Associated Press
|
AP
May 19th, 2026
Updated May 19, 2026,
10:55 PM EDT
Billionaire businessman Rick Jackson and Georgia Lt. Gov. Burt Jones will go one more round in the Republican primary for Georgia governor, with the pair outlasting six other candidates on Tuesday and advancing to a June 16 runoff.
Jones had 37% of the vote and Jackson had 35% as of 8:40 p.m., when the Associated Press called the race. A runoff is triggered in Georgia when no candidate gets more than 50% of the vote.
Jones, who comes from a wealthy Georgia family, has contributed $19 million to his campaign. But billionaire Rick Jackson, a health care tycoon, put in more than $83 million of his fortune into the race.
President Donald Trump backs Jones, but his endorsement power has rarely been tested against that level of lopsided spending.
The Jones-Jackson slugfest relegated Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger and Attorney General Chris Carr to a second tier in the race. Raffensperger had 15% of the vote and Carr had 11% as of 8:40 p.m. Four other candidates were left fighting for the remaining oxygen in the race.
The winner of the June runoff will face former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms in the general election. Bottoms won the Democratic primary outright on Tuesday.
Jones, Jackson traded barbs throughout the election
Even with all his family wealth, there was no way for Jones to outspend Jackson. So Jones tried something else — harnessing his leadership of the state Senate to seek an edge over Jackson.
Using his position as lieutenant governor, Jones pushed legislation that would have disqualified Jackson’s company from receiving taxpayer-funded contracts. The proposal failed, but Jones ran a television ad attacking Jackson on the subject at the same time Jones argued he is a “proven leader.”
The episode was another turn in an unexpectedly ugly battle for the Republican nomination.
The state House refused to consider the anti-Jackson proposal, while state senators discarded a plan by the lower chamber to limit property taxes in favor of their own ideas. Jones also irritated House leaders by ignoring a plan to continue using Georgia’s voting machines for one more year until replacements can be arranged, leading Gov. Brian Kemp to call a special session for next month.
Jackson argued that Burt Jones’ work in the legislature was further evidence that the lieutenant governor is corrupt, a message that the health care tycoon was pushing in advertising too.
“From my standpoint, Burt is more concerned about things that are self-interested for him and his family, and he uses the power of that position to enhance his financial situation like he’s done in the past,” Jackson told The Associated Press last month.
The pair ran seemingly nonstop attack ads against each other on television leading up to Tuesday. That’s now assumed to continue into the runoff in June.
