WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Republican Governor Brian Kemp of Georgia, who gained national notice by refusing to cooperate with President Donald Trump’s effort to overturn his 2020 election defeat, on Monday said he will not run for a U.S. Senate seat next year.
“I have decided that being on the ballot next year is not the right decision for me and my family,” Kemp said on social media.
His decision removes a key rival to incumbent Democratic Senator Jon Ossoff in what is expected to be one of the most competitive U.S. Senate races next year, in a state that Trump won in November.
Control of the Senate and House of Representatives will be up for grabs. Incumbent presidents’ parties typically lose seats in midterm elections, but Democrats face an uphill battle in trying to take control of the Senate where Republicans now hold a 53-47 majority.
In addition to Georgia, Democrats will be trying to hold on to seats in the competitive states of Michigan, Minnesota and New Hampshire and will need to recruit new candidates in all three after incumbents opted to retire. Republican incumbents, meanwhile, will be defending seats in Maine, North Carolina and Ohio, all of which are seen as at least possibly competitive by nonpartisan political ratings services.
Were Democrats to sweep all seven contests, they would also need to capture a seat in a deeply Republican state such as Texas or Florida to take the majority in the chamber.
In Georgia, hardline Republican Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene, an avid Trump supporter, has been hinting at running for Senate or governor next year.
Asked by reporters about Kemp’s decision, Senate Majority Leader John Thune, a Republican, said, “Obviously, we’re disappointed about that.” Thune added: “He, of course, would have been a great candidate.”
In the chaotic aftermath of the 2020 presidential election sown by Trump, Kemp refused to heed Trump’s demand to take steps that could have reversed Democrat Joe Biden’s win in the state.
(Reporting by Richard Cowan and David Morgan; Editing by Scott Malone and Edward Tobin)
