In recent months, the idea of a second term for Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp seemed shaky. Kemp, who has a proven record of conservative, freedom-minded governance in the Peach State — I call him the best governor we’ve had in my lifetime — nevertheless became the target of Donald Trump’s ire when he refused to violate the state constitution and intervene to stop the certification of Georgia’s 2020 election results.
Trump endorsed former Sen. David Perdue as a challenger to Kemp. Perdue has failed to get traction throughout the state. His campaign has struggled to raise money, and even his attempts to capture endorsements from state Republicans have largely failed.
Not only did Georgia Republicans choose not to endorse Perdue, but they also passed a sweeping, historic legislative agenda this year that covered many of Kemp’s priorities for the state.
Earlier this week, my PJ Media colleague Rick Moran wrote that recent polls show that Kemp has an easy path to beating Perdue and the other GOP challengers. Another poll from WXIA (11 Alive) and SurveyUSA shows that Kemp has an even more commanding lead in the primary.
If you were filling out your Republican primary ballot for Governor today, who would you vote for?
- Catherine Davis – 1%
- Brian Kemp – 56%
- David Perdue – 31%
- Kandiss Taylor – 3%
- Tom Williams – 1%
- Undecided – 8%
This is the third major poll in the last two weeks to give the governor a 20+ point edge on Perdue.
The RealClearPolitics polling average since January has Kemp with a 15.3-point advantage.
And there’s more bad news for Perdue. Trump is playing a game of, “Tell me you’ve rescinded your endorsement of David Perdue without telling me you’ve rescinded your endorsement of David Perdue.” A New York Times article published on Friday about Republican challengers to incumbents includes a telling quote.
“Remember, you know, my record is unblemished,” Trump told the Times. “The real story should be on the endorsements — not the David Perdue one — and by the way, no race is over.”
So Trump sees the sinking ship that is David Perdue and is abandoning it. Or, as Erick Erickson puts it, “Perdue meets the underside of the Trump bus now. Wow.”
The news for Kemp is even better. The same 11 Alive poll shows Kemp with 50% support in a head-to-head match with Stacey Abrams, albeit within a margin of error.
If the November election for Georgia Governor were today, and these were the only candidates on the ballot, who would you vote for?
- Brian Kemp – 50%
- Stacey Abrams – 45%
- Undecided – 5%
The RealClearPolitics average looks about the same, with Kemp showing a 5.2% lead over pretend-Gov. Stacey Abrams (D-Grievances).
It’s true that a ton of things can happen between now and November, but right now things are looking great for Brian Kemp. He won’t let up in his campaign, but I’m sure he and his team are breathing a little easier than they did a few months ago.
(Pssst…if you’re with the Kemp campaign and you’re reading this, I’ve been trying for weeks to interview the governor. Please reach out to me!)
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Source: PJ Media
