Derek Dooley, Governor Brian Kemp's candidate, enters Georgia's Republican Senate primary

Derek Dooley announced his candidacy for the Senate in Georgia in 2026. Gov. Brian Kemp is expected to position himself behind the lawyer and former college soccer coach, as he sees him as the candidate with the best chance of winning the general election. Dooley joins a competitive Republican primary, which already includes congressmen Buddy Carter and Mike Collins. The winner will seek to unseat Democratic incumbent Jon Ossoff.

Dooley, 57, made his intentions public through a video posted on social media. There, he highlighted his sports experience and presented himself as a common-sense candidate aligned with Donald Trump.

"I spent three decades in coaching, probably doing the exact opposite of what a lot of D.C. politicians were doing. I sat in kitchens and living rooms with people from all walks of life. The only thing that mattered was trying to create hope and opportunity for them and that family," the Republican said in the announcement.

"Trump campaigned on things, and he’s turned them into results. I haven’t known a president in my lifetime who’s been able to achieve these kinds of results. (...) We need new leadership, that's why I'm running for Senate. I'm Derek Dooley. I'm going to work with President Trump, fight for you and I'm always going to put Georgia first," he added.

The candidate is the son of Vince Dooley, the storied coach who won a national championship with the Georgia Bulldogs in 1980.

While Dooley is not well known among Republicans in the state, he was recruited by a family friend: Governor Kemp. The GOP primary in the Peach State will take place on May 19, 2026. According to its electoral system, if no candidate exceeds 50% of the vote, there will be a runoff between the top two vote-getters.

The outsider's campaign told Politico that they will seek to win Trump's endorsement.

Trump, Kemp and the Republican dilemma over Georgia Senate nominations

Senate nominations have been a bone of contention for Georgia Republicans in recent years. The tension was between the two leaders with the most political clout in the state: former President Donald Trump and Governor Brian Kemp.

In both 2020 and, especially, 2022-when Trump went so far as to endorse David Perdue to try to defeat Kemp-there was no consensus on the party's candidates, resulting in internal fracturing. As a result, the Democrats won with Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock.

In this context, the Georgia Republican Party hoped to nominate a candidate with a real chance of winning a general election in a purple state. To that end, the idea was that, following their 2024 reconciliation, Kemp and Trump would endorse the same candidate, thus avoiding a competitive and potentially damaging primary. Indeed, the two met specifically to shuffle names in mid-May.

Since they failed to agree on which candidate was the best, a tough primary between the three leading candidates is expected.

Kemp, who is also very close to Collins, called the congressmen weeks ago to notify them that he would back Dooley. However, both opted to stay in the race.

The governor and his entourage understand that the former coach is the Republican option with the best chance of beating Ossoff. As for Trump, he has yet to make a statement on who he will endorse in this election.