Democratic Sen.Jon Ossoff has won re-election against Republican Rep.
Mike Collins, NBC News projects, prevailing in Georgia after a nationally watched race that was defined, at times, by heated personal attacks.Ossoff’s win is a major hold for Democrats in one of the most closely divided battleground states in the country — and one that both sides saw as critical for control of the Senate earlier this election cycle.
Ossoff grabbed an early advantage in the race and held on, with a massive money advantage and a sizable lead in most public polling.His dominant position in a state where both parties have won in recent years turned heads nationally, and clips of Ossoff’s campaign speeches began to catch on among national Democrats throughout 2026.That prompted some talk of whether Ossoff could run for president in 2028, though the Democratic senator said during a debate that he would serve a full second term.Rep.Mike Collins, R-Ga.Kevin Dietsch / GettyMuch of the race, including two head-to-head debates, focused on the national political atmosphere, with Ossoff tying Collins to President Donald Trump and his low approval rating.
Meanwhile, Collins would often try to pivot to votes Ossoff took under former Democratic President Joe Biden, who left office in January 2025.The economy and the increasingly high price of consumer goods was also at the center of the Georgia Senate race.Ossoff repeatedly tried to get Collins to defend Trump’s tariff regime and the Iran war.Collins would regularly attempt to brush off questions about Trump’s economy, including the tariffs, and instead try to blame Biden-era policies for high costs.“That Bidenomics, that Green New Deal my opponent voted for, that’s where this inflation came from,” Collins said during their first Senate debate.The race also was replete with attacks of a more personal nature.Ossoff focused on a series of social media posts in which Collins’ son-in-law promoted white nationalist posts, as well...