Former President Donald Trump may have not been on Georgia’s primary ballot, but he was nonetheless often on the losing side after Tuesday’s election. Four of his endorsed statewide candidates lost, raising questions about the durability of his political brand as he plots a comeback.

What You Need To Know

  • Four of the statewide candidates endorsed by former President Donald Trump lost in Georgia's primary on Tuesday, raising questions about the durability of his political brand as he plots a comeback

  • Former U.S. Senator David Perdue, Trump’s recruit to challenge Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, frequently invoked 2020 falsehoods on the campaign trail, but still ultimately lost to Kemp

  • Brad Raffensperger also emerged the winner in the primary for secretary of state – the same person who oversaw the 2020 election, rebuffing Trump’s calls to find enough votes to flip the Peach State his way

  • A Trump spokesperson didn’t provide a comment from the former president for this story – but Trump wrote on social media that it was a "very big and successful evening of political Endorsements” 

“In Georgia, he took a beating,” Tom Davis, a former Republican congressman from Virginia, told Spectrum News.

Trump’s picks have lost before – including for governor in Nebraska and Idaho – while he has notched victories in primaries for a U.S. Senate seat in North Carolina. And there is still limited data from 2022 to make any confident statements about future elections. 

Still, what happened to Trump in Georgia may point to his diminished appeal – at least temporarily.

For one, the losses cut at an animating force for Trump’s political operation: the false claim his 2020 presidential defeat was due to fraud.

He staked that claim – and millions of dollars – in trying to oust Gov. Brian Kemp, who drew his ire for certifying Joe Biden’s win in the state during the 2020 Presidential election. Three recounts affirmed Biden’s narrow victory.

Former U.S. Senator David Perdue, Trump’s recruit to challenge Kemp, frequently invoked the 2020 falsehoods on the campaign trail. Still, Kemp won by more than 50 points.

The margin was narrower in the Republican primary for Georgia’s secretary of state. But Brad Raffensperger still emerged the winner – the same person who oversaw the 2020 election, rebuffing Trump’s calls to find enough votes to flip the Peach State his way.

On Tuesday, Raffensperger received about 52% of the vote – to about 33% of the vote to Rep. Jody Hice, Trump’s pick.

“While there is survey data to show that a majority of Republicans think that something nefarious went on in 2020, these voters care about more than just voter fraud,” said Andra Gillespie, a professor of political science at Emory University in Atlanta. “So you can't run an election solely on the issue of voter fraud.”

Trump is the very early favorite for the 2024 GOP presidential nomination. But Georgia may have dented his status, not just for the overwhelming losses of his picks, but for the platform that it provided to potential rivals. Mike Pence, his own vice president, stumped for Kemp on election eve.

“Elections are about the future,” Pence told a rally. “There are those who want to make this election about the past.”

Pence followed with an attack on Democrat Stacey Abrams, who now faces Kemp in the general election for a rematch of the 2018 gubernatorial race. But in focusing on the future, it seemed possible Pence may have had a fellow Republican in mind – though he did not name names.

Kemp himself steered clear of outwardly criticizing the former president, instead focusing his primary campaign on beating Abrams in November while touting his conservative record as governor.

“I had a great relationship with President Trump. I've never said anything bad about him. I don't plan on doing that,” Kemp said at a virtual news conference this week. “I'm not mad at him, I think he's just mad at me and that's just something I can't control."

Another former Trump ally was more blunt. Chris Christie, the former New Jersey governor also thought to be plotting another presidential bid, stumped with Kemp.

“I am so proud of and happy for my friend – and just as importantly for the Georgia GOP and the people of Georgia,” Christie wrote on Twitter after the race. “They were not going to kick out a great Governor or be willing participants in the DJT Vendetta Tour.”

A Trump spokesperson didn’t provide a comment from the former president for this story – but Trump wrote on social media that it was a "very big and successful evening of political Endorsements” adding some contests “were not possible to win.”

“There are certain Trump acolytes, people who love Donald Trump, that his word is still gospel,” noted Davis, the former GOP congressman. “He's still the 800-pound gorilla within the Republican Party. But Georgia should lay bare to everybody that it's not invincible and he's not invincible.”

Spectrum News' Rachel Tillman contributed to this report.