Ahead of 2026 Georgia election, is the traditional campaign launch a thing of the past?

When Republican State Sen. Brian Strickland launched his 2026 campaign for Georgia attorney general this week, he did something unusual. 

Instead of just releasing a digital video, he made his announcement in person.

In a blue suit, no tie and cowboy boots with the gold dome of the Georgia Capitol behind him, Strickland and his wife got in front of a stand of microphones and shared the news.

“We’re proud to run on my reputation and my record as a conservative fighter that knows how to win,” he told a gaggle of reporters.

Strickland, a lawyer from McDonough who has served in the state Senate since 2018, joins State Sen. Bill Cowsert in seeking the GOP nomination. No prominent Democrat has declared.

Once a political staple, the traditional campaign launch has become a rarity, says University of Georgia political science professor Audrey Haynes.

“What would have been a situation 20 years ago where you gather up a bunch of people and you have word of mouth, now it is digital, digital, digital,” she says.

How 2026 candidates are introducing themselves online

Haynes says slick video announcements can be shared again and again, broadening the reach beyond traditional news outlets, and they avoid some of the potential pitfalls of an in-person announcement.

“What if it rains? What if no one shows up? What if there’s a heckler?” Haynes says.

Carefully-crafted digital announcements also allow candidates to introduce themselves on their own terms as they work to build statewide name recognition and break through the news cycle so far ahead of the primary, which is nearly a year away.

That’s how Republican Attorney General Chris Carr launched his campaign for governor this year.

“We will write the next great chapter in our story,” Carr narrates, as footage rolls of the candidate talking with voters at a restaurant, around a kitchen table and in a barn.

Though Democratic State Rep. Derrick Jackson is planning an in-person launch on Friday, other Democratic contenders for governor also launched with digital videos. 

State Sen. Jason Esteves is shown in a blue jersey playing basketball.