• Georgia Republican Gov. Brian Kemp spurred the 2026 theory this week when he met in Washington, D.C., with Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and National Republican Senate Committee (NRCC) Chairman Steve Daines.
• Several Georgia political experts and Republican consultants told the Daily Caller News Foundation that Kemp is perfectly positioned to defeat Democratic Sen.
• Veteran Georgia Republican operative Brian Robinson told the DCNF, “It’s just a fraction of the powers of the governor of Georgia, with many amenities, but not the details of Buckhead’s mansion or the kind of security he enjoys.” “As Governor of Georgia, he can snap his fingers and make things happen.

Republican Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp fueled rumors of 2026 when he met with leading Republican senators at the Capitol this week, with several political pundits and operatives across the state skeptical that the governor would challenge Democratic Senator John Ossoff when his second term ends.

Kemp, who has overwhelmingly secured his re-election in 2022, made multiple media appearances this week, meeting with Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and Senate Chairman Steve Danes. Georgia politicians and Republican operatives told the Daily Caller News Foundation that Kemp was the perfect candidate to reclaim one of the blue seats, but opinions are divided on whether the governor’s visit to Washington, D.C., represents his 2026 ambitions.

“I think a meeting with McConnell and other Republican senators would heighten speculation that the leader is seriously considering it. Otherwise, why would there be a meeting like that? This guy is not the kind of guy who enjoys the cocktail circuits in Washington and Georgetown. I mean, that’s not him, and the fact that he’s there is very eloquent,” Georgia Republican veteran operative Brian Robinson told DCNF. “No one in Georgia’s Republican politics can recognize his strength as a candidate for 2026.”

The state’s prominent Republican operative Jason Shepherd told DCNF that Kemp’s “conversation” to challenge Ossoff in 2026 began the day after his re-election. Shepard also noted Kemp’s strong fundraising capabilities and a super PAC that would boost his campaign in 2026, but believes a potential Senate bid is still in the “consideration period.”

Republicans have lost several key election campaigns in Georgia in recent cycles, and while Democrats now control both houses of the Senate, Republicans control every other elected office statewide and both houses of the state legislature.

Democratic Senator Rafael Warnock ousted incumbent Republican Senator Kelly Loeffler in the 2020 special election, and Ossoff defeated incumbent Republican Senator David Perdue to win Kemp’s potential seat in the 2020 general election. When Republicans had a chance to reclaim Warnock’s Senate seat in 2022, Republican candidate Herschel Walker narrowly lost.

All three Republicans who lost in the Senate were backed by former President Donald Trump. Dr. Charles Block, “Georgia is anti-Trump,” a professor of political science at the University of Georgia told DCNF. Brock and other Republican operatives argued that Kemp would succeed in challenging Ossoff because he would not run for Trump lane.

“Donald Trump himself, or Republicans who are very close to him, are having a hard time.” [in Georgia]. A lot of them lost, like Herschel Walker, Kelly Loeffler, David Purdue,” Bullock said. “Kemp has no close ties to Trump. So Kemp can attract Georgia’s key swing voters — college-educated white voters — enough people to vote against Trump.”

Republican political consultant Jay Morgan told DCNF that Kemp had discussed with McConnell and Danes how he could help bring the Senate back to a red light, possibly in 2024, and which states he could visit to help candidates campaign.

“Mr Kemp is one of the most famous governors in the nation not running for president, so he will have the time and the freedom to go out and help people,” Morgan said. “He desperately wants the party to move beyond Trump. The way to do that is to elect more people who share his vision of where the country should go.”

Kemp broke with the former president after the 2020 election when the governor refused to back up Trump’s claim that Georgia was stolen from him. Calling Kemp “Trump-plus,” Robinson said the governor has remained popular within the party since then, and has the ability to appeal to “MAGA voters,” “Establishment Republicans,” and independents.

In 2018, Kemp narrowly defeated Democrat Stacey Abrams, 50.2% to 48.8%, and was elected to a second term by an overwhelming majority last fall, beating Abrams by nearly eight points. according to Go to Ballotpedia. Kemp served as state senator and then secretary of state before becoming governor.

Former Georgia Republican Party chairman John Watson told the DCNF that Kemp would be “incredibly formidable” if he were to challenge Ossoff, but said he believes Kemp’s meeting at the Capitol this week was to emphasize to Senate leaders that Georgia must vote red in 2024 in order to have “any chance” of winning a seat in 2026.

“Knowing Brian Kemp and his level of focus and discipline, it was more about convincing Georgia to win in 2024, because if we don’t play a role in the 2024 presidential election by keeping Georgia red, 2026 will only be more of an issue,” Watson said.

“We’re focused on winning Georgia in ’24 and winning the White House,” the governor told reporters after meeting with McConnell on Tuesday. (Related: Rumors of Brian Kemp Stokes’ 2026 Senate bid)

Jay Williams, a Republican political consultant in Georgia, told the DCNF that he did not believe Kemp would run for the Senate in 2026, claiming the governor was just “keeping the options open.”

“Governor Kemp has carried out the job he was elected by the people of Georgia last November and is focused on ensuring that the Republican nominee defeats Joe Biden in Peach State in 2024,” Kemp’s spokesman Cody Hall told DCNF.

Block told the DCNF that he was unsure Kemp would run for the Senate, arguing that becoming “one of the youngest members” in the Senate from governor of Georgia would be a serious loss of power, and would likely consult his wife, Marty, and three daughters when making decisions.

“[Marty] Maybe he’s more interested in continuing his political career than he thinks,” Block said. “So I think he has serious concerns about running for the Senate, but Marty might urge him to do so.”

Robinson echoed Brock’s view, arguing that becoming a senator was a “demotion” from the governorship. Mr. Robinson said Mr. Kemp is likely to be in Washington, D.C., to raise funds for the super PAC and is likely “making a name for himself” by appearing in the media.

“It’s just a fraction of the powers the governor of Georgia has, and it has a lot of amenities, but it doesn’t include the kind of security details that the mansion in Buckhead and the governor have enjoyed,” Robinson said. “As governor of Georgia, he can snap his fingers and make things happen. And as a senator, the only thing he can do by snapping his fingers is probably getting coffee from the staff — it’s day and night.”

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