catch on the final day of the recreational fishing season last summer. (Courtesy)

Georgia anglers celebrated earlier this year when the Trump administration — after lobbying by Kemp, U.S. Rep. Buddy Carter and others — agreed to extend Georgia’s fishing season for red snapper to two months instead of two days.

But a federal judge’s ruling last week temporarily blocked the permit. Now, recreational anglers fear the entire season is in jeopardy.

U.S. District Judge Rudolph Contreras blocked the permit at the request of the commercial fishing industry. The industry argued the Trump administration broke the law when they extended the season, saying it would “likely allow overfishing of South Atlantic red snapper.”

Recreational anglers and their allies insist there are plenty of fish for everyone. Earlier this year, Kemp signed a law aimed at allowing Georgia to manage its own fishing season.

“South Atlantic red snapper is not a stock in jeopardy. Anglers and mangers have worked for years to rebuild this fishery, and those efforts have been wildly successful,” the American Sportfishing Association and Coastal Conservation Association said in a joint statement.

Listen up

John Hope Bryant, CEO of Operation HOPE, seen here in 2024. (Jenni Girtman for The AJC)

Today on the “Politically Georgia” podcast Atlanta Journal-Constitution editor-in-chief Leroy Chapman interviews John Hope Bryant about his new book “Capitalism for All,” which argues that economic mobility is the unfinished work of the Civil Rights Movement.

You can listen and subscribe to “Politically Georgia” for free on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts.