Republican poll indicates Kemp leading Ossoff in theoretical Georgia Senate contest
Ossoff, a first-term Democrat, would outpace other possible Republican challengers.
The survey, conducted by WPA Intelligence for the Club for Growth and shared with PMG, revealed that Ossoff is ahead by double digits against various other Republican candidates.
In the direct comparison, Kemp secured 46 percent of the vote against Ossoff’s 40 percent, with 14 percent of respondents undecided.
In contrast, Ossoff demonstrated significant leads over several GOP contenders: he was ahead of Rep. Buddy Carter by 13 points, Rep. Mike Collins by 10 points, insurance commissioner John King by 16 points, Rep. Rich McCormick by 11 points, and Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger by 14 points.
The poll surveyed 500 likely Senate voters in mid-January and has a margin of error of 4.4 points.
As the most prominent Republican figure in Georgia, Kemp has yet to announce any intention to run for Senate in 2026, although he has mentioned a potential 2028 presidential bid. He currently holds the chair position for the Republican Governors Association.
The 2026 Senate landscape presents limited opportunities, with Georgia being one of the GOP's prime targets for pickup.
Kemp's relationship with former President Donald Trump has been complicated, with Trump expressing frustration toward Kemp and other Georgia GOP leaders for not attempting to revoke President Joe Biden’s victory in the state following the 2020 election.
However, after noticing a tightening race against Kamala Harris last summer, Trump was reportedly advised by friends and counselors to mend fences with Kemp, despite previously labeling him as a “bad guy” and “average governor.”
Ossoff made his way into politics by winning a January 2021 election against GOP Senator David Perdue, a runoff that occurred in the wake of Trump's loss and the former president's remarks that discouraged GOP trust in the state’s election processes. This led to a notable drop in GOP voter turnout during the runoff.
Ossoff's first notable electoral attempt was in 2017 for a suburban Georgia House seat, where he lost to Republican Karen Handel. However, her tenure was brief, as she lost the seat to now-Rep. Lucy McBath in 2018.
In the 2020 presidential election, Trump carried Georgia by a narrow margin of just over 2 percentage points, defeating Harris with 50.7 percent to her 48.5 percent.
The poll indicated that Kemp enjoys a favorability rating of 58 percent among state voters, while Trump’s favorability stands at 48 percent and Ossoff’s at 45 percent.
Allen M Lee contributed to this report for TROIB News