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Sign up to receive this newsletter in your inbox every weekday here.— Adam WollnerThe places to watch in Alabama and Georgia tonightAnalysis by Steve KornackiThe power of President Donald Trump’s endorsement will be put to the test in three high-profile Republican primary runoffs today.In the Georgia Senate race, the president threw his support behind Rep.Mike Collins, who finished first in the May 19 primary with 41%, over the weekend.
He is facing off against former football coach Derek Dooley, who came in second with 30%.Collins is the clear favorite.In the initial primary, he demonstrated a geographic breadth of support that Dooley didn’t match, winning a majority of the states’ 159 counties and finishing second everywhere else.Critically, this includes the Savannah-based 1st Congressional District, where a third candidate — Rep.
Buddy Carter, the local congressman — posted blowout margins.Collins finished second in the district, while Dooley struggled to break single digits there.
This should position Collins to make inroads with the newly up-for-grabs Carter voters who loom large in the runoff.Dooley’s support, meanwhile, was much more concentrated in the primary.He fared best in the Atlanta metro area, home to a professional-class voter base that has proven willing to defy Trump in past primaries.
Dooley won only 13 counties, but they were generally large counties that together accounted for 25% of all v...