(Recorder of Georgia) Republican John King said on Thursday that he would run for a second term as Georgia’s insurance commissioner, abandoning his candidacy for the U.S. Senate.
At a time when other well-known Republicans, such as former Tennessee football coach Derek Dooley and U.S. Representative Mike Collins, are becoming more and more likely to enter the race, King made his announcement on social media.
King stated in a statement, “I entered the U.S. Senate race to defeat Jon Ossoff, not to divert attention from the mission.” I’m stopping my campaign today since it’s evident that there isn’t much of a road ahead to the nomination.
King recently announced that he has raised $518,000 to support his campaign, which was less than the $3.5 million raised by Republican Congressman Buddy Carter. In contrast, Ossoff said that it raised over $41 million in the most recent quarter.
When King was first appointed to the position in 2019, Governor Brian Kemp hailed him as the first Hispanic constitutional official to hold a statewide office. After defeating a Trump-endorsed candidate in the GOP primary, he was elected to the position in 2022.
King stated in the statement before leaving the Senate race, “I will do everything in my power to keep Georgia’s state offices red and support a Senate nominee who supports President Trump’s agenda.”
In May, King began his Senate campaign. The only Democratic senator running for reelection in a state that President Donald Trump won in 2024 is Ossoff, who won the seat in 2020. In Georgia last year, Trump defeated former Vice President Kamala Harris by almost 115,000 votes.
According to reports, party leaders—especially Kemp and Trump—have been secretly searching for a candidate who can bring the fractured Republican party together. From such discussions, no candidate has yet to be formally announced.
