ROME — There are only a few true battleground states on the political map, and Donald Trump closed his Saturday rally telling Republicans that he sees Georgia as a must-win for his campaign.

”If we win Georgia, we win the election. Let me put it that way.”

Both parties will battle to win Georgia, which voted Democratic in 2020 for the first time in nearly three decades. But Republicans see a scant path to a White House win without Georgia’s 16 electoral votes.

Republican presidential candidate and former president Donald Trump walks on stage at a campaign rally at Forum River Center in Rome on Saturday, March 9, 2024. (Arvin Temkar / arvin.temkar@ajc.com)

Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC

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Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC

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Derek Dooley speaks at a campaign stop next to Gov. Brian Kemp, second from left, and First Lady Marty Kemp, left, at a parking lot of Dawson Hall on the University of Georgia campus before Georgia’s season football opener against Marshall, Saturday, August 30, 2025, in Athens, Ga. Kemp endorsed Republican Derek Dooley in Georgia’s 2026 U.S. Senate race. (Jason Getz / AJC)

Credit: Jason Getz / Jason.Getz@ajc.com

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