JEFFERSON — At a recent campaign event in Jefferson, Burt Jones, the Republican nominee for lieutenant governor, mentioned Stacey Abrams five times during a five-minute speech.
He’s not running against Abrams, the Democratic nominee for governor. Meanwhile, he didn’t once say the name of Charlie Bailey, his opponent.
In fact, Jones, a Donald Trump-backed state senator from Jackson, Jones makes it a habit to never mention his Democratic opponent.
“Everybody asks me, ‘who are you running against?’ And I’ll never tell anybody because there’s no need for me to be out here promoting his campaign,” Jones says at many campaign stops.
Jones is one of several statewide down-ballot candidates who make sure to bring up Abrams at campaign events, and especially, in fundraising emails. Her name comes up in the same way Democrats use Trump’s as much as possible, as representation of all that is wrong with candidates from the opposing party.
In one fundraising email last month, GOP labor commissioner nominee Bruce Thompson asked for help to defeat “Stacey Abrams and her circle of billionaire friends.” At the campaign event in Jefferson this week, the Republican nominee for agriculture commissioner —Tyler Harper — knocked Abrams’ recent focus on rural Georgia.
“Stacey can say all she wants and she can talk all the talk she wants,” Harper said. “But when it comes to walking the walk, (Gov.) Brian Kemp, Tyler Harper, the General Assembly and this entire ticket has supported rural Georgia and all of Georgia.”
Though Democratic down-ballot candidates are more likely to mention their opponent by name at events, they also take shots at Kemp and Trump in their campaign mailers and commercials.
For instance, a recent campaign mailer from the Democratic Party of Georgia sent on behalf of agriculture commissioner nominee Nakita Hemingway called Kemp out for signing the state’s new abortion law.
It’s not a new strategy, said Kennesaw State University political scientist Kerwin Swint.
“They all want to appeal to the voters, so they say, ‘we have to stop Stacey Abrams’ and for Democrats, they say, ’we have to send a message about Donald Trump,’” he said. “They want to appeal to what their voters are most focused on and that’s the top of the ticket.”
Attendees at some of the multi-candidate rallies for both Republicans and Democrats can speak at length about the races for governor or U.S. Senate. They don’t know as much about down-ballot candidates.
“I really only know about Brian Kemp and Herschel Walker,” said Sammi Jo Kurtz at a recent campaign rally.
Kurtz, a Braselton resident who worked on a primary campaign for a state Senate race, said she typically aligns herself with Libertarians, but wanted to hear what the Republican candidates had to say.
“I don’t think I’ve ever heard him speak before,” Kurtz said of Attorney General Chris Carr, who is seeking a second term in office.
Swint said bringing up a candidate’s opponent during campaign events also depends on how they’re doing in the polls.
“If you’re ahead, you don’t want to bring attention to (your opponent) unless it’s in a negative way,” he said. “If you’re behind, you’re probably going to be criticizing or attacking your opponent, so you’re going to mention their name more. And if you’re all tied up, you’re probably mentioning each others name.”
Bailey, who has trailed by 5 percentage points in recent polls, has been on the attack against Jones since he won his primary runoff election in June — and always calls him by name. At a recent campaign stop in Cumming, Bailey said Jones’ name eight times during a six-minute speech.
“My opponent, Burt Jones, and the entire clown car that is the Republican ticket is engaged in a politics of division and extremism,” he says during most campaign stops.
Targeting the top of the opposing party’s ticket might sway voters who are not particularly engaged in politics, Swint said.
“I think (candidates) think it’s effective,” he said. “They may have limited money and a limited opportunity to impact voters’ thinking, so I think they use it as a default. I think they feel like, ‘this one of the main things I have to say.’”
Debbie Reid, chairwoman of the Bartow County Republican Party, said she wishes candidates would focus more on policy than throwing shots — whether it’s at their opponent or the top of the ticket. She said she didn’t understand why down-ballot Republican candidates spent time talking about Abrams.
“There’s been a lot of that this this campaign season, candidates that are talking about things that are not in their purview (of the office they’re seeking),” she said after the rally in Jefferson. “And to me, they’re just trying to hit you emotionally. And that’s not how we should be voting.”
Staff reporter Greg Bluestein contributed to this report.
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