Nursing grievances over 2020, Trump returns to Georgia seeking allies
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[March 28, 2022] By
Joseph Ax
(Reuters) -In a test of his enduring
influence over the Republican Party, former President Donald Trump
returned to Georgia on Saturday to stump for allies who support his
ongoing false claims that the 2020 election was stolen from him -
starting with Georgia.
At a rally in Commerce, a small city northeast of Atlanta, Trump spent
the first 20 minutes of his speech repeating falsehoods about the
outcome, calling Governor Brian Kemp, a fellow Republican, a "turncoat"
and "coward" for failing to reverse the results.
Trump has invested significant political capital in the state, endorsing
a slate of statewide candidates in an effort to oust Kemp and his
allies. The May 24 primary election will provide perhaps the clearest
assessment yet of Trump's ability to play kingmaker in the 2022
elections.
It will also offer an early measure of how Republican candidates attempt
to strike a balance between Trump's obsession with the 2020 election and
national Republican leaders' preference to focus on President Joe
Biden's record in office.
"This is a really hard test for him – and a crucial one," said Alan
Abramowitz, a political science professor at Emory University in
Atlanta. "Trump is still well liked by Republican voters, but that
doesn't necessarily mean that they are going to base their choice in a
primary on his endorsement."
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2022/Mar/28/images/ads/current/graue_preowned_031922.png)
Polls have shown Kemp holding a comfortable lead over Trump's preferred
candidate, former U.S. Senator David Perdue, despite Trump's frequent
criticisms of the incumbent governor.
In addition to Perdue, Trump has endorsed U.S. Representative Jody Hice,
who is challenging Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger.
Raffensperger rejected Trump's demand that he alter the outcome and
declared the 2020 election fair and accurate after a series of audits
and reviews.
Trump also endorsed down-ballot challengers for attorney general,
lieutenant governor and even insurance commissioner, in each case siding
with candidates taking on officials he blames for not fighting harder to
substantiate his fraud claims.
Biden won Georgia by less than a quarter of a percentage point, becoming
the first Democrat to win the state in nearly 30 years.
"What we're starting to see is that his endorsement does not appear so
far to be giving the type of automatic bump to candidates that we've
seen in the past," said Amy Steigerwalt, a political science professor
at Georgia State University.
A spokesperson for Perdue said his support would only grow as more
voters become aware of Trump's endorsement. A spokesperson for Trump did
not respond to a request for comment.
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![](../images/032822PIX/news_i17.jpg)
Former U.S. President Donald Trump throws a "Make America Great
Again" cap during a rally in Commerce, Georgia, U.S. March 26, 2022.
REUTERS/Alyssa Pointer
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2022/Mar/28/images/ads/current/rohlfs_lda_072017.png) TRUMP STILL PUSHING ELECTION
FALSEHOODS
Republicans worry that a split in the ranks could open the door for
Democratic gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams, the voting rights
activist who narrowly lost to Kemp in 2018, to win November's
rematch.
Some Republicans already believe Trump's rhetoric
following the November 2020 election helped cost the party twin
Senate runoff elections in Georgia in January 2021, handing
Democrats control of the chamber.
A spokesperson for Kemp's campaign, Tate Mitchell, said, "Governor
Kemp is focused on winning the endorsement of Georgia Republicans on
May 24th and making sure Stacey Abrams is never our governor."
Trump remains the party's leading figure, and Republican candidates
from across the country continue to seek his support. But he has
made clear he expects his allies to commit to his false assertion
that Biden's victory in 2020 was illegitimate, a claim that has been
repeatedly debunked by courts, vote audits and election officials.
Earlier this week, Trump rescinded his endorsement of U.S.
Representative Mo Brooks for a Senate race in Alabama after Brooks
told voters it was time to move on from the 2020 election.
Perdue, who lost his Senate seat in 2020, echoed Trump's claims
during remarks at Saturday's rally, telling the crowd that both
their elections were "stolen" and vowing that those responsible
would "go to jail."
Some Republicans, including Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell,
have urged the party to put 2020 behind it and focus on Biden's
performance. Historically, the party that occupies the White House
has lost seats in Congress during a president's first midterm
election.
Georgia Lieutenant Governor Geoff Duncan, a Republican who is not
running for reelection, founded a group, GOP 2.0, aimed at moving
the party beyond Trump.
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2022/Mar/28/images/ads/current/hopedaleag_daily_sda_SFARM_2022.png)
The organization released an advertisement this week attacking Trump
and Perdue for preferring to talk about "conspiracy theories and
past losses" rather than offering a vision for the future.
(Reporting by Joseph Ax; Editing by Colleen Jenkins and Daniel
Wallis)
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