Perdue to challenge Kemp in Georgia governor primary: report

Former Sen. David Perdue (R-Ga.) will announce his bid to challenge incumbent Gov. Brian Kemp (R-Ga.) in the GOP gubernatorial primary, according to sources who spoke with Politico.

Individuals informed of Perdue’s plans told Politico that the former senator will announce his campaign on Monday via video at the same time as he files the paperwork to run. He has already reportedly begun discussions on receiving an endorsement from former President Trump.

News of Perdue’s gubernatorial campaign comes just days after Democrat Stacey Abrams launched her campaign to unseat Kemp. Abrams ran against Kemp in 2018, losing to him by less than two percent of the vote.

In a stunning defeat at the beginning of this year, Perdue lost his Senate seat to Democrat Jon Ossoff in the Georgia runoff elections. Georgia’s former junior Sen. Kelly Loeffler (R) ended up losing her seat to Democratic candidate Raphael Warnock as well, giving Democrats a slight edge in the Senate. 

In February of this year, Perdue confirmed that he would not be running for U.S. Senate again in 2022, saying that it was “a personal decision, not a political one.”

Politico noted that Kemp had said as recently as last week that Perude told him he had no plans of running for governor either.

“All I know is what Sen. Perdue has told me, I hope he’ll be a man of his word, but again that’s not anything I can control,” said Kemp.

According to Politico, Trump recruited Perdue to challenge Kemp because of the governor’s decision to not block the state’s 2020 presidential election results, resulting in Georgia going to Biden.

Abrams’ entry into the race has already set the stage for one of the most competitive gubernatorial races in the country. Should Perdue clinch the GOP’s nomination, he will have to face off against the woman who many commentators credited with helping oust him from office.