Rick Jackson beats Burt Jones for Georgia GOP governor nomination
Jackson defeated Lt. Gov. Burt Jones in Tuesday’s runoff and will face Democrat Keisha Lance Bottoms in November
ATLANTA (41NBC/WMGT) — Rick Jackson has won Georgia’s Republican nomination for governor, defeating Lt. Gov. Burt Jones in Tuesday’s runoff after Jones led the field in last month’s primary.
Jackson will face Democratic nominee Keisha Lance Bottoms in the November general election. Bottoms is the former mayor of Atlanta and served in the Biden administration.
Unofficial and incomplete results posted by the Georgia Secretary of State’s Office showed Jackson with 52.63% of the vote Tuesday night.
Jones entered the runoff with major Republican backing. President Donald Trump endorsed Jones earlier in the race, and Gov. Brian Kemp endorsed him over the weekend.
Jackson campaigned as a political outsider and businessman, saying he would be Trump’s “favorite governor.”
“The SEC championship is over — on to the national championship,” Jackson told supporters Tuesday night, according to the Associated Press. “Thank you, Georgia.”
Jackson also pointed to his outsider status after the runoff win.
“I’m the only candidate who doesn’t owe a thing to the political establishment,” Jackson said. “I can’t be bought and I won’t back down.”
Jackson gave his campaign more than $93 million of his own money, according to the Associated Press, making him one of the biggest self-funded candidates in U.S. history. He also spoke about his upbringing during his victory speech.
“I know what it’s like to feel like nobody sees you,” Jackson said. “I had seven different stepfathers and a mother who battled alcoholism. I lived with five different foster families and attended 13 different schools. But with God’s help, I built a business, created thousands of jobs and lived the American dream.”
Jones called the result “unfortunate” in remarks to supporters Tuesday night, according to the Associated Press.
“We had a great Election Day,” he said. We just didn’t have enough runway to get it all the way there.”
He thanked Jackson and congratulated him on his win.
“We were outspent probably seven or eight to one, and it was a very competitive race, and we felt like we had a chance to win tonight and just came up a little short,” Jones said.
Bottoms, a Democrat, is seeking to become the first Black woman elected governor of a U.S. state. Her campaign released the following statement Tuesday night:
“Rick Jackson is focused on enriching himself as Georgians are losing their health care coverage and are forced to pay soaring costs. Jackson has made more than a billion dollars off of a no-bid state contract for his health care company, but he opposes Medicaid expansion to lower the cost of health care. Georgians deserve a governor who is focused on ensuring they have every opportunity to thrive and who will fight for them when Donald Trump’s reckless policies hurt Georgia – that’s what I will do as governor. I will get to work to lower costs, expand Medicaid, and invest in Georgians’ education.”
