Live Results: Georgia midterm Republican primary runoff

Leave your feedback Share Copy URL https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/live-results-georgia-midterm-republican-primary-runoff Email Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Tumblr Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Live Results: Georgia midterm Republican primary runoff Politics Jun 16, 2026 3:15 PM EDT WASHINGTON (AP) — Georgia Republicans will finalize their picks in marquee races for U.S. Senate and governor in a state primary runoff election on Tuesday. Voters will also select nominees for several congressional and state legislative districts, lieutenant governor, secretary of state and a handful of other contests in which no candidate received a majority of the vote in the May 19 primary. READ MORE: What to watch in midterm primaries and runoffs in Alabama, Georgia, D.C. and more U.S. Rep. Mike Collins and former University of Tennessee football coach Derek Dooley are the finalists for the Republican nomination to challenge U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff in November. Ousting Ossoff would give Republicans more breathing room as they defend competitive seats in Alaska, Maine, Ohio, North Carolina and elsewhere. Republicans can afford to lose up to three of their current 53 Senate seats and still maintain control of the chamber with Vice President JD Vance casting tiebreaking votes. Educate your inbox Subscribe to Here’s the Deal, our politics newsletter for analysis you won’t find anywhere else. Collins was the top vote-getter in the May 19 primary among the field of five. He received about 41% of the vote by amassing sizable wins in smaller, more rural counties across the state, as well as in some larger counties north of the Atlanta area. Dooley's path to the runoff looked quite different. He carried only 14 of Georgia's 159 counties, but they included five of the six most populous: Fulton, Gwinnett, Cobb, DeKalb and Clayton. He also carried Clarke County, which includes the University of Georgia in Athens. Overall, he received about 30% of the primary vote. U.S. Rep. Earl "Buddy" Carter was the close third-place finisher. The 25% of voters who backed Carter in the primary could help either Collins or Dooley clinch the nomination. Carter had a base of support that much more closely resembled Collins' rather than Dooley's. Carter performed best in the small, rural counties clustered in southeastern Georgia, which significantly overlaps with the 1st Congressional District he represents. Carter and Collins are also more closely identified with President Donald Trump's "Make America Great Again" movement, whereas Dooley says he didn't vote in the 2016 or 2020 presidential elections. Trump did not endorse a candidate during the primary campaign, but he endorsed Collins on Sunday for the runoff. Outgoing Republican Gov. Brian Kemp endorsed Dooley, which likely helped him edge out Carter. READ MORE: Georgia GOP scrambles to pick candidate to face Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff Trump did endorse in the competitive Republican primary for governor. His pick, Lt. Gov.