A crowded Republican primary for the Senate is underway as each candidate takes aim at incumbent Democratic U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff, who is seeking reelection after winning the Senate seat in a 2021 runoff election.
Ossoff won the seat after defeating Republican candidate David Perdue by a margin of just over 1%.
President Donald Trump won Georgia's vote in the 2024 presidential election, making Ossoff's seat a prime target for the Republican Party, in its goal to keep the majority in Congress.
Ossoff is the favorite for the Democratic nomination, but the more crowded Republican primary is up in the air.
Ten candidates are vying for the Republican nomination, with frontrunners Rep. Mike Collins and Buddy Carter leading the charge.
Current U.S. Representative Mike Collins is the self-described "conservative workhorse" of Georgia, with a campaign centered around helping the state's working class.
A Quantus Insights poll conducted on Feb. 17 and 18 shows Collins with a significant lead in the Republican primary, holding over 35% of likely voters, compared to the 11% and 9% held by the other two frontrunners.
However, the poll shows almost 45% of likely voters in the May election are undecided.
Also a current U.S. Representative, Buddy Carter described himself as a "MAGA warrior" on his campaign website.
Former football coach Derek Dooley, however, also has a stake in the race, holding Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp's endorsement.
Dooley's campaign plays into his political outsider status, which sets him apart from the two other top candidates.
Today, I officially qualified to run for the United States Senate and give this seat back to the people of Georgia.
I’m not in this race to get rich or climb the political ladder. I’m running to bring common-sense leadership back to D.C. that will deliver results and always put… pic.twitter.com/oWkljoSzyM
— Derek Dooley (@DerekDooleyGA) March 3, 2026
All three of the top candidates are competing for Trump's endorsement in the election, which would likely put them well ahead of the other two candidates, if recieved.
The candidacy pool for the Senate seat is rounded out by three Independents.
