Jon Ossoff says he won’t run for president. Georgia Democrats have other ideas.

U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff keeps insisting he has “zero interest” in a run for president in 2028. A whole lot of Georgia Democrats wish he would.

A new Atlanta Journal-Constitution poll shows 84% of likely Democratic midterm voters want Ossoff to seek a White House bid, along with nearly half of likely independent voters.

His Democratic colleague Raphael Warnock, who is dropping plenty of hints he may run for president, faces more hesitation from within his own party.

About 74% of likely Democratic voters favor a Warnock presidential campaign, while 20% oppose it. Among all likely voters, 36% are in favor, while 54% oppose it.

Republicans have a more complicated relationship with potential Peach State hopefuls.

Gov. Brian Kemp is wildly popular with likely GOP voters, but many aren’t sold on a 2028 presidential bid.

And former U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene? Even most Republicans want no part of her potential presidential bid.

‘Fantasy football’

Let’s start with Ossoff, whose rising national profile, viral rallies and sharp attacks on President Donald Trump have turned him into an unlikely favorite of Democrats hungry for a fresh voice to confront MAGA policies.

The first-term Democrat has repeatedly dismissed talk of a 2028 bid as “fantasy football,” and at last week’s Atlanta Press Club debate pledged to serve his full six-year Senate term if reelected.

Still, that hasn’t dampened enthusiasm over the prospect. Only 13% of likely Democratic voters oppose the idea, and nearly two-thirds of younger voters want him to run.

Among all likely voters, 50% oppose an Ossoff presidential campaign, compared with 44% who favor one.

“He’d be a formidable candidate,” said Tracy Lightcap, a retired LaGrange College professor who lives in Atlanta. “It’s difficult to find anyone who can light up a crowd like Jon Ossoff.”

Warnock, meanwhile, is taking the sort of steps that often pave the way for a presidential campaign. He’s released another book, cultivated ties with national donors and officials and is traveling to battleground states this month to stump for Democratic U.S. Senate candidates.

Yet the poll suggests support for a Warnock bid is softer — even among some of the voters who have helped fuel his two Senate victories.

Among Black voters, 68% favor a Warnock bid, compared with 76% who support an Ossoff run. And younger voters are nearly evenly divided over Warnock, with 42% in favor and 49% opposed.

The pushback is even sharper among independents, with 50% opposing a Warnock run, compared with 33% who favor one.

There is another political complication: Warnock is up for reelection in 2028. A presidential campaign, depending on how far he makes it, could force him to give up the Senate seat, a possibility that could jeopardize an office the party fought hard to capture.

“Warnock is of more utility to the people of Georgia staying as senator,” said Barbara Dunn, a retired educator in Savannah. “But Ossoff needs to run for president. His heart is in the right place.”

Not every Democrat sees it that way. Nanette Ross, a DeKalb Democrat, said it’s “too soon” for an Ossoff bid.

“But Warnock would be amazing. You want someone from your team to run, and I’m grateful for him.”

The Kemp conundrum

Kemp is preparing to leave office with some of his highest ratings yet: Nearly seven in 10 Georgia voters approve of his performance, including 94% of Republicans.

But ask if he should run for president, and those numbers tighten. Around 77% of likely Republican voters favor a Kemp bid, while 20% oppose it.

This isn’t an idle question. Kemp briefly left the door open to a 2024 presidential run before ruling it out. He later passed on a 2026 challenge to Ossoff despite an extraordinary pressure campaign from party leaders.

For some voters, the question is if he missed his window to run.

“I like Kemp, but I don’t think he’s the right guy at the right time,” said Richard Williams, a Richmond Hill retiree who considers himself an independent.

Still, Kemp’s appeal extends beyond the Republican base, partly because of his public stand against Trump’s attempt to overturn his narrow 2020 defeat in Georgia.

Independents are almost evenly divided over a Kemp presidential bid, and even 17% of Democrats favor the idea.

“He would probably be someone that I could also consider supporting, because I have largely agreed with the decisions that he’s made as governor,” said Alvanetta Alexander, who has voted Democratic for nearly 30 years.

Statewide, likely voters are divided down the middle, too, with 47% in favor and 47% opposed.

“If any of them should run, it’s Brian Kemp,” said Brent Taylor, a Griffin paralegal. “I’m not supportive of everything he’s done, but he’s left a good legacy. He isn’t just pro-Republican. He’s been out there for all the people.”

A hard ‘no’

Then there’s Greene. Her once-tight alliance with Trump collapsed last year in a spectacular public feud that culminated in her resignation from Congress in January.

She hasn’t stayed quiet since leaving office, though, stoking buzz around a White House run. Georgia voters are hardly rolling out the welcome mat.

Greene registers by far the weakest numbers of the four politicians tested. Only 11% of likely Georgia voters favor a Greene presidential run, while 77% oppose it.

Even among likely Republican voters, just 18% favor the idea, compared with 69% who oppose it. And independents reject the prospect by an even wider 78%-8% margin.

It’s a stinging verdict for a politician who embodied the firebrand wing of the MAGA movement before breaking with Trump over the Epstein files, healthcare and other disputes.