Trump endorses Rick Jackson in Georgia governor's race
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President Trump, left, endorsed Rick Jackson in his campaign to become Georgia's next governor at a campaign rally in Cobb County. Photo: Courtesy of Elijah Nouvelage/Bloomberg via Getty Images
President Donald Trump has endorsed Republican Rick Jackson in his bid to become Georgia's next governor.
Why it matters: Trump's endorsement Wednesday gives Jackson's campaign the MAGA seal of approval that could rally Republicans ahead of the Nov. 3 general election.
Driving the news: Trump handed out endorsements during an event billed as highlighting Trump Accounts for children that quickly turned into a campaign rally at Cobb County's Wheeler High School.
- Cobb County was once a Republican stronghold that propelled politicians like Newt Gingrich and Bob Barr to power in Congress.
- Since 2016, the county has shifted blue with voters backing Democratic presidential candidates over the last decade, and nearly all countywide partisan positions have been held by Democrats.
- The only holdout is the Cobb County Board of Education where the GOP members hold a slim 4-3 majority.
What they're saying: Trump said he was a big fan of Lt. Gov. Burt Jones, who lost the GOP primary to Jackson despite Trump's endorsement. But he said he's watched Jackson, who donated $1 million to Trump's political operation, run and "it was amazing what he was able to do."
- "He decided he wanted to be governor because he thought he could do some really incredible things for the state... and I'm very pleased to be joined today by a true champion for the people," Trump said of Jackson.
- Jackson said if he's elected, he would urge the state Legislature to match how much the federal government is contributing toward the Trump Accounts.
- Jackson, a billionaire health care businessman, also said he's "going to bring business solutions to solve real problems."
- "The other side talks about affordability as if that's a solution," he said. "Affordability is not a political problem. Affordability is a business problem. It requires business solutions, just like this man's [Trump] been doing all his life."
- Trump also encouraged voters to back U.S. Rep. Mike Collins in his campaign to unseat incumbent Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff.
The other side: Democrat Keisha Lance Bottoms, who is running against Jackson to become the state's 84th governor, said in a statement that Jackson would "work for Donald Trump," but she would expand Medicaid, make pre-kindergarten more widely available and lower costs.
- "I will also stand up to anyone — including Donald Trump — if their policies hurt Georgians," the former Atlanta mayor said.
State of play: Roughly 100 protesters lined the street outside the school ahead of the rally.
- Some held signs that read, "Stop denying science," "Trump defunds our futures" and "History has its eyes on you."
- Chalk messages on the sidewalk in front of the school also expressed opposition to Trump's policies. One message read "Immigrants make America great."
Between the lines: The venue for the rally was the source of contention a few years ago when Wheeler High School students pushed to rename the school, which opened in 1965 and was named after Confederate general Joseph Wheeler.
- Their requests were not taken up by district officials.
By the numbers: The Cobb County School District is Georgia's second-largest, with 105,738 students, and is the county's largest employer, with more than 17,000 employees.
- "What a truly great honor it is for us to be able to host and welcome the President of the United States," said Superintendent Chris Ragsdale, who has leaned into Republican-led calls to remove books deemed sexually explicit from school libraries.
What we're watching: Whether Trump's endorsement will boost Jackson in the polls. A recent poll shows Bottoms leading 51-44 among undecided voters, according to the AJC.