Rep. Buddy Carter announced his plan to run against Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff of Georgia, becoming the first Republican to launch a bid for the seat that the GOP views as a prime opportunity to flip in 2026.
Mr. Carter, who was first elected to represent Georgia’s 1st Congressional District in 2014, pitched himself as a “MAGA warrior” in his campaign announcement video, saying he would be a champion of President Trump’s agenda in the upper chamber.
“Georgians will have a very simple choice in 2026: do you want a MAGA warrior for you or do you want a trans warrior for they/them? I’m with you,” Mr. Carter said on X. “You can guess where Jon Ossoff is.”
Mr. Ossoff was first elected to the Senate in 2021 after defeating former Sen. David Perdue, a Republican who was recently tapped by Mr. Trump to serve as the U.S. ambassador to China.
Ellen Foster, campaign manager for Mr. Ossoff, said in a statement that the incumbent “will defeat any challenger.”
“While the GOP primary field scrambles to outmaneuver each other and audition for Donald Trump’s support, Senator Ossoff’s campaign is already building the most effective and unstoppable turnout effort in Georgia’s history,” she said.
Mr. Carter’s decision to enter the contest comes shortly after Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp decided not to run.
While Georgia currently has two Democratic senators in Mr. Ossoff and Sen. Raphael Warnock, Republicans believed that Mr. Kemp would have shored up enough support among moderates and more conservative voters.
However, Mr. Kemp said in a statement that while he appreciated the encouragement to mount a bid for Senate, “being on the ballot next year is not the right decision for me and my family.”
Mr. Carter, 67, may be the first of many Republican candidates. Other Georgia Republicans, including Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene, Mike Collins and Rich McCormick have all floated the possibility of launching a Senate bid to challenge Mr. Ossoff.
Senate Republicans currently control 53 seats to Democrats’ 47, and aim to expand their slim majority in 2026. While the map is largely favorable to the GOP, with many longtime Democratic senators retiring, the Georgia Senate race is the seat that Republicans are most confident they can flip.
The National Republican Senatorial Committee, the Senate GOP’s campaign arm, has so far not thrown its support behind a Republican candidate.
“Buddy Carter is right that Georgia deserves better than a pro-impeachment radical like Jon Ossoff as its senator, and we remain confident that voters will retire him next year,” NRSC spokesperson Nick Puglia said.
