Trump Ally Perdue Plans To Enter High-Stakes Georgia Governor Race - Forbes

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Topline

Former Georgia Sen. David Perdue is planning to run for governor, several outlets reported Sunday, setting the Donald Trump-backed candidate up for a contentious Republican primary versus incumbent Gov. Brian Kemp, days after Democrat Stacey Abrams announced she was also joining the 2022 race.

Key Facts

Perdue, 71, is expected to formally announce his campaign on Monday, Politico first reported, paving the way for “an epic Republican Party primary clash in one of the nation’s top battleground states.”

He was recruited to run by Trump after the former president vowed to organize Kemp’s defeat for refusing to help overturn his loss in Georgia during last year’s presidential election, according to the New York Times.

Whoever wins the Republican gubernatorial primary will likely face Abrams, a formidable figure who lost the governorship to Kemp in 2018 by just 1.4 percentage points in an election marred by allegations of voter suppression.

Perdue apparently told allies he was driven to run because he fears Kemp would not succeed against Abrams a second time.

Key Background

Trump already looms large over a number of upcoming Georgia contests where several Republicans support the baseless claim, promoted by Trump, that the 2020 presidential election was rigged. Senate candidate Herschel Walker, secretary of state candidate Rep. Jody Hice and State Senator Burt Jones, who is running for lieutenant governor, all back Trump’s conspiracy, according to the Times. Perdue lost a runoff Senate election to Democrat Jon Ossoff in January, making Ossoff and fellow runoff winner Raphael Warnock the first Democratic senators elected by Georgia in 20 years — a “watershed” moment for Southern Democrats — and giving the Democrats control of the Senate.

Crucial Quote

“Perdue’s only reason for running is to soothe his own bruised ego, because his campaign for U.S Senate failed to inspire voters at the ballot box — twice,” a Kemp spokesperson told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, hinting at the bitter war of words to come.