MARCO ISLAND, FL – EXCLUSIVE – Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, the brand new chair of the Republican Governors Affiliation, says a high mission for GOP governors going ahead will probably be serving to President-elect Trump.
Kemp highlighted in a Fox Information Digital interview that Republican governors spent the previous 4 years “pushing back” on President Biden’s administration.
And chatting with the media for the primary time after being elected RGA chair on the group’s annual winter assembly – held this yr at a waterfront resort in southwest Florida – the favored conservative two-term governor stated on Wednesday that “we need to focus on making sure that we’re getting the Trump administration off to a strong start.”
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Republican Gov. Jeff Landry, talking on the podium, is joined by (left to proper) Govs. Mike Dunleavy of Alaska, Chris Sununu of New Hampshire, Brian Kemp of Georgia, Kevin Stitt of Oklahoma, Glenn Younkgin of Virginia, and Doug Burgum of North Dakota, at a information convention to criticize President Biden’s power coverage, on June 3, 2024 at an oil refinery in Chalmette, Louisiana (Fox Information – Paul Steinhauser)
For 2 years following his 2020 election loss to President Biden, Trump closely criticized Kemp for refusing to assist overturn his razor-thin defeat in Georgia.
Trump urged, after which supported, a 2022 GOP gubernatorial main problem towards Kemp by former Sen. David Perdue. However the former president toned down his criticism of the governor after Kemp crushed Perdue to simply win renomination on his strategy to re-election.
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However Trump, at a rally in Atlanta in August, unexpectedly went on a tirade towards the Georgia governor – solely to publicly reward Kemp only a few weeks later in a significant about-face for the previous president. And the 2 politicians teamed up in October – for the primary time in 4 years – to survey hurricane injury in Georgia.
Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump shakes fingers with Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp after talking at a short lived reduction shelter as he visits areas impacted by Hurricane Helene, Friday, Oct. 4, 2024, in Evans, Ga. (AP Picture/Evan Vucci) (AP Picture/Evan Vucci)
Kemp, trying ahead to working once more with a Republican White Home administration, stated that “from the governors’ perspective, we’ve got two years to make them successful and help them be successful up there, and to undo what the Biden-Harris administration has done.”
Republicans held onto the 27-23 gubernatorial benefit on this month’s elections, thanks partially to the efforts of the RGA.
“We’re ready to keep working as we move into what will be a tough cycle for us in Virginia, in New Jersey [the only two states to hold elections for governor in 2025] and then having 36 races in 2026.”
Kemp emphasised that “my goal is for us to continue to raise enough money to be competitive. The Democrats are out spending us because they have big check writers, but we have a lot of really dedicated donors. We’ll try to continue to build the tent, make sure that we have good candidates and win because our policies are better.”
Republican Gov. Brian Kemp of Georgia is interviewed by Fox Information Digital, on Sept. 27, 2022 in Alpharetta, Georgia, throughout his re-election marketing campaign. (Fox Information )
Kemp stated his comfy re-election in 2022 and Trump’s victory in Georgia earlier this month within the presidential election “gives us a lot of confidence, a lot of hope, but we also know that the ’26 midterm is going to be tough.”
Kemp is term-limited and may’t search one other time period in workplace in 2026. The competition to succeed him will probably be a high gubernatorial election in two years.
“I’m gonna be very engaged, you can rest assured, to making sure that my [successors] are Republican. I have a vested interest in doing that,” Kemp stated. “We’ll be working with the Trump administration and a lot of other people to make sure that that’s happening not only in Georgia, but in other states around the country, in places like Kansas, where we have a Democratic governor right now, in places like Arizona, where we have a really good shot at winning the governor’s races. So we’re going to be on offense.”
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Georgia may even have a high-profile Senate showdown, as Republicans intention to defeat Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff in 2026.
Requested if he’ll be courted by nationwide Republicans to tackle Ossoff, Kemp responded “well, I may.”
However he shortly pivoted, stressing that “my focus right now, being just elected the chairman of the Republican Governors Association, is on raising money for us to be competitive in 2025 and 2026. I’ve made the commitment to do that, and I’m gonna fulfill that commitment. We’ll see what happens down the road with anything else.”
Requested if he is not ruling out a attainable 2026 Senate bid or perhaps a 2028 White Home run, the governor diplomatically stated “I try to keep all doors open in politics.”
